New Tank... Stocking Advice?

[docdubz]

Hi All,

I finally moved into a place with room for a big tank. In a few days I should be done moving in and the first thing Im going to do is drive down the my LFS and lose my mind for a little while I stop drooling over tanks and start spending some money! I have room for a 72"Lx36"Wx36"H tank, and I dont care if it has to be special ordered, Im going to get it!

I want this tank to be jaw droppingly awesome. So, what would you keep if you had a tank like this?

 

[viggen]

Those aren't the dimensions of my tank (120x30x30) but this is what I hope to do

Queen Angel
Emperor Angel
Passer Angel - have
Flame Angel
Powder Blue Tang - have
Sohal Tang - have
Blue Hep
Yellow/Purple tangs
Hawian/black durgeon trigger - have
Naso tang
harlequin tusk

possibly add another whimpy trigger... not sure what to add

 

[sandwi54]

If you have room, I would suggest a 96" long tank instead of 72", as this would open up the possibilities of the largest fish, such as the pomacanthus/holacanthus genuses of angelfish, large tangs like naso, bariene, floweri, etc. You will also be able to keep large triggers and puffers.

there are so many fish you can keep, so just do some research and pick out the ones you really like. list them here so we can comment.

 

[Wistler]

I would like to follow this as well since we are setting up a 180 gallon FOWLR tank this weekend. We currently have a 90 gallon reef and all my fish purchases and research have been regarding what is reef safe. Now that we are doing a FOWLR tank I am clueless as to what mixes well. I know I do not want a Lion or huge puffer, or eel.

I am thinking of a Yellow and Sailfin tang, and quite frankly I'm scared of the Blue hippo and many other tangs due to possibility of ich, which those fish seem so sensitive to. I have seen first hand from my neighbors tank and his troubles with the hippo.

Right now I have a 2" picasso trigger and 3" blue spot toby in QT, but thats it. I guess I'll keep reading Fenner's book and "500 Marine Fishes" handbook.

Are schooling banner fish, flame angels, and magnificent foxface good choices as long as I buy them larger than the Humu Trigger?

 

[agreeive?fish]

Hi All,

I finally moved into a place with room for a big tank. I have room for a 72"Lx36"Wx36"H tank, and I dont care if it has to be special ordered, Im going to get it!

dont make the mistake i just made.... make sure that you can get the tank into your house and into the location you want the tank in..having to change your order or plans because of a mistake of not measuring distance of room to get tank into house without moving structural support wall can be costly and very DISAPOINTING

 

[sandwi54]

I would like to follow this as well since we are setting up a 180 gallon FOWLR tank this weekend. We currently have a 90 gallon reef and all my fish purchases and research have been regarding what is reef safe. Now that we are doing a FOWLR tank I am clueless as to what mixes well. I know I do not want a Lion or huge puffer, or eel.

I am thinking of a Yellow and Sailfin tang, and quite frankly I'm scared of the Blue hippo and many other tangs due to possibility of ich, which those fish seem so sensitive to. I have seen first hand from my neighbors tank and his troubles with the hippo.

Right now I have a 2" picasso trigger and 3" blue spot toby in QT, but thats it. I guess I'll keep reading Fenner's book and "500 Marine Fishes" handbook.

Are schooling banner fish, flame angels, and magnificent foxface good choices as long as I buy them larger than the Humu Trigger?

Salfin tang will grow too big for a 180g; it needs an 8' tank. The yellow tang will be fine. For a 180g, there are really a lot of options. I'd say a good rule of thumb is to get fish that stay 10" or smaller as an adult, but of course that also depends on the individual fish's characteristics. some fish like tangs are agile swimmers and naturally require more room than other fish.

Here is a quick example list.

Angels - majestic; regal; the genus chaetodontoplus that includes scribbled, personifer, etc.; the genus genicanthus; flagfin, etc.

Tangs - many of them; examples are powder blue, powder brown, achillies, kole, etc.

Butterfly - most of the butterflyfish can be kept in a 180g as most of them stay 6" or so.

