# Bioload for 20G Walstad



## PSUFan (Mar 21, 2012)

Hi, folks!

Last year I set up a 2G Walstad Red Cherry Shrimp bowl, and with some advice from folks on this forum, it has been a success. It has been running for well over a year now, and I have basically done no more than top-off the water, go through one major pruning, and feed it on occasion. I have an architect light on a timer, so I have not even had to turn that on or off. At one point I had at least 50 shrimp in various stages of life, but these days it is so heavily-planted that I can't get an accurate population estimate as it is tough to see much in the bowl!

As I am long overdue for another major pruning, I figured this time I should make use of the vegetation I am removing by transplanting some plants to the 20G long tank I recently acquired. I may pick-up a few extras from a local guy from whom I got my original plants.

Long story short, since this experiment has been successful, I would like to incorporate some other fauna into the new tank to liven-it-up a bit once it is established. I plan to include a powerhead in this new tank (and possibly a heater depending upon the needs of the fish I eventually decide to add).

I have poked around and seen everything from "you need to go with a much lower-than-usual bioload" to "you can go with double the normal bioload" for a sufficiently-planted tank in this style. From your experience, what kind stocking levels can Walstad tanks healthily support?

I have a few ideas I am tossing-around in my head, but an example would be:
6x White Cloud Mountain Minnow
6x Cherry Barb
3x Guppy (1 Male, 2 Female)
1x Dwarf Gourami
Some of my Red Cherry Shrimp

I will probably not get around to setting-up this tank for a few weeks, but any feedback would be quite welcome.

Thank you!


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

The amount of animal bioload will vary depending on how much maintenance you want to do.

The "much lower than normal" extreme applies if you want to do almost no maintenance and do not have any additional biofiltration. Such a tank might just have a power head for circulation, and rarely get a water change.

"Double the normal bioload" applies to my tanks. I have large biofilters--over-sized HOB or canister filters filled with lava rock and maybe a little filter floss if I've been mucking about in the tank. I try for circulation of 5 to 10 times the total volume of the tank each hour with filters or a combination of filters and power heads. The big filters give me a margin of safety that allows me to stock the tanks heavily. I do partial water changes once or twice a month, and feed the fish generously.

Keep in mind that any Walstad tank depends on a critical mass of healthy, growing plants. Plant heavily from the beginning, and put in fast growing "nutrient hog" species even if you plan to take them out later when the tank is stable.


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## Cichlidiot (Jun 10, 2013)

I would not do the guppies unless you plan to use them as feeders or something, lol. They breed way to fast!


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