PLEASE check out your intended fish purchases here first!

[Pete H.]

I was thinking of adding lyre tail wrasses to my 135 gallon. I am wondering why you steer people toward the resplendent or cranberry instead. Thanks for the help!

 

[snorvich]

I was thinking of adding lyre tail wrasses to my 135 gallon. I am wondering why you steer people toward the resplendent or cranberry instead. Thanks for the help!

Because they have a propensity to all become males

 

[Pete H.]

Thanks. How many anthias would you recommend for a 135 gallon (6ft long)? Also, is it easy to determine the gender of the resplendent or carberryi? One of the things I liked about the lyretail is the stark difference in gender.

Sorry about the typos. I meant anthias not wrasse and did not mean cranberry either.

 

[lespaul339]

If you are in this for the long run, you also need to develop a quarantine protocol. My blog has one for your perusal. Yes, stocking a marine aquarium is not like a fresh water aquarium. Your bioload will eventually support a couple more small fish but go slowly! Nothing good happens quickly in an aquarium.

Thanks. I have a 10 gallon I plan on setting up as a quarantine tank. I also have a 29 gallon, but I feel thats a little big for a quarantine tank. One more question about my fish choice. Can the blue/green chromis do okay by itself in a comunity tank, or would I be better of getting a couple of them? Online it just says they do good in a school, but doesn't say if it's okay to have just one. Thank you for all the help you've given me so far!

 

[D-Trick]

I had a 12g nano and just moved up to a 90g with 30g sump w/live rock and protein skimmer. I moved 2 Ocellaris clowns,a neon goby, a coral banded shrimp, and a pistol shrimp into this tank along with the cleaner crew of snails, crabs, and hermits. I have a mixture of LEDs and T5s and plan on doing sps, lps and soft corals. Please let me know if this list of fish will work in the tank:

Coral beauty
Royal gamma
Randal orange striped prawn goby
Lawnmower blennie
Six line wrasse
Longnose Hawkfish
Leopard wrasse x2 (male and a female)
Firefish x 2

Later on when the tank is more established I would like to add a banded pipefish and a green mandarin.

 

[AZBigJohn]

Hi, Steve,

A little off-topic, and I'm sure you answered this earlier, but do firefish need to be added first due to a need to stake out safe territory?

I have a fairly lightly stocked 55 gallon DT with a 30 gallon sump that has been a long-existing Fish-only. For the last several months, I have been working to convert it to a reef, and it now is supporting water params very well. Currently it has in it:

3 Ocellarius clowns (I know you always say they will become two)
1 pigmy Angel (has been a non-issue with eating my few softies/zoas)
1 Bicolor blenny

Inverts
1 fighting conch
2 turbo snails
5 Nassirus snails
2 peppermint shrimp
4 small scarlet hermits (thrown in by LFS with snails before I read your warnings on hermits)

I really like firefish, and would like to add a pair, but you always say to add them first. Could I, after quarantine, do anything to successfully add a pair?

thanks,

John

 

[snorvich]

Thanks. How many anthias would you recommend for a 135 gallon (6ft long)? Also, is it easy to determine the gender of the resplendent or carberryi? One of the things I liked about the lyretail is the stark difference in gender.

Sorry about the typos. I meant anthias not wrasse and did not mean cranberry either.

that is beyond the scope of this thread. Lots of information can be obtained in the Reef Fish forum.

 

[snorvich]

Thanks. I have a 10 gallon I plan on setting up as a quarantine tank. I also have a 29 gallon, but I feel thats a little big for a quarantine tank. One more question about my fish choice. Can the blue/green chromis do okay by itself in a comunity tank, or would I be better of getting a couple of them? Online it just says they do good in a school, but doesn't say if it's okay to have just one. Thank you for all the help you've given me so far!

stocking more than one chromis is likely to end up with just one or at most two

 

[snorvich]

I had a 12g nano and just moved up to a 90g with 30g sump w/live rock and protein skimmer. I moved 2 Ocellaris clowns,a neon goby, a coral banded shrimp, and a pistol shrimp into this tank along with the cleaner crew of snails, crabs, and hermits. I have a mixture of LEDs and T5s and plan on doing sps, lps and soft corals. Please let me know if this list of fish will work in the tank:

Coral beauty
Royal gamma
Randal orange striped prawn goby
Lawnmower blennie
Six line wrasse very aggressive
Longnose Hawkfish precludes shrimp
Leopard wrasse x2 (male and a female) get some experience first before trying leopard wrasses and better tried in a mature tank
Firefish x 2 must be a male plus female

Later on when the tank is more established I would like to add a banded pipefish and a green mandarin.

That would be too many copepod eaters in only a moderately sized tank

 

[snorvich]

Hi, Steve,

A little off-topic, and I'm sure you answered this earlier, but do firefish need to be added first due to a need to stake out safe territory?

depends on their tank mates. In your case, adding a true M + F pair should be fine.

I have a fairly lightly stocked 55 gallon DT with a 30 gallon sump that has been a long-existing Fish-only. For the last several months, I have been working to convert it to a reef, and it now is supporting water params very well. Currently it has in it:

3 Ocellarius clowns (I know you always say they will become two)
1 pigmy Angel (has been a non-issue with eating my few softies/zoas)
1 Bicolor blenny

Inverts
1 fighting conch
2 turbo snails
5 Nassirus snails
2 peppermint shrimp
4 small scarlet hermits (thrown in by LFS with snails before I read your warnings on hermits)

I really like firefish, and would like to add a pair, but you always say to add them first. Could I, after quarantine, do anything to successfully add a pair?

thanks,

John

 

[MasterSplinter]

Starting a 65 Gallon (36x18x24) with a 20 gallon sump, mixed reef and a DSB. Was considering the following fish, may be too many. Also, what inverts would you recommend?

