What do you consider lightly stocked vs heavily stocked

[Reefingmama]

So, like the title says, I’m curious if people want to have a discussion about heavily stocked vs lightly stocked. I think this hobby tends to say things that really don’t have defined meanings. “Be careful” “go slow” “don’t stock heavily” these are all phrases that don’t really MEAN anything to new reefers. Go slow: 1 day? 1 week? One month? 1 year?

My definition to heavily stocked is based off of parameters, hiding spaces, aggression in the tank. So, a heavily stocked tank will teeter in med/high PO4 and NO3 often struggling, but succeeding to export fast enough to keep up with import. A heavily stocked tank still is balanced where there is very little aggression and all fish/inverts are able to get food and hiding places. All fish can find a place to sleep and feel safe to come out to eat. Export keeps up with input.

My definition to OVERLY STOCKED: export is unable to keep up with import. The tank is consistently climbing in NO3 or PO4 and can’t stay consistent. It also means that fish don’t have room to go hide/share space. Fish struggle to share the rock work/sand/open water etc. Fish are not stocked correctly and have to fight for food sources. Too many sand dwellers, too many fish needing algae or rock work etc.

 

[jayoman]

I think it evolves. What is heavily stocked for a new tank even with great equipment is very different than a mature tank that has stabilized. It has also changed a lot over time. I started my first reef in the late 90's and the information we had about stocking levels mandated very few fish even in large aquariums to the point where i was keeping 3 fish in a 46 bow front. Today, I have 70 lbs of live rock, Lots of hiding places and redundant filter options that allow me to house 11 fish comfortably. The key for me is several of my fish are small that produce little waste, I feed well, and have no tank aggression.

I think the emphasis should be more on stocking wisely, paying more attention to how much waste your live stock produces and how you mitigate it with invert and coral choices as well. It is a balance that is not always a hard and fast rule. I do think that pulling off heavy stocking levels mostly requires attention and time more than anything else. It can be done a number of different ways as long as there is good nutrient removal.

 

[Daniel@R2R]

Good discussion topic!

 

[ZoWhat]

So, like the title says, I’m curious if people want to have a discussion about heavily stocked vs lightly stocked. I think this hobby tends to say things that really don’t have defined meanings. “Be careful” “go slow” “don’t stock heavily” these are all phrases that don’t really MEAN anything to new reefers. Go slow: 1 day? 1 week? One month? 1 year?

My advice to new reefers is to read and study this hobby a LOT so you can build your own knowledge base...know the meaning behind flippant comments

The material is out there but many ppl are too impatient or too busy to learn

I'm into my 16th year and im still discovering AH-HA! moments all the time on things I've studied.

This hobby is a massive 100,000 piece puzzle and it take a long time to click pieces of the puzzle together and then stand back and see a whole picture

;Bookworm;Bookworm;Bookworm

 

[Reefingmama]

My advice to new reefers is to read and study this hobby a LOT so you can build your own knowledge base...know the meaning behind flippant comments

The material is out there but many ppl are too impatient or too busy to learn

I'm into my 16th year and im still discovering AH-HA! moments all the time on things I've studied.

This hobby is a massive 100,000 piece puzzle and it take a long time to click pieces of the puzzle together and then stand back and see a whole picture

;Bookworm;Bookworm;Bookworm

Yes and no. I think it’s also our responsibility to be clear about what we say. So for instance, if I say go slow with GFO, I should explain exactly how much GFO I’m talking about how often to change it out and what does goes slow mean. I think leaving new refers up to interpreting information isn’t fair. That’s why I wanted to have a conversation about what does heavily stocked versus lightly stocked aquariums actually mean. I think a lot of new reefers think that counting the number of fish is the main way that people track if an aquarium is overstocked or understocked. But, like with all things about reefing, it’s far more complicated than that. It has a lot to do with nutrition levels, Quality of water, and export. But often times, new reefers are left guessing what experienced reefers actually mean.

 

[IslandLifeReef]

Yes and no. I think it’s also our responsibility to be clear about what we say. So for instance, if I say go slow with GFO, I should explain exactly how much GFO I’m talking about how often to change it out and what does goes slow mean. I think leaving new refers up to interpreting information isn’t fair. That’s why I wanted to have a conversation about what does heavily stocked versus lightly stocked aquariums actually mean. I think a lot of new reefers think that counting the number of fish is the main way that people track if an aquarium is overstocked or understocked. But, like with all things about reefing, it’s far more complicated than that. It has a lot to do with nutrition levels, Quality of water, and export. But often times, new reefers are left guessing what experienced reefers actually mean.

I totally agree with both of your posts here. The ability of your system to keep up with nutrient export is an excellent way to determine stocking levels. This applies to all inhabitant, not just fish. I recently had to frag off big pieces of my frogspawn and Duncan corals due to the invading other coral space and stinging the other corals. 6+ heads on the frogspawn and over a dozen heads on the Duncan. The aggression required the removal/trimming of some inhabitants.

 

[mrk1720]

I've been in the reef hobby off and on since 2004 and what I've learned is that every tank, filtration system and occupants (including CUC and coral) really depends on your particular setup.
This includes the size of the inhabitants and the size they can/will grow and your ability to keep parameters as stable as possible. And leaving everyone space to grow and thrive.

Just a note: just "living" and "thriving" are two different things.

 

[ca1ore]

Here is my ‘definition’ .....

Lightly stocked = one cube equivalent or less of food per day per 50 gallons. Medium = 2 cube equivalent of food per day per 50 gallons. Heavily stocked = 3 or more cube equivalents of food per day per 50 gallons. I have 400 gallons of water within the walls of my display and feed somewhere around 12 cube equivalents per day.

Swimming and sleeping room is important, but they move inversely with aquascape. Ability to deal with waste is less important because there are many export mechanisms that one can employ.

 

[Reefingmama]

Here is my ‘definition’ .....

Lightly stocked = one cube equivalent or less of food per day per 50 gallons. Medium = 2 cube equivalent of food per day per 50 gallons. Heavily stocked = 3 or more cube equivalents of food per day per 50 gallons. I have 400 gallons of water within the walls of my display and feed somewhere around 12 cube equivalents per day.

Swimming and sleeping room is important, but they move inversely with aquascape. Ability to deal with waste is less important because there are many mechanisms that one can employ.

That’s actually a really interesting point. The amount of food the tank consumes is definitely a huge part of stocking. Good point for sure.

 

[Darren in Tacoma]

In my previous 120 gal tank I would do a water change, 10 gal, every 2 weeks or it started to look bad. My next tank, a 29 gal biocube would require a water change every week, 5 gal, or it started to decline. I decided that it was overstocked and lightened the bioload as I had already maxed out my filtration.
My current tank is still green and I have only done 2 water changes in 6 months, so I feel it is lightly stocked. Of course, fish aggression is another factor, but one I remedy quickly when it arises.

 

[Camaro Show Corals]

Good discussion topic!

I agree! Maybe A question of the day??
@revhtree

 

[ca1ore]

That’s actually a really interesting point. The amount of food the tank consumes is definitely a huge part of stocking. Good point for sure.

I would argue it’s the only way to infer bioload.