Are these stocking options okay? Fluval Flex 15

[Cjbear087]

I recently got 6 male guppies for my Fluval Flex 15 tank and also 6 cherry shrimp. I think I’m going to get 1 honey gourami and 6 Pygmy corydoras aswell. Are these stocking options okay and not overstocked? Also if they are okay will I be fine to add the cories and gourami at the same time or are they too much bioload and I should space them a week apart? Thanks

[lefty o]

assuming your tank is somewhat established, it can probably handle  all of them. always best to add a few at a time if you can, that allows the bacteria colony to adapt as the waste increases.

[bryanisag]

More than the number of fish in the tank, the bio load is determined by the amount of food put into a tank. So feeding 10 fish heavy is the same bio load as feeding 20 fish light. So that being said, feed your guppies and shrimp heavy to build your bacteria colony and then keep the feeding the same for a bit after adding more fish.

As far as overstocking goes, you should be good but it's really up to you how many fish you want to look at and do water changes for. I could see that tank looking good like you have it and I could see it looking a little under stocked so maybe double the corries.

Also the gorami is going to keep the shrimp colon from growing while it is newly established. Id wait on your centerpiece fish until you see the shrimp multiply a bit.

Have fun

[macdaddy36]

For stocking combo questions, aqadvisor.com is a great resource. It will give good information about combos and bio load. Don't rely on it as your only resource but definitely consider it.

Just input the dimensions of you tank since fluval flex is a size they don't have. I like to aim for 60-80% initial stocking and build up to 100-120% as a final stocking.

Depending on how it goes, you may even want a small group of honey gourami.

Good luck!

[Chad]

I like your stocking setup! Great advice above too. If you can add the gourami and Cory’s a week apart I’d do it. Otherwise add them together and keep a close eye on parameters. Water changes aren’t a big deal and neither is a little ammonia. .25-.5ppm ammonia has never hurt my fish or shrimp.

I had a flex 9 and added 8 male guppies to it. With no females around and such a small tank they got pretty aggressive towards each other. Fin nipping and bullying. Keeping just 6 in a 15 is a great move. I wouldn’t add any more. 

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

Shrimp and Fluval Flex’s are interesting- always found the shrimplets in the filtration chamber. 

I think it could work. Keep a test kit or strips handy and watch your parameters after the fish are added. 

[Chad]

Yes indeed @Beardedbillygoat1975, me too 🙂 Stuffing the inlet covers with some sponge likely helped but I’d still find them back there regardless. 

[Cjbear087]

On 3/9/2024 at 4:57 AM, Chad said:

Yes indeed @Beardedbillygoat1975, me too 🙂 Stuffing the inlet covers with some sponge likely helped but I’d still find them back there regardless. 

Yeah already bought some new 3d printed vent covers with much thinner grates, thanks for all the advice

[Cjbear087]

On 3/9/2024 at 3:03 AM, macdaddy36 said:

For stocking combo questions, aqadvisor.com is a great resource. It will give good information about combos and bio load. Don't rely on it as your only resource but definitely consider it.

Just input the dimensions of you tank since fluval flex is a size they don't have. I like to aim for 60-80% initial stocking and build up to 100-120% as a final stocking.

Depending on how it goes, you may even want a small group of honey gourami.

Good luck!

Just checked aqadvisor, apparently I can do 6 shrimp and 6 guppies, which I both already have and I can also add 2 honeys, and 12 pygmy cories. This is only 99% stocked. Is this a good idea? And will I be okay to add the 12 pygmys today and the 2 honeys next week? The guppies and shrimp are already in for a week.

[macdaddy36]

On 3/9/2024 at 3:50 AM, Cjbear087 said:

Just checked aqadvisor, apparently I can do 6 shrimp and 6 guppies, which I both already have and I can also add 2 honeys, and 12 pygmy cories. This is only 99% stocked. Is this a good idea? And will I be okay to add the 12 pygmys today and the 2 honeys next week? The guppies and shrimp are already in for a week.

How long ago was your tank set up?

I would add the 2 honey first, and the pygmys later.

[Chad]

Also, please consider quarantining the fish you buy before adding them to this aquarium? Will likely save you a lot of headaches later.

[Flipper]

On 3/8/2024 at 10:34 PM, Chad said:

Water changes aren’t a big deal and neither is a little ammonia. .25-.5ppm ammonia has never hurt my fish or shrimp.

Water changes are hugely important for most tanks and if a tank is cycled, it should have ZERO ammonia.  Effects on fish or shrimp may not be visually apparent.  Can you look at a human and tell if they are suffering from high cholesterol?  No.

[Chad]

On 3/9/2024 at 2:22 PM, Flipper said:

Water changes are hugely important for most tanks and if a tank is cycled, it should have ZERO ammonia.  Effects on fish or shrimp may not be visually apparent.  Can you look at a human and tell if they are suffering from high cholesterol?  No.

Apologies @Flipper but you misunderstood my context. I meant that DOING water changes was no big deal so don't worry about them, they're easy. That's what I was trying to impart, but I can see how I could have been clearer in how I wrote it. 🙂

[Cjbear087]

On 3/9/2024 at 3:24 PM, Chad said:

Also, please consider quarantining the fish you buy before adding them to this aquarium? Will likely save you a lot of headaches later.

I know this post is quite old now, but I never really did quarantine my fish and what do you know? Camallanus worms! I managed to catch them early and eradicated it but it was a massive PITA lmao. Anyway I guess I know for next time lol.

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

Yep, QT is important. Sorry for the pita but good lessons learned. Any pics? I kind of miss my Flex 15 so seeing others is a way to scratch that itch.