Is this overstocked or can I add a few more?

Is this tank overstocked or can I add a few more fish, would like to add a sixline wrasse and a royal gramma.
I do 20-25% water changes every saturday.
Also, everything gets along really well right now. Would either of the above two fish have any issue with anything else already in the tank?


29 Gallon with 45 pounds live sand and 40 pounds Live rock.
1) Foxface Lo
1) Flame Hawkfish
1) Diamond Watchman Goby

1) Hawaiian Feather Duster
5) Astrea Snails
4) Margarita Snails
3) Blue legged hermits
3) Red legged hermits

 

I tend to understock tanks so IMO you cant add a lot more. That foxface gets pretty big, so can the goby. What kind of filtraton are you running?

Marc.

 

The wrasse and gramma I want to add are both pretty small fish as adults, so I was thinking I could probably add them but would be at max bio load.

I currently have a HOB Biobag filter designed for a 60 gallon, moves 330GPH. I use seachem Renew in the biobags mixed with a little bit of charcoal.
I change the biobags every other week and do a 20-25% water change every week. That and the LR seem to work very well in my tank.
I didnt know if I would need a protien skimmer for this small of a tank? I could always add one but would prefer not to.

Right now the tank stays very clean and nitrite and ammonia stay at 0, nitrate does get up to about 5-10 ppm at times.

 

A skimmer is always a good thing regardless of tank size. I would get one, is there a reason why you dont want to add one?

Marc.

 

+2, skimmer will help alot with the bioload, then i would add a de-nitrator coil, that should allow you to have the bioload you whant. I still wouldnt recomend having so many fish. Foxface is a fast growing fish, and he will grow big. The bigger the fish, the more bioload he will create. More bioload you have, more maintanence you will have to give your tank!! JMHO

 

Well, I really just didnt think I would need a skimmer in a 29 gallon.
I am not very familiar w/ skimmers. I know I dont want one that needs a noisy air pump and arent the ones with water pumps too large for a 29 gallon?

 

Nope, theres many skimmers you could hang on the back, and trust the majority opinion, its gonna make a big diference in your water quality. Personaly i like the remora. Very good reviews, and a trustworthy company. Theres many others hang on back (HOB) skimmers out there, just that some are a lot more recomended than other.
In any forum you ask, i can say with confidence their gonna tell you the same. That you dont need a skimmer, but having one is gonna make life so much more pleasant!!

 

A skimmer will help out immensly, especially with the bio-load you want. In that small a tank you won't really have enough biological filtration through the live rock and sand! Their are both hang-ons and submersible skimmer that you could go with!
Even with a skimmer, I still wouldn't add that many fish to your tank. Stress and depreciation in water quality will prevail possibly causing more problems!
I have 5 fish in my 125 gallon tank though mine is a reef tank I still don't want to add to many more. The point is I have a 125 gallon tank with just 5 fish and you have a 29gallon with your notion of having 5 fish!
It is up to you what you do, we are just trying to help you and your fish to be successful!

 

The tank of the day has 9 fish and is a 29 gallon and he doesnt seem to have any problems, says he changes water like once a month???

I really don't undertsand what the skimmer will do for me? I mean my water params are nearly perfect now and I swap out like 1/4 of it every week, would there really be that much left to skim? also, would adding 3 more inches of fish really wreck my water?

 

You would be surprised as to how a skimmer can get crap out of the water... Adding 3 inches now might not be the end of the world but in a couple of months that 3" is now 4" and your other fish will also have grown... well you get the point... We're just trying to help out here, and from our experience, a skimmer would be a great addition to your tank.

Marc.