Fish in a 20

Kiviro

New member
I'm wanting to set up a 20 gallon nano reef. The thing is, my Boyfriend says he wants 5-7 fish in it. i've been trying to explain that we can't do that. Can anyone help me find a better way to explain it? The thing is we have freshwater tanks and you can get away with overstocking to some degree. But there is no way in a saltwater let alone a reef.
 
Is he planning on getting a skimmer? How lazy is he? Do you think he will keep up with his water changes? I don't see a reason why he can't keep 5 REALLY small fish in a 20.
 
I'm gonna end up on getting everything for the tank on my own. He has no idea what kinds of fish he wants to get. I will be getting a skimmer for it and I will be doing the maintenance on the tank as well.
 
I'm only going based on my philisophy of not stocking at the upper end of the bioloads.. thats just my opinion is all
 
which, if you are planning on doing the false wall would reduce your DT area to more like 15gal... meaning you would have much less real estate to house 5-7 fish
 
All I have to say is.... What a lucky boyfriend. I wish my girlfriend would help me with my tank. She just usually walks by and says, "You spend too much time and money on your tank..."
 
try explaining it like this...
15(ish) gall dispay
-4/5 gall after rock and sand
= approx 10gallons

now explain that each fish will be about 3-4" when grown and at 1"/gallon you could only have about 2-3 fish :bum:


And I hear ya... my wife just shakes her head and laughs...
 
i think the SPS could work as long as you have the right lighting and tank parameters going..

as for the 2 fish thoughts, i dont have any first hand knowledge but Live Aquaria has the dwarf lions rated at 50gallon minimum and the Anglers are showing about 20-30 gallons... so im going to say no they wont be good choices.

This is one of the challenges to a nano size tank. Limited space for fish and other livestock. I have an 8 gallon with 1 clown and a peppermint shrimp in it and that's about it.

You would probably be looking at things like Gobies, Clowns, some blennies, Firefish, things like that
 
This is one of those questions that is framed wrong, like "How many times a day should I feed?" (There is no correct answer, because it's the quantities involved that determine the frequency.)

Ditto the number of fish. It's not the number of fish, it's the SIZE. (Insert "size matters" joke here.) You CAN house five fish, perhaps as many as seven, IF the species are right. They need to pico-size fish that will not exceed an inch or so.

Look at Trimma cana, Trimma rubromaculatus, Elacatinus oceanops, Elacatinus multifasciatum, Elacatinus puncticulatus, Eviota pellucida, Eviota nigriventris, Discordipinna griessingeri, and Coryphopterus personatus, just to name a few.

SPS -dominant 20 gallon tanks are possible, but extraordinarily challenging for a beginner, especially without a sump. Be kind to yourself and start with less demanding corals. ;)

I would stay away from anglers and dwarf lions in that tank.
 
I wouldn't say I'm a beginner. I've had tanks my whole life. I started with a reef tank 3 years ago and it is doing great.
 
dixiedog is right on the money. Small fish and beginner corals until you feel you can handle the care and maintenance that come along with SPS corals and a heavier bio load.
 
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