A Fishload Question

[vayapues]

First of all, my apologies for asking a question that I am sure has been asked and answered a dozen times. I did quite a bit of searching, and could not find the answer, and so I ask it again.
I am looking for a safe guideline for fish load in my tank. Obviously, I want as many fish as possible, but I don't want to stress the fish, or the bio load.
My tank is 75g
DSB
120 lbs LR
protien skimmer
hob filter
(in the process of setting up a refug)
Thanks kindly

 

[vayapues]

I should mention, the tank has been setup for about four weeks.
Cycle completed two weeks ago, and has been stable for the last two weeks.
I am nearing the end of a diatom outbreak
I have hundreds of critters that came on my liverock as hitchhikers that are thriving.
I will only add a few fish at a time seperated by a week or more, but am ultimatly looking for a guide as to what is the final number, once they are all added.

 

[janastasio]

I may be wrong but I have always heard 1 fish per 10 gallons in SW. It also depends on the size the of the fish. There are certain fish that require larger spaces, such as tangs, ect. You can have smaller fish in that size tank, ie, damsels, clownfish, wrasse, and dwarf angel species.

 

[vayapues]

Thanks Janastasio.
Here is a pic.

Any other thoughts about fish load?

 

[knoll]

a lot of people say 1in per 5g. now because fish are longer and shorter then others this rule is a little off =o but thats what i have been tolled.

 

[janastasio]

looks great! Your diatoms should start to clear soon. You should start first with a clean up crew. Add some snails and hermits. See how they do then add 1 or 2 smaller fish. Do some research, see what you like the looks of. Is this going to be fish only or do you plan on having coral? Not sure if you mentioned already what your lighting was and if you intended on coral. That will affect what fish you choose as well. Not all fish are coral safe. There are some fish that should be added first over others due to aggressiveness. Most aggressive fish should be added last.

 

[dennis210]

Okay tank is 4 weeks old right. Now you are in a diatom cycle. By the book it goes like this: Nitrogen cycle peaks in aquarium with live rock and live sand = Ammonia spike at 4 - 5 days, followed by nitrite spike at 12 - 13 days, and then a nitrate spike at 16 - 18 days. So at 4 weeks or 28 days you should be past that. But your tank goes through other cycle like the diatom bloom you are in now. There should be a progression starting with Diatomaceous algae at the 4 week mark, followed by Blue (slime) algae at the 6 week mark, and Bryopsis & Derbesia algae from the 6 to 9 week mark. So at this time you really should introduce a clean up crew. snails and hermits ( half of your total now and the other half in about 2 weeks. So you have the nitrogen cycle gone through, and are in the normal agal cycle - so tank is just aging normally. Your pH usually doesn't srabilize till around day 56 (week 8), calcium around day 35 (week 5), & alkalinity around day 63 (week 9). So your right on track with aging your tank. Slow down, research the fish you want, check their full adult size, compatibility, do they eat anything you want to keep? How many - safely - seven for sure if not too large. More if you were FOWLR, but with corals and other inverts go slow. Think niches as well - sand sifter (cleans up the dingy looking sand), grazer, a dither fish or two (something out in the open most of the time), etc. Good luck - go slow - your on track so don't rush.