8 fish in a 55 gallon?

Tuton

New member
I am planning on adding a 55 gallon sump to my 55 gallon tank
I plan on having:
1 flameback Angel
1 DotDash Butterflyfish
1 White Tailed Bristletooth Tang
2 Yellowtail Blue Damsels
1 Flame Hawkfish
1 Tribal Blenny
1 Sixline Wrasse

If this is going to be to much Than would it work in a 75 or 90???
 
First....no tang in in a 55. For bristletooth it should be a minimum of 75. Meaning the smallest.

Butterflies are difficult to keep.

Sixlines can be aggressive and so can damsels.

And if you plan on having a reef, there are a few on that list you should be cautious about.
 
First....no tang in in a 55. For bristletooth it should be a minimum of 75. Meaning the smallest.

Butterflies are difficult to keep.

Sixlines can be aggressive and so can damsels.

And if you plan on having a reef, there are a few on that list you should be cautious about.

Yes to the above! Also flame backs get aggressive.
 
I know my flameback is agressive, he gave my dotdash a hard time for the first few days
anyone know how a Flame Hawkfish do with shrimps
 
Get the 75 gallon or 90 gallon if you are dead set in getting the tang. If no tang then the rest of the fish should work in a 55 gallon.
 
I personally dont keep any of the fish you listed but I have a 55 gal mixed reef with 5 small to med fish and a few inverts and even that seems like a lot to me I couldn't imagine 8 fish in there. while the length of the tank is nice and big the width is pretty small and doesn't allow for a lot of different fish to set up much territory. but that's just my opinion


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I am planning on adding a 55 gallon sump to my 55 gallon tank
I plan on having:
1 flameback Angel Will work, but can be aggressive as it is in the argi complex. Also may nip corals
1 DotDash Butterflyfish IMO, it should have a larger tank. Liveaquaria suggests no smaller than a 70 gallon tank.
1 White Tailed Bristletooth Tang No less than a 75 gallon tank
2 Yellowtail Blue Damsels May be aggressive as they are damsels, but in a 55 they may very well be peaceful.
1 Flame Hawkfish Great fish, but shrimp are most likely out of the question when it gets close to adult size
1 Tribal Blenny
1 Sixline Wrasse Known to be very aggressive fish, especially for their size.

If this is going to be to much Than would it work in a 75 or 90???

I would suggest a 90 gallon tank for this. I'm not sure what your plans are for corals, but this is quite the stock list for a 55. Even in a 75 or 90 gallon aquarium, I would only do fish that reach a maximum size of 3". I personally prefer having more smaller fish than a couple of larger fish.
 
I have 5 fish in my 55 and I'm done. I don't think there is any room for more. I thought about adding a few cromis to the 1 I already have but there just isn't room.

I should also say.. If I had the option for a tank upgrade to a 75 or 90 that's the way to go! I can't wait for my upgrade!!!
 
I know my flameback is agressive, he gave my dotdash a hard time for the first few days
anyone know how a Flame Hawkfish do with shrimps
The hawk will most likely hunt down and kill any shrimp you try to keep. Not a great combo unfortunately. If you want to keep a hawkfish and shrimp together, you could try a longnosed hawk -- they have tiny mouths and don't get too big. They'll hunt pods, but anything much larger than mysis should be left alone.

I'd recommend going with a 90g or even larger for the fish you listed. Some need more swimming room than a 55g offers, some are VERY territorial... they'd just do better in a larger area.
 
if a 90 gal is an option, get it.
You seem to like lots of the "bigger" fish.
For your type you will have more success and fun with a bigger tank.
Your coral list is of the easy type, so you will have more forgivness with water quality.
Get a big tank, even bigger than 90 if you can, lots of fish and keep easy softies.
 
I have the following fish in a 50 gallon tank:

4 green chromies (med size), 1 small sailfin tang, 1 mystery wrasse, 2 percula clowns, 1 lawnmower blennie, 2 small firefish. My tank is a SPS tank and there are no problems. I feed my tank 2 or 3 times a day-and everything is good with no algae. I run as big as a euro reef skimmer I could fit in my small sump along with 150 ml of biopellets. H2O 5 gallons a week and all is good.

And, before I hear anything about the tang: I got him when he was about the size of a silver dollar and his is growing and doing great. I will remove him once he gets too big so the tang police and calm down.
 
I have the following fish in a 50 gallon tank:

4 green chromies (med size), 1 small sailfin tang, 1 mystery wrasse, 2 percula clowns, 1 lawnmower blennie, 2 small firefish. My tank is a SPS tank and there are no problems. I feed my tank 2 or 3 times a day-and everything is good with no algae. I run as big as a euro reef skimmer I could fit in my small sump along with 150 ml of biopellets. H2O 5 gallons a week and all is good.

And, before I hear anything about the tang: I got him when he was about the size of a silver dollar and his is growing and doing great. I will remove him once he gets too big so the tang police and calm down.

The most fish I had in my 55 was nine and thats when it crashed on my......
With a 55 gallon sump I think I'm going to go for 8 fish, plus I will have a 45gallon tank waiting on the side in case of agression
 
Why ask the question if your mind was already made up? This may not be the case but your posts lean that way.

The sump may help with water parameters but it doesn't change the size requirements or behavior patterns of the fish in your display.

Yes there are some who can pull things off that others cannot but why stack the deck against yourself and more importantly the fish?
 
If you already have the Flameback then don't add any other angels (I know you didn't list any others yet). If it gives you too much trouble maybe you can trade it in on a different less aggressive angel. I just picked up a Rusty Angel and it's been great in my 29g. I do plan to move it to a 55-90g in the coming year. Another one I had in the past that was a real good reef and community was the Coral Beauty Angel or the Multicolor Angel. As with any angel there is always a risk it won't be a model citizen but some have better odds then others.

If you like the idea of 2 or more of a small fish like the Damsel may I suggest something like a Chromis or Cardinal? Either one of those will still be reef safe and will be completely community safe with any other fish. There are a few varieties commonly available of either type. The Chromis is considered one of the most hardy of the saltwater fish too. If you already have two Damsel's and they are doing ok then that's fine but it's safer to try multiples of these other ones rather then the Damsel.

Instead of the 6 Line Wrase try looking at Mystery or Fairy varieties. They are usually a little safer in a community tank.

Good luck.
 
I want more agressive fish because my flameback is.....
I have kept a few sixlines without problems, and kept relatives of the flame hawkfish
I wan't more bottow dwelling fish because the fish I already have cruise around the top of the tank waiting for me to feed them
I just wan't whats best for the fish, and for me
 
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So in your opinion by adding additional fish that could be aggressive to one another in a smaller aquarium you will improve the chances of decreasing the overall aggression of the fish community in the tank?
 
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