Derrick's 150g rebuild

[derrick80f]

Hi all, I had a 150g set up a few years ago. I kept coral, various types of fish, including seahorses, and a lot of other misc things. I am in the process of setting the tank up again. Tank is 48" x 24" deep x 32" high. I am running a reef-breeders light, neptune apex systems, and plan on buying two new QP-16 wavemaker flow pumps because that's what I used before. I also have to purchase a new protein skimmer. The following is what I'm working with so far:

as you can see I have quite a bit of rock going in, as well as the tonga branches.... and my sand (120 lbs white aragalive) is coming tomorrow.
I am unsure of how I am going to set it up. I have wanted a lionfish since I started with marine tanks, but unsure due to the lack of available tank mates. I considered just setting it up as it was before. Or maybe just doing a puffer tank, because I enjoy them. Anyway, any thoughts?

 

[JohnL]

Welcome back to the hobby and welcome to Reef Central.

 

[kharmaguru]

You could keep multiple lionfish together. Neither they or most puffers are endangered but because lionfish are an invasive plague in Florida, I would keep those.

 

[reefing102]

Nice tank! I agree you could keep puffers and lions together. Honestly most of your larger fish should be fine, large angels, tangs, etc…

 

[derrick80f]

Thanks for the input so far!

 

[derrick80f]

Well, 160 lbs of sand and then my rock, and now I have 2 clownfish and a humo trigger that I picked up today.

 

[reefing102]

Looks good. I’d be careful with the trigger with the clowns. Not sure how long that may last as the trigger can be quite aggressive

 

[derrick80f]

Ok thanks for that. Wouldn't they be ok as long as I keep him well fed? Or is it just an aggressive fish overall? Also, what are good fish to mix with the trigger?

 

[reefing102]

Overall size and aggression is part of it, the trigger will get about a foot. You generally would want a fish of comparable size and likely similar aggression

 

[derrick80f]

Yes, the store owner where I bought the trigger told me they get big, but not in a 150 gallon.. don't fish normally grow to fit their environment/tank size?

 

[mtnbike101]

Yes, the store owner where I bought the trigger told me they get big, but not in a 150 gallon.. don't fish normally grow to fit their environment/tank size?

LOL

 

[derrick80f]

Omg wtf @ big fish in small tank

 

[mtnbike101]

To answer your question, fish will grow to a certain size in a given tank, but they still can become too big and it denies them the room they need.

 

[derrick80f]

To answer your question, fish will grow to a certain size in a given tank, but they still can become too big and it denies them the room they need.

Yeah, I use to keep koi ponds, and I remember the fish never outgrew their pond size, but thats crazy. Anyway thanks for sharing the pic of your babies

 

[reefing102]

Correct. They’re growth will slow but it’s always recommended they have appropriate living conditions so it’s not “cruel” to them.

 

[VWD]

I personally think it’s a myth that will only grow to a certain size according to the amount of space you provide. A healthy well fed fish is going to grow. It may slow down their growth some. Just my opinion.

 

[VWD]

Nice tank by the way

 

[mtnbike101]

Yeah, I use to keep koi ponds, and I remember the fish never outgrew their pond size, but thats crazy. Anyway thanks for sharing the pic of your babies

Oh, that was a random internet pic just for fun. I'm not a freshwater guy.

 

[derrick80f]

Nice tank by the way

Thank you.

 

[derrick80f]

Ok, it has been over 5 weeks since I set up my tank and I have not done a water change. At all. I tested everything for the first time this morning and all parameters are perfect. Since losing the trigger, I added a scopas tang, and then just the other day a powder blue. The scopas is larger than the powder blue and was a bully for the first day but they are swimming fine together now.