How much is too much?

[Radron73]

Hello all!

I'm intending on a 25G Lagoon tank, and I've been reading about not putting too many fish in the tank, which I get.

But then, some people stuff their tank full of corals and anemones, and I was wondering how you know when to stop filling your tank with inverts. Is there a limit to it before they start encroaching on themselves?

 

[Gumbies R Us]

IMO you can pack a tank with coral and be fine. I've seen countless tanks (nanos) that are absolutely crammed full of corals and don't have issues. The only issue with small tank is coral warfare (corals fighting for space, growing over each other, that sort of thing)

For inverts. This depends. Like with corals, I've seen some nano tanks that are purely anemone tanks, and those people will have 20+ in there, again, no issue. As for other inverts, this depends on how much food is available for them in a tank. Obviously, if you get 50 snails in a tank and there's not enough food for them, most of those snails are going to die.

Hopefully this helps answer your question!

 

[Radron73]

IMO you can pack a tank with coral and be fine. I've seen countless tanks (nanos) that are absolutely crammed full of corals and don't have issues. The only issue with small tank is coral warfare (corals fighting for space, growing over each other, that sort of thing)

For inverts. This depends. Like with corals, I've seen some nano tanks that are purely anemone tanks, and those people will have 20+ in there, again, no issue. As for other inverts, this depends on how much food is available for them in a tank. Obviously, if you get 50 snails in a tank and there's not enough food for them, most of those snails are going to die.

Hopefully this helps answer your question!

Thank you! Yes, very helpful!

As a super newb, I don't want to kill anything by doing stupid stuff. Thanks for the run down!

 

[BriDroid]

I had my old 10 gallon cube packed full of corals. As long as you are dosing to keep up, you are fine. I was using all for reef, and a lot of it every day, just to keep up with the demand.

 

[mfinn]

When talking about inverts such as snails and crabs, just know that you will lose snails. Some to starvation and some to crabs looking for new shells.
It will take a while to find the right balance. Snails are the cannon fodder in the clean up crew.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Hello all!

I'm intending on a 25G Lagoon tank, and I've been reading about not putting too many fish in the tank, which I get.

But then, some people stuff their tank full of corals and anemones, and I was wondering how you know when to stop filling your tank with inverts. Is there a limit to it before they start encroaching on themselves?

Bear in mind that corals and anemones are net users of stuff such as N (nitrate, ammonia, etc.), P, trace elements, and even produce oxygen during the day . Fish that are fed are net producers of N and P, and consumers of oxygen 24/7.

 

[ChrisfromBrick]

its probably ok to cram as long as the fish are appropriate for that size tank and they have their own little caves to hide. Just be mindful that nutrients will rise with additional stocking. As far as corals, my tank is pretty packed which is why I think I run low nutrients. Just test frequently.