What are some of the lowest waste/bioload reef safe fish?

[timbo227]

New reefer here. Having trouble finding an answer to these questions. IWhat are the factors that determine the bio-load of an individual fish?

Here are the (potentially incorrect) assumptions I have made:

1) The smaller fish, the smaller the bio-load

2) The less active the fish, the less food it requires, the less waste it produces

3) Carnivores produce more nitrogenous waste do to their protein rich diets (more nitrogen based amino acids vs carbon based carbohydrates)

4) fish that can find nutrition produced within the closed system (algae, micro fauna/flora) will require less nutrient (waste) to be added to that system

I've yet to add a fish, and I am trying to get the most out of my 29 gal biocube (+skimmer, +fuge, +media-basket), and to figure out what factors to consider other than BS like inches per gallon. If anyone knows a vendor where you can search by size or diet, or a site/thread that lists low bio-load fish, please share! Or just share from personal observation/experience... This seems to be the best vector of knowledge in this hobby!

 

[nereefpat]

Interesting topic.

Live aquaria has a "nano fish" page, with some good suggestions. That would be a good place to start.

 

[SereneAquatic]

Interesting, I agree.

I'm sure this is my noob-ness talking, but if you add things slowly and allow the bacteria population to keep up with your stocking levels... Does this really come into play?

As long as there is enough surface area, it seems like over time the bacteria would simply respond to the bio load.

I'm not sure where the tipping point would be, but I feel like the tank would kind of... tell you.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

 

[Tripod1404]

What you say is generally true if you compare all 4 factors between two fish. But there are exceptions to all as well.

1) Altough a small fish, anthias species require a lot of food that larger fish. Even smaller anthias species need to be fed more than large anthias species. This is mainly due to their feeding habits and anatomy, which prevent them from eating a lot of food in one go. On the other hand, an 8 inch marine betta can be fed 3 times per week and in total you would put less food in the tank compared to what you put for a 3 inch anthias.

2) Mostly true except if the fish is a messy eater. Like some groupers spit out the scales (or other hard to chew) parts of the fish/shrimp they eat.

3) Mostly true, but they also rapidly poop what they eat (partially undigested). A good skimmer and a good sized cleanup crew is required.

4) Correct but to have those you would need to add nutrients to the tank. In a balanced system uneaten and waste portion the food you add should be converted to algae, micro fauna/flora and bacteria. The slower it reaches to bacteria, the better it is, because it would mean it is utilized by more organisms in between. In cretain steps, skimmer can remove these organisms and make nutrient export. If it directly reach to bacteria most of it would become nitrogenous waste of some form. A balanced tank should allow nutrients to be recycled rather than degrading into NO3 and PO4, but if you feed very little, you will reduce the algae, micro fauna/flora and bacteria that some fish feed on. So it is a delicate balance.

Liveaquaria lists the size and diet but it doesn't say anything about the bioload. That is something hard to generalize and would also depend on what and how you feed your fish.

A 5th factor I would consider is; "fish that are easy to feed a variety of foods". Some fish are a pain in the *** to feed prepared food. They wont eat the food if it is too big, too small, too hard and depending on how it looks and how it moves (like some only eat while it floats and others only hit if it is on the sand). Shy fish are also hard to feed because they cannot compete with aggressive eaters. So for these guys, you would need to add more food, for some of it to reach and get eaten by them.