Tropical Fish Forum

Tropical Fish Keeping Help and Advice => Fishtank Filtration and Cycling => Topic started by: Rustle on November 12, 2017, 01:12:17 PM

Title: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: Rustle on November 12, 2017, 01:12:17 PM
Sorry to be a pest but i just want to check something before i add guppys and make sure i am not overstocked or the bioload will cause an ammonia spike etc.


Thinkfish  Stocking calculator  comes to 74% with 180cm maximum level and 143cm used with an internal filter with what i have at the moment, but adding 3 guppys it comes to 79%. The juwel powerhead was a 600 but changed it to a 1000 months ago does that make it an oversized internal filter capacity as it turns the water over quicker or am i barking up the wrong tree here.

If it makes it an oversized internal filter then my stock level becomes 66% with a maximum of 216 cm and 143 cm used

Stocklist

12 Harlequin Rasboras
6   Lampeyes
8   Julli Corys
6   Cherry Barbs
2   Honey Gouramis
8   Neon  Tetras

Nitrite  0
Ammonia  0
Nitrate  20
PH  7.4

25% water change weekly
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: Matt on November 12, 2017, 02:50:36 PM
You shouldn't had any problems adding the three guppies in a mature tank of your size, both in terms of total billboard and you should not also see an ammonia spike (though monitoring for one never hurts!)

I do not believe your upgrade makes your filter oversized.... we normally consider an oversized filter to be one that has double the biological media capacity.  Flow rate is one thing, actual room for beneficial bacteria to grow is another. Additional flow won't hurt though... the more powerful filter flow will ensure smaller particles (which would release ammonia as they decay) don't fall to the bottom so easily and can get picked up by the filter etc.

You will have no doubt increased the capacity for fish in your tank but I would personally view this as "I can have more confidence to move to a higher percentage stocking", rather than "I can now 'overstock' the tank".

Is your nitrate reading of 20 before or after a water change? Ideally you would want this to stay below 25 between water changes with your chosen stocking level. (A filter converts fish waste i.e. ammonia to nitrate so this is a useful indicator of your potential stocking level!)
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: Sue on November 12, 2017, 02:51:21 PM
To be honest, the idea that more filtration means more fish is outdated. The amount of filtration is not important. What is important is that the tank can remove all the ammonia made by the fish. And it can be either bacteria or plants or both that remove this ammonia.
Adding more filtration does not mean you can add more fish, except that possibly you can add a few more with an external as these effectively increase the volume of water in the tank. The concept behind the community creator allowing more fish with more filtration was current when the CC was created several years ago, but modern thinking is that filtration should not affect stocking provided the filter can remove all the ammonia.
It is quite possible to run a tank without a filter provided it is heavily stocked with fast growing plants which will remove ammonia as fast as the fish can excrete it. And of course there will be micro-organism of all sorts, including ammonia and nitrite eaters, living in the bioilm on every surface in the tank, and in the substrate.

There are so many other factors to take into account when stocking a tank.
Did you know that if you have 12 neons they won't make double the bioload of 6. This is because the 'happier' a fish is, the less it affects the bioload, and shoaling fish are 'happier' the more they are. The metabolism of stressed fish is higher than that of 'happy' fish.

I would always use the 'standard internal' figure for stocking, with maybe a bit more for externals but not as much as the CC says.

So yes, get the guppies  :)


The other old belief about filters is that there is no such thing as over filtration. There is such a thing. We have to take into account the behaviour of the fish and the nature of the water they evolved in. For example, angelfish. These fish don't swim as such, they cruise along. Put them in a high water flow and they would be very stressed. They need slow moving water. But other fish come from fast moving streams, and they need a high water flow. These fish would be stressed in the slow water flow needed by angelfish.
All the fish you list are slow water fish.





But looking at your post, I would increase your water changes to 50% weekly.
What is the nitrate level in your tap water? Tank nitrate should not exceed 20 ppm, though with the ampunt in tap water in some areas, that is quite tricky to achieve.
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: Rustle on November 12, 2017, 03:58:19 PM
Thank you Sue that is great to know. I will post some pics when I get them.
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: apache6467 on November 12, 2017, 04:02:33 PM
What type are you getting? Fancy or just regular guppies, or a mix? Anyways, good luck!
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: Rustle on November 12, 2017, 06:32:27 PM
I am not sure yet apache as I can't make my mind up but I will post pics when I get them  :)
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: Hampalong on November 12, 2017, 10:59:49 PM
Is your water hard? Guppies won't do well in soft water and your other fish are soft water fish.

Sue, you're confusing filtration with flow rate. You can have as much filtration as you like on that Angel tank for example, as long as the flow rate isn't too much for the fish. You could have a giant filter the size of the tank with a slow flow rate. It would more than is necessary but it wouldn't be 'too much' in a detrimental sense. You can't have too much filtration, just too much flow.
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: Rustle on November 13, 2017, 07:37:47 AM
Yeah it is but not for platys which is what i wanted in the first place. See Link for water parameters

https://forums.thinkfish.co.uk/general-fishkeeping-advice/platy-advice/msg36477/#new
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: Sue on November 13, 2017, 09:10:44 AM
@hampalong That is what I meant to say  :) There seems to be an idea that increasing the flow by having several filters or using a filter rated for a much bigger tank is good. All that does is create a whirlpool. But yes, use bigger filters, or more than one filter, if wanted but turn the flow rate down for fish that don't like current.
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: MaypoleHugh on January 08, 2018, 12:33:43 PM
So how can you tell if you have too much flow? In my 200 litre tank I have an external fluval 206 at one end (which is for tanks up to 200 litres and a Hydor external at the other end for tanks up to 150 litres. the only fish I have that may be affected by the current created by the filters are a pair of pearl gouramis and three honey gouramis. They do not appear to be stressed by the flow but how do I know?
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: Sue on January 08, 2018, 03:22:33 PM
The main indicator is the behaviour of the fish. If any of them stay in the area of the tank with least flow and rarely venture out from there, the flow is too strong for them. For example, staying between the spray bar and the tank wall, or down between large plants or other decor. If all the fish swim out in the open and ignore the flow they should be OK. As you are aware, gouramis do not like too much flow so they are the ones to observe. Any males with bubble nests will choose the quieter spots so their bubble nests don't get broken up, but if they are happy swimming away from the nests, that's fine.
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: MaypoleHugh on January 08, 2018, 03:41:17 PM
They seem to be swimming about in all areas of the tank so I suppose they are okay. They haven't yet built any nests though.
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: Sue on January 08, 2018, 03:59:07 PM
They might just not be "in the mood"  ;) That's assuming you have males and females.
Title: Re: Tank filtration (Bioload)
Post by: MaypoleHugh on January 08, 2018, 08:48:20 PM
I have two male and one female in the honeys and a pair of pearls. I only got the pearls a week ago, but the honeys I've had for about 6 months I'm going to get another two honeys.