Dwarf angels - all of them

foxface and bannerfish are ok in a 180g. since the humu is only 2", the foxface and bannerfish do not necessarily have to be bigger. This rule applies mainly when an existing fish approaches adult size and becomes more territorial. Also, this rule will not apply to certain fish, as some of them are naturally aggressive and will attack all new additions. My 3" powder blue tang would attack every new thing I add to my tank, including a 6" French angel that's pretty much 5 times its size.

 

[Wistler]

Thanks Sadwi54 that was EXACTLY what I needed.

In regards to the HUMU, I have read that they are a lot less aggressive than say a Clown trigger, so thats what prompted the purchase.

So let me see if this thought process is correct....If I stock my tank like you suggest with plenty of rock (for hiding) and reasonable fish that are all 2-4" to begin with, I better the odds.

In a couple, few years when the HUMU gets larger and is no longer a juvenile, will it likely get aggressive and possibly attack all his "buddies." I know there are no guarantees on behavior, but I was wondering if one day in the future I would likely come home to a bloodbath. I really like the HUMU and didnt want to limit my self to a Eel, Puffer, Lion tank just to keep a triggger.

 

[sandwi54]

Thanks Sadwi54 that was EXACTLY what I needed.

In regards to the HUMU, I have read that they are a lot less aggressive than say a Clown trigger, so thats what prompted the purchase.

So let me see if this thought process is correct....If I stock my tank like you suggest with plenty of rock (for hiding) and reasonable fish that are all 2-4" to begin with, I better the odds.

In a couple, few years when the HUMU gets larger and is no longer a juvenile, will it likely get aggressive and possibly attack all his "buddies." I know there are no guarantees on behavior, but I was wondering if one day in the future I would likely come home to a bloodbath. I really like the HUMU and didnt want to limit my self to a Eel, Puffer, Lion tank just to keep a triggger.

No problem Wistler! Humu is less aggressive than clown trigger and would do well in your tank. Your thought process is correct.

Most angels and tangs should be able to hold their grounds with the humu. I have reservations with dwarf angels as they may get harassed by the humu, but if there's enough rockwork in the tank they will have places to hide. If you'd like to keep dwarf angels, I'd go with the ones that get bigger as adults, such as lemonpeel. Flame should be ok too I think.

Butterfly tend to be more delicate and may or may not fare well with an adult humu. However, there are a couple of species that do get large, such as the saddleback butterfly, and that should be ok with the humu. It's a beautiful fish and gets to about 10" as an adult. I've seen a few large adults in other people's tank and it looks great. Not to mention it's hardier than most butterflyfish.

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+25+303&pcatid=303

 

[Wistler]

Thanks again.....I will research all you have talked about. I forgot to ask about the little Blue Spot Toby/Puffer we have in QT with the HUMU. I believe he is considered a dwarf among puffers.

In a couple years will he fare well too? I think he will grow to 5" or so.

I see a lot of people with sailfin tangs and they are beautiful. I dont have any long term experience with saltwater fish. How long does it take for a sailfin to go from 3" purchase length to being too large for a 180? Thanks.

 

[sandwi54]

I don't have experience with the blue spotted puffer but I can see how an adult humu can nip his fins. hopefully someone with that experience can chime in.

salfin tangs are beautiful, especially when they extend both the dorsal and ventral fins. i'd say it'll take 2-3 years for salfin to outgrow a 180g, depending on how much you feed (since that determines how fast he grows). of course, RC does not recommend getting fish that will outgrow the tank, because it's difficult to find large fish a good home. if you don't have a large enough tank, chances are, very few other people would. there are really not many people keeping tanks > 200g. not to mention they may be well over-stocked themselves and cannot accommodate your fish.

i'd say to be safe, you should only keep large fish with the humu and stay away from fish that stay small. By small I mean < 5" as an adult. even though humu is one of the less aggressive triggers, it's still an aggressive fish by fish standard. humu will hit 10" or more as adult and his tank mates should be of comparable sizes too.