i bought a new 20 gallon fish tank set up the other day and it came with a video... on the video is said "one inch of fish for every gallon (this does not include the tail)" as a rule to not over crowd your tank... first of all is that a good rule? and second... is it adult inches or how big they are when you add them? im asuming adult inches... if it is true im glad i learned it because i was planning on buying two more fish but with this rule i cant =)
is it true?
- Thread starter Oneworldonetrib
- Start date
Technically, that is sort of misleading.
There are two variations of the 20 gallon. There is the "High" version, and there is the "Long" version. You can keep more fish in the 20 Long because there is more surface area, which means more oxygen exchange, which ultimately means you can keep more fish. But both tanks have the same gallon capacity.
But yeah, with Tropical Fish, it's 1 gallon for 1 inch. And I think it's only for the fish's length at the given time. Like, you can put a juvenile Oscar in a 10-20g no problem, but when it gets bigger, you obviously have to move it to a larger tank to accomodate its size. That goes for any fish that can get large.
For gold fish, it's a little different, considering their body mass is considerably larger than that of an average tropical fish. Well, at least for the Fancy variaties. Some people say 1 inch for every 2 gallons, others say 10 gallons per goldfish.
There are two variations of the 20 gallon. There is the "High" version, and there is the "Long" version. You can keep more fish in the 20 Long because there is more surface area, which means more oxygen exchange, which ultimately means you can keep more fish. But both tanks have the same gallon capacity.
But yeah, with Tropical Fish, it's 1 gallon for 1 inch. And I think it's only for the fish's length at the given time. Like, you can put a juvenile Oscar in a 10-20g no problem, but when it gets bigger, you obviously have to move it to a larger tank to accomodate its size. That goes for any fish that can get large.
For gold fish, it's a little different, considering their body mass is considerably larger than that of an average tropical fish. Well, at least for the Fancy variaties. Some people say 1 inch for every 2 gallons, others say 10 gallons per goldfish.
i think that rule has kinda been ruled out. But can be used as a guildline. Im sure you can understand that some fish do require more room then their size says (puffers are very messy), and some are definatly bulkier then others. 2 inch dwarf gourimes vs. 2 inch zebra danio. And on the other side, if you have very clean fish, and a very good filter, you can have more then the 1 inch per gallon. But i think it is a good guide line to use just definatly not set in stone.