we have a ~180gal bowfront with around a 30 gallon sump. i have what i can only assume is an undersized skimmer i got locally (it was sized for i beleive a 120-150gal tank, got it when we had a 72 gal bow front). its a reef tank with a DSB, and it had easily 200-250lbs of live rock. i just removed about 40lbs and re-scaped it. it has a majority soft coral, but i have started to try SPS, so there are a number of small frags growing well.
the fish load is as follows:
1 sailfin tang (largest fish, maybe 5-6")
1 regal tang (got him as a baby, hes still maybe 3")
1 kole tang (little bigger then regal tang, 4")
5 blue/green chromis. they range in size from 4" down to maybe 1.5"
5 lyretail anthias (all roughly the same size, 3-3.5", with the male being slightly bigger)
2 cinnamon clowns (female is large, 4.5" male is small, 2.5")
1 orange spot goby (4" long)
1 six line wrasse (2.5")
1 bicolor blenny (tiny, like 1.5". hes the newest addition)
1 flame angel (2.5")
2 cleaner shrimp
1 fire banded shrimp
tons of crabs and snails.
reason i ask if my load is to high, i have to do 20% water changes every 7-10 days and my nitrates are still in the 15-20ppm range. my wife and i love having all the fish because it adds activity to the tank, and up until recently everyone got along great (kole tang now seems to be aggressive to the goby).
i am trying to figure out which direction to go next.
1)increase my fuge size. i have room to add 20 more gallons of fuge below my stand. currently the fuge isn't very big. only about 8-10 gallons. this would allow more algae, more rock, and i could even possibly put in a frag rack and start fragging stuff as it grows in better. i considered this as the "natural" way of reducing nitrates and is my personal preference.
2)get a bigger skimmer. i got mine before i realized all the other brands and options out there. i also think mine isn't designed very well as it doesn't skim hardly anything to begin with (there is a lot of skimmate, but it just collects on the sides and doesn't make it up to the collection cup. the water level also doesn't come up nearly high enough to allow the bubbles to make it to the collection cup. i've considered trying the reef octopus 200. the price is not bad and the reviews are decent.
3)reduce fish count. this is my last choice... everyone is healthy, corals are growing well. i can keep doing the water changes to keep everything happy if thats what is needed.
with that said, if the fish load isn't terrible, would it be a bad idea to remove the kole tang and replace him with a naso tang? the naso tangs seem bigger, but the LFS said they are less aggressive of the tangs.
thanks everyone! (and since i still consider myself new still, let me know what other information i should provide)
the fish load is as follows:
1 sailfin tang (largest fish, maybe 5-6")
1 regal tang (got him as a baby, hes still maybe 3")
1 kole tang (little bigger then regal tang, 4")
5 blue/green chromis. they range in size from 4" down to maybe 1.5"
5 lyretail anthias (all roughly the same size, 3-3.5", with the male being slightly bigger)
2 cinnamon clowns (female is large, 4.5" male is small, 2.5")
1 orange spot goby (4" long)
1 six line wrasse (2.5")
1 bicolor blenny (tiny, like 1.5". hes the newest addition)
1 flame angel (2.5")
2 cleaner shrimp
1 fire banded shrimp
tons of crabs and snails.
reason i ask if my load is to high, i have to do 20% water changes every 7-10 days and my nitrates are still in the 15-20ppm range. my wife and i love having all the fish because it adds activity to the tank, and up until recently everyone got along great (kole tang now seems to be aggressive to the goby).
i am trying to figure out which direction to go next.
1)increase my fuge size. i have room to add 20 more gallons of fuge below my stand. currently the fuge isn't very big. only about 8-10 gallons. this would allow more algae, more rock, and i could even possibly put in a frag rack and start fragging stuff as it grows in better. i considered this as the "natural" way of reducing nitrates and is my personal preference.
2)get a bigger skimmer. i got mine before i realized all the other brands and options out there. i also think mine isn't designed very well as it doesn't skim hardly anything to begin with (there is a lot of skimmate, but it just collects on the sides and doesn't make it up to the collection cup. the water level also doesn't come up nearly high enough to allow the bubbles to make it to the collection cup. i've considered trying the reef octopus 200. the price is not bad and the reviews are decent.
3)reduce fish count. this is my last choice... everyone is healthy, corals are growing well. i can keep doing the water changes to keep everything happy if thats what is needed.
with that said, if the fish load isn't terrible, would it be a bad idea to remove the kole tang and replace him with a naso tang? the naso tangs seem bigger, but the LFS said they are less aggressive of the tangs.
thanks everyone! (and since i still consider myself new still, let me know what other information i should provide)
).
