180 gallon mixed reef stocking approval and/or suggestions.

J

jerod89

New member
I think I've settled on a stock list for my 180 mixed reef. I plan to add the following fish in this order over the period of about a year. If anyone has any words of wisdom, suggestions, substitutions, or precautions to take I would really appreciate it. Thanks!

-Tail Spot Blenny
-Royal Gramma
-Neon Blue Goby (Pair)
-Yasha Goby (Pair)
-Blue Spotted Jawfish (Pair)
-True Percula Clownfish (Pair)
-Exquisite Fairy Wrasse
-Flame Fairy Wrasse
-Lineatus Fairy Wrasse
-Leopard Wrasse
-Regal Angelfish
-Yellow Longnose Butterflyfish
-Blue Hippo Tang
-Purple Tang
-Achilles Tang
-Blue Mandarin Dragonet (Pair)
 
Not sure how experienced you are in the hobby, but a number of the fish on your list would be viewed as difficult or 'expert only' and perhaps best left until later. Achilles is probably the most difficult tang, extremely susceptible to ich and can present feeding challenges. Leopard Wrasse don't ship well, are tough to acclimate, and can present feeding challenges. Likewise for the Regal and for the Mandarins. I've not even attempted the blue-spotted jawfish myself, and I've been keeping reef tanks for 25 years. Also, as noted in your other thread, hippo is a push in a 180.

Not saying you cannot do it, just that it takes a bit of a practiced hand. Make sure you setup a QT tank, and read up on acclimation/introduction.
 
Looks to me like you're aiming for a whole lot of diversity, should look amazing if all goes as planned :D Between you and me, I get sick of the tank's housing the same old pair of ocellaris, the yellow tang and the school of anthias :worried: I don't see any issue at all with your stocking choices, but like the poster above me pointed out, a few of these fish (regal,leopard,achilles) can be tricky, but you probably are already well aware of that. I personally would skip the achilles in 180g, especially one housing several other larger fish, two of which are other tangs. If you were to go ahead with the achilles I would just be sure to quarantine him for a good month to make sure he's nice and plump before he goes into the main display. Good luck, and keep us posted, you've got some of my all time favorites on that list :rollface:
 
Thanks for the comments. That's about what I was expecting to hear ca1ore... I have run a few FOWLR's in the past, but this will be my first reef. I have a 90 gallon that was originally going to be my display that will now likely be my quarantine. I've successfully kept mandarins in the past without issue, but this will be my first shot at some fish with a little more "difficulty."

Like SoloChromis said I am really looking for a tank with a lot of diversity, both in color and personality. If anyone has any suggestions as to replacements for some of the more difficult fish that fill the same niche I would really appreciate it.
 
Some of my favorites, all relatively easy, include the Tomini Tang, Chalk Basslets, Pajama Cardinals and Dusky Wrasse. You could do a Hippo, but be prepared to eventually find it a bigger home otherwise it will go bonkers.

FWIW, 180 is a great size for a tank. I ran one for 20 years and loved the dimensions.
 
I've looked into the Dusky Wrasse as a replacement for the leopard wrasse. How are they with inverts? I plan on having quite a mix of shrimps, crabs, and snails. Also, how do you feel about a powder blue tang instead of the hippo? I just really want something with a vivid blue color and nothing seems to compare to the hippo tangs.
 
I was drawn towards the achilles because it seems to be the only large fish out there that has any orange to it besides the chevron, which of course isn't orange by the time it gets large. Anyone have any others in mind?
 
jerod89 said:
I've looked into the Dusky Wrasse as a replacement for the leopard wrasse. How are they with inverts? I plan on having quite a mix of shrimps, crabs, and snails. Also, how do you feel about a powder blue tang instead of the hippo? I just really want something with a vivid blue color and nothing seems to compare to the hippo tangs.
Click to expand...

I have a large dusky in my tank and it is generally well behaved. It leaves my shrimp alone but will occasionally munch on a hermit. A worthwhile price to pay because it also eats all kinds of pests. Powder Blue is a better fit for your tank, though not an easy fish either. I personally 'use' yellow-tail blue damsels to meet my quota for blue. :)
 
What if I replaced the regal angel with either a flameback, flame, or potter's angel (for something orange) and instead of the achilles tang get a schooling bannerfish for something with a unique body shape?
 
