Theoretical stocking limits

[Muad'Dib]

Hi All!
Got a question...
I want to know how many more fish I can safely put in my tank.
I've got a 40Gal tall with 5 Litho, 5 Afra's 3 Yellow Labs and 2 BN's
Right now no fish is more than 3" long.

I'm running an XP3 as the only filtration on the tank and it's got 2 bags of Filstar Bio-Chem Stars
and a compartment full of crushed coral as the biological filter. (plus the sponges that also host the bacteria)
With the current bioload the tank has been rock steady for 9 months. (Yes I do water changes ;-)  )

Can I safely add more fish to this tank.  I'd like to add a few more Yellow Labs.
Thanks

[kennyman]

Apart from distress from overcrowding and the systems ability to handle waste you also need to concider O2 depletion. At some point the biological activity combined with the fishes respiration begins to remove O2 from the water faster than gases can exchange at the surface. A filter does not oxygenate a tank, rather it removes O2 via the respiration of bacteria. The surface agitation caused by the outflow helps to keep more water in contact with the atmosphere facilitating increased gas exchange but the tank still exchanges gas based on its surface area.

I have absolutely no idea as to how many more fish you can have. I'm just trying to point out that if you really want to push the number you many want to concider O2 levels as well as a that of the Nitrogen cycle.

[darkdep]

You're at the limit now, and will be over when the fish grow, I'm afraid.

Time to join the multiple-tank-club

[Muad'Dib]

You're at the limit now, and will be over when the fish grow, I'm afraid.

Time to join the multiple-tank-club

Oh Darn! 
Now how do I break it to my wife? 

I guess I will have to just start thining the crowd....

[babblefish1960]

Oh Darn! 
Now how do I break it to my wife? 

I guess I will have to just start thining the crowd....

Be creative, there must be some way you can get it to seem like MTS was her idea,  otherwise, post the thinnings in the classified.

[Muad'Dib]

Be creative, there must be some way you can get it to seem like MTS was her idea,  otherwise, post the thinnings in the classified.

HA! She fell for that once...not again. I had 3 tanks at one point. I had to tear down to move and when I finally got one aquarium setup in the new house she made it clear there was to no more.... so as Dr Phil would say... "If momma ain't happy.... ain't nobody happy"   Hmmm maybe when the kid's move out I can take over their office..... Can I wait that long though.... Need to convince the kid's they want their own tank.... AH HA!! I may be on to something.....   

[bitterman]

So Santa is going to deliver 2 new 55 gallon setups for the kids for Christmas LMAO!!!

Hopefully your wife does not read the forum Dean!!!