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Under stocked 29 gallon long?


PandaCrush
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Hello friends!  New to the hobby but thriving and loving it (mostly due to the amazing advice and teaching from Aquarium CoOp!! 🥰)

I currently have a 29 gallon, long, acrylic aquarium that I found at GoodWill a few months back for $9.99!  

In this am keeping:

 3 black Molly’s (all female, spawned from 3 original Molly’s in my daughters tank)

3 fairly small neon tetras (LFS)

6 Cory’s (3 Julii and 3 Panda that all stick together, (LFS)

1 Nerite snail

Many, many...rams horn snails.

Right half of tank is sand substrate with large rocks and drift wood, planted with Java fern, and a couple different types of anubias’s. Left half of the tank has Fluval planting type substrate and is planted with more anubias’s, Cryptocorne wendetti green, a small bit of Hydrocotyle tripartita Japan that’s just maybe starting to propitiate, and 12” tall x 5” base castle decoration that has anubias and some sword plants attached to form some cover and cave system type area.

I run one medium size Aquarium CoOp sponge filter on sand side of tank, and one bubble stone behind castle plant feature, heater set to 82°, and a Nicrew top of tank light, half a cap of Seachem Flourish Excel every other day. 

My big question is...is this aquarium under stocked?  I am happy with the fish in there now and definitely don’t want to crowd anyone, BUT I wouldn’t mind adding a few guppies IF it would still be ok. Or maybe just one male guppy to keep the female Molly’s company? Or maybe one more show piece larger type of fish?  OR am I at a healthy capacity where I am at?

 

In this sort of set up, planted and 29 gallon long aquarium, what would be your max number of community fish and ratios?

 

Thanks so Much!
Nancy

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I like your tank setup!  What a good deal you found!  

My first thought would be to add some more neons--they really appreciate being in a larger school.  I'd say your stocking is pretty light, so you probably have some room to play around with a centerpiece fish too.

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Welcome to the hobby! Looks like you've got a beautiful start. I really enjoy the tank, I love the plants, and the way you've got the wood laid out across the changing substrate is interesting.

The answer to your question about stocking comes down largely to adequate filtration, feeding, compatibility between fish, and your experience / discipline with regular maintenance (i.e. water changing). If, at a minimum, you consistently change out 1/3 of the water (33%) at least every 2 weeks, you can add a lot more stocking. Even if you want to over-stock this tank, and just up the water changes, it can be done.

If I were evaluating the tank, I'd add 10x more neon tetras. They really like to school. Likewise, I'd add 4x more of the corydoras -- 2x each of each kind, to round the groups out to 5x each. Then I'd add a bright golden lyre-tail molly just for the fun of seeing how many fry can emerge.

I'd add a second sponge filter on the left side to get the flow going and up the biological filtration. I'd also (personally) move the heater down lower to the back, parallel with the substrate, just up a couple inches. This way, when you do a big water change, it won't crack on you accidentally. I might also add some wisteria (hygrophilia difformis) to the tank, or some other type of hygrophilia. Keep it trimmed and low . . . but it's really bright green, and will pop in this tank.

Edited by Fish Folk
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52 minutes ago, Fish Folk said:

If I were evaluating the tank, I'd add 10x more neon tetras. They really like to school. Likewise, I'd add 4x more of the corydoras -- 2x each of each kind, to round the groups out to 5x each. Then I'd add a bright golden lyre-tail molly just for the fun of seeing how many fry can emerge.

@Fish Folk Thank you!  I love these ideas!  That’s really what I had in mind all along, (more neon’s and a couple more cory’s) but my family thinks I’m nuts and told me not to buy any more fish or plants 😅 Little do they know I have big plans for their bedrooms when they head off to college, I’m hooked 🤣

I’ve been all over water changes!  At least once a week ~20-30%, with some touch up extra gravel vacs once in a while if things look grimy (why did I pick white sand?!). And water parameters have been pretty solid all along, except an ammonia spike after I added the planting substrate etc. a little while ago.

It’s so difficult to find the black(/dalmatian?) Molly’s if they are above the current level of the plants, so I’m definitely planning on putting in some tall grass type plants along the back wall! 

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