If you do choose to add a regal ensure it is the first of the large fish that you add so it is not bullied into starvation. If you choose a different angel majestic are nice and easy.

Clowns not enough orange for your liking?
 
I definitely considered a majestic, but worried that it would look cramped in a 180 and I'm not sure how "reef-safe" they can be. A 12" fish that decided to take a liking to corals would be a disaster.

I feel like I have a lot of yellow's, blue's, and purple's... I thought some more orange, green, or red would help balance it out, but there are almost no green or red fish out there that are coral and invert safe!
 
180 gallon mixed reef stocking approval and/or suggestions.

I would say this fish list would have a chance if 1) you sequence the fish intro right, 2) there is a screen cover, 3) there is a powerful light that will compensate for the loss of light due to the screen, and 4) the aquascape needs to have enough passageways and holes. What appears to be the most risky element is the choice of tangs for an 180g, and the amount of bio load from these tangs to a reef.
 
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After researching the Majestic Angel's a little deeper it seems that people are having more success with them than I thought and it appears they generally top out at 8-10". If anyone can verify this I think I've settled on a revised list...

-Tail Spot Blenny
-Royal Gramma
-Neon Blue Goby (Pair)
-Yasha Goby (Pair)
-Blue Spotted Jawfish (Pair)
-True Percula Clownfish (Pair)
-Exquisite Fairy Wrasse
-Flame Fairy Wrasse
-Lineatus Fairy Wrasse
-Leopard Wrasse (or a Halichoeres of some kind)
-Yellow Longnose Butterflyfish
-Blue Hippo Tang (or Powder Blue Tang)
-Schooling Bannerfish
-Majestic Angel Fish
-Purple Tang
-Blue Mandarin Dragonet (Pair)
 
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-Tail Spot Blenny - Good
-Royal Gramma - Good
-Neon Blue Goby (Pair) - Good
-Yasha Goby (Pair) - Good
-Blue Spotted Jawfish (Pair) - Good
-True Percula Clownfish (Pair) Good
-Exquisite Fairy Wrasse - Good
-Flame Fairy Wrasse - Good
-Lineatus Fairy Wrasse - Good
-Leopard Wrasse (or a Halichoeres of some kind) - Good (get one that's taking prepared foods)
-Yellow Longnose Butterflyfish - Good (just not feather dusters or urchins)
-Blue Hippo Tang (or Powder Blue Tang) - Go with the hippo. Much more placid temperament and easier to acclimate (also not nearly as "spastic")
-Schooling Bannerfish - Good
-Majestic Angel Fish - Good
-Purple Tang - Good (I would add last)
-Blue Mandarin Dragonet (Pair) - Good (I would look for a pair that is already eating)


Looks good to me! Keep us posted on the tank :fun4:
 
Blue spotted jawfish prefer cooler water temps than most keep their reefs. They are also quite aggressive toward conspecifics, be ready for fighting even in a six foot tank.

A majestic angel will eat many types of corals and other sessile inverts.
 
I have a 180 6x2x2 and here is what I have in a mixed reef mostly LPS FWIW.
Hippo Tang
Yellow Tang
Kole Tang
Magnificent Fox Face
Swallowtail Angel
Bellus Angel
Flame Angel
Bicolor Angel
Flameback Angel
pair of black oscellarus clownfish
melanarus wrasse
Blue Headed Fairy wrasse
Solar wrasse
pair of lined cardinal fish
trio of Bartlett Anthias
pair of Lyretail Anthias
Diamond Goby Fish
pair of Flame Hawkfish
Midas Blenny

All have been in the tank from several months to several years with no issues. I can't keep the fleshy type brains because the Flame and Bicolor Angel pick at them but leave everything else alone. This tank has been set up for 7 years so all livestock was added slowly over time.
 
If you want a red and green fish check out the Christmas wrasse (Halichoeres Claudia). A lot of sites list them as reef safe with caution but I've never had any issues with mine.
 
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