[BensNorthsideAquatics]

This is my 90 gallon aquarium with live plants and a 407 Fluval filter on it, i have been recently surprised with fish but i am now wondering if my tank is overstocked i have a electric blue Acara, Angelfish, 5 Red head Geo’s, 4 Columbian Neiva Geo’s, rainbow cichlid, -> *not cichlids; a spotted pictus catfish, 4 red mouth headstanders, 5 Alestopetersius brichardi(tetras) and a red ancistrus pleco. I am currently doing a 75% waterchange once a week.

 

[Auballagh]

Yes.
Your 75 gallon aquarium is overstocked. Have you checked the measured level of Nitrates in this tank before a scheduled water change?

 

[BensNorthsideAquatics]

Yes.
Your 75 gallon aquarium is overstocked. Have you checked the measured level of Nitrates in this tank before a scheduled water change?

Yes i check my water parameters and 75 gallon?

 

[callmeDre]

I would say overstocked yes, at least in terms of fish who stick to the bottom of the tank.

I'm assuming the Columbian Neiva Geo are another geophagus? That isn't going to end well, especially in a 48" tank. At best you'll have a pummeled pictus, a feud with the Acara over territory, and potential hybrids as the geophagus breed with one another. At worst, the territory disputes will result in one surviving Geophagus male and females that're amiable to breeding. If they aren't Geophagus, you'll still run into a cornered catfish and spats with the Acara.

Also, while gravel won't hurt Geophagus they're sand sifters. I haven't kept Geophagus personally as my 125g (72") already had corydoras and I wouldn't keep them in my 48" tanks for the potential aggression, I can say that species who sift sand are night and day when it comes to their substate. My Bolivian rams and corydoras are infinitely more active and lively once I changed over to sand, and I would expect the same for Geophagus.

 

[BensNorthsideAquatics]

I would say overstocked yes, at least in terms of fish who stick to the bottom of the tank.

I'm assuming the Columbian Neiva Geo are another geophagus? That isn't going to end well, especially in a 48" tank. At best you'll have a pummeled pictus, a feud with the Acara over territory, and potential hybrids as the geophagus breed with one another. At worst, the territory disputes will result in one surviving Geophagus male and females that're amiable to breeding. If they aren't Geophagus, you'll still run into a cornered catfish and spats with the Acara.

Also, while gravel won't hurt Geophagus they're sand sifters. I haven't kept Geophagus personally as my 125g (72") already had corydoras and I wouldn't keep them in my 48" tanks for the potential aggression, I can say that species who sift sand are night and day when it comes to their substate. My Bolivian rams and corydoras are infinitely more active and lively once I changed over to sand, and I would expect the same for Geophagus.

ok thank you very much for your advice i also have a empty 40 and 55 gallon should i move some of these fish there or if not which fish should i get rid of?

 

[dstuer]

Geophagus sp Nieva is one of the recently found Location variants of the Geo steindachneri (red hump) group of Geos, of the Nieva region of Colombia.
The group include G steindachneri, G. pellegrini, and G. crassilabrus, which are a bit different from the Amazonian Geophagines.
Although at this point the tank doesn't appear overstocked, but the Geos appear to be juvies and as adults will probably require a 6 ft tank for themselves.

 

[Auballagh]

Agree with all - and yes, that is indeed a 90 gallon tank (same bottom dimensions at least of the 75G, at least...).
Excessively high Nitrates are one symptom of an over-stocked aquarium - the fish waste builds up faster than it can be safely diluted out in water changes.

 

[Mazan]

Agree with the above. At the moment the fish are small but that will change very quickly. I would not keep any Geophagus species in a 4ft long tank.

 

[callmeDre]

If I were in your spot, I would first go with sand (pool filter sand preferably for ease and low cost) not because gravel will hurt the fish but just to maximize the experience of watching fish doing what they do best. Swapping substate can be a pain but it's something I have no regrets doing.

Then I'd focus the aquarium around the Geophagus since they'll need at least the entire footprint out of your 90g, with the footnote a 6' tank may be required at some point to keep the peace. Mostly because both Geo species are harem breeders and the males will be rough on the ladies, and potentially each other if you end up with a male of each species, who will need space to escape. Again I haven't kept Geo personally so hopefully someone with more experience will chime in, but I want to say the angelfish may be a good tankmate for them. My angelfish are busy-bodies but they typically hang out around the top/middle of their tanks, which would leave the bottom of the tank for the Geo action.

The tetras and Ancistrus should be fine, and I don't know enough about Headstanders to make a suggestion for or against them.

The others could end up working out in the 90g but it might be a good idea to set that 55g up as a backup plan for the Acara, Rainbow, and especially the Pictus.

Alternatively you could get another longer aquarium, which is usually my solution to fish disagreements but I only have my dog to answer to so that may not be a viable choice for everyone 😂

 

[Aussieman57]

This is my 90 gallon aquarium with live plants and a 407 Fluval filter on it, i have been recently surprised with fish but i am now wondering if my tank is overstocked i have a electric blue Acara, Angelfish, 5 Red head Geo’s, 4 Columbian Neiva Geo’s, rainbow cichlid, -> *not cichlids; a spotted pictus catfish, 4 red mouth headstanders, 5 Alestopetersius brichardi(tetras) and a red ancistrus pleco. I am currently doing a 75% waterchange once a week.

Very over stocked. I would add another filter for redundancy. Ben plug your info into this free site. Very good info on stocking and fish compatibility. It's not perfect but a good place to start...

https://aqadvisor.com/

 

[Mazan]

Its not just about bioload and nitrate build up, but also abut space and territoriality.

 

[BensNorthsideAquatics]

I would say overstocked yes, at least in terms of fish who stick to the bottom of the tank.

I'm assuming the Columbian Neiva Geo are another geophagus? That isn't going to end well, especially in a 48" tank. At best you'll have a pummeled pictus, a feud with the Acara over territory, and potential hybrids as the geophagus breed with one another. At worst, the territory disputes will result in one surviving Geophagus male and females that're amiable to breeding. If they aren't Geophagus, you'll still run into a cornered catfish and spats with the Acara.

Also, while gravel won't hurt Geophagus they're sand sifters. I haven't kept Geophagus personally as my 125g (72") already had corydoras and I wouldn't keep them in my 48" tanks for the potential aggression, I can say that species who sift sand are night and day when it comes to their substate. My Bolivian rams and corydoras are infinitely more active and lively once I changed over to sand, and I would expect the same for Geophagus.

If i moved the Geo’s to this Aquarium (78gal) and added sand which ones should i move and should i take out the Cuban cichlid too?