How many fish should i keep in a reef tank

How many fish should i keep in a reef tank?

It's a common question which lingers around in any novice's head while setting up any sort of aquarium. How many fish can I keep in my aquarium? But it's a good sign that the owner is at least thinking about it, because leaving this point in your checklist can have terrible results for your marine life in the tank.

Over-stocking an aquarium gives rise to problems like insufficient oxygen and lack of space of course. This is almost a torture for your fish as they will need to have frequent trips to the surface for breathing atmospheric air.

Many times this critical aspect is ignored by newbie's. This makes the aquarist bewildered as to what went wrong. In spite of having a beautiful tank his fish simply do not seem to grow. Overcrowding leads to fishes having no "elbow room", something which is a right for any living being!

And when it comes to saltwater or reef aquarium stakes are higher. A reef aquarium is like a miniature piece of ocean in your own home. It is essential to maintain its ecological balance. Overcrowding of fish in your reef tank can wreck the stability of your tank's eco-balance.

Striking that right balance in your reef tank is not rocket science. A few basic points should be kept in mind, that's it. There are some effective and popular rule of thumbs which can help you to arrive at the number of fish and corals your tank should accommodate.

It is essential to get the difference between smaller and larger species. Of course larger size species need more space, have more appetites and generate more waste. This difference in size is what restricts the rule of thumb to be universally applicable.

There are different thumb rules for different size species.
For a medium to large size fish the rule of thumb prescribes 1" of fish for every 10 gallons of water. For small to medium 2" of fish for every 10 gallons is appropriate.
This roughly translates to 16" of small fish or 8" of large fish in a 80 gallon tank.

But this rule of thumb is not the only limiting factor. Theoretically this calculation is sufficed but ground reality is bit different. Reality brings in host of other factors like effectiveness of your filtration system, the amount of coral or invertebrates stored in your tank and the actual volume of your tank after adding equipment, rock, sand, plants, ornaments and so forth.

Here one more important factor is worth mentioning. Whenever you use any thumb rule make sure you base your calculations based on the adult size of your fish. You would mess your calculations if you consider young ones for size purpose, they are bound to grow up and then equations change. All measurements should be taken from the base of tail to the head, never include the tail while measuring. And when it comes to corals, they differ in the sense that you can control their size, you just need to have an idea beforehand about how big are you going to allow them to grow.

Remember at the end of day those lovely creatures too need "personal space" of their own, like us. Do not overstuff and have the inexplicable pleasure of seeing them bloom and prosper into fine adults.

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