Maroon Clownfish
Bicolor Blenny
Royal Gramma Basslet
Orchid Dottyback
Four Line Wrasse (Last Fish)
Blue Spot Jawfish
Green Mandarin (Mature Tank)

 

[Ariel00]

I have a 100g reef tank. On my wish list is:Yashia shrimp goby,gold spotted rabittfish and a mimic lemonpeel tang.


In my tank now:

Ocellaris clownfish (one)
Blue green chromis (one)
Randall's goby (pair)
Bluejaw triggerfish (male)
Dispar Anthias (one)
Tailspot Benny
Banggai cardinal

Thanks for your advice

 

[snorvich]

Starting a 65 Gallon (36x18x24) with a 20 gallon sump, mixed reef and a DSB. Was considering the following fish, may be too many. Also, what inverts would you recommend?

Maroon Clownfish very aggressive
Bicolor Blenny
Royal Gramma Basslet
Orchid Dottyback semi-aggressive
Four Line Wrasse (Last Fish) very aggressive
Blue Spot Jawfish needs lower temperatures for success
Green Mandarin (Mature Tank) any lined wrasse will not allow this fish to exist

 

[snorvich]

I have a 100g reef tank. On my wish list is:Yashia shrimp goby,gold spotted rabittfish and a mimic lemonpeel tang.

all the additions are fine

In my tank now:

Ocellaris clownfish (one)
Blue green chromis (one)
Randall's goby (pair)
Bluejaw triggerfish (male) I am skeptical about the success of this fish
Dispar Anthias (one)
Tailspot Benny
Banggai cardinal

Thanks for your advice

 

[J.B.]

Hey, Steve...I just learned of this thread, so I figured I'd get your opinion on my proposed setup.

I've got a standard 75-gal DT (48L x 18D x 21H) and a 30-gal long sump (36L x 12D x 17H) /w fuge.

My original intention was for this to be a FOWLR, but I've got to be honest with myself and concede this will very likely become a softies tank (Xenia and GSP only and let them run a muck). I've got both of these in my 45-gal reef.

My preferred stocking list is a follows:

"¢ 1x Humu Picasso Triggerfish (Rhinecanthus aculeatus)

"¢ 1x Coral Beauty Angelfish (Centropyge bispinosa)

Note: These two are firm on the list

"¢ 1x Saddleback Butterflyfish (Chaetodon ephippium)

or

"¢ 1x Dot Dash Butterflyfish (Chaetodon punctatofasciatus)

Note: prefer the Saddleback, but concerned, regarding size, about having it and the trigger in this size tank

"¢ 1x Saddle Valentini Puffer (Canthigaster valentini)

or

"¢ 1x Papuan Toby Puffer (Canthigaster papua)

"¢ 1x Highfin Red-Banded Goby (Stonogobiops nematodes)

Then for something small, I'd like to get some Chromis of some sort, and I like the looks of the Black Bar Chromis ((Chromis retrofasciata). I'd get at least 4 of them.

Appreciate you having a look at this, and look forward to hearing your recommendations.

JB

 

[lespaul339]

I have a 100g reef tank. On my wish list is:Yashia shrimp goby,gold spotted rabittfish and a mimic lemonpeel tang.


In my tank now:

Ocellaris clownfish (one)
Blue green chromis (one)
Randall's goby (pair)
Bluejaw triggerfish (male)
Dispar Anthias (one)
Tailspot Benny
Banggai cardinal

Thanks for your advice

How does your blue/green chromis do by itself? I want to get one for my 50 gallon and was wondering if they do ok by themselves because they say they are a schooling fish.

 

[snorvich]

Hey, Steve...I just learned of this thread, so I figured I'd get your opinion on my proposed setup.

I've got a standard 75-gal DT (48L x 18D x 21H) and a 30-gal long sump (36L x 12D x 17H) /w fuge.

My original intention was for this to be a FOWLR, but I've got to be honest with myself and concede this will very likely become a softies tank (Xenia and GSP only and let them run a muck). I've got both of these in my 45-gal reef.

My preferred stocking list is a follows:

"¢ 1x Humu Picasso Triggerfish (Rhinecanthus aculeatus)

"¢ 1x Coral Beauty Angelfish (Centropyge bispinosa)

Note: These two are firm on the list

"¢ 1x Saddleback Butterflyfish (Chaetodon ephippium)

or

"¢ 1x Dot Dash Butterflyfish (Chaetodon punctatofasciatus)

Note: prefer the Saddleback, but concerned, regarding size, about having it and the trigger in this size tank

"¢ 1x Saddle Valentini Puffer (Canthigaster valentini)

or

"¢ 1x Papuan Toby Puffer (Canthigaster papua)

"¢ 1x Highfin Red-Banded Goby (Stonogobiops nematodes)

Then for something small, I'd like to get some Chromis of some sort, and I like the looks of the Black Bar Chromis ((Chromis retrofasciata). I'd get at least 4 of them.

Appreciate you having a look at this, and look forward to hearing your recommendations.

JB

As the trigger is firm on the list, this qualifies as an aggressive fish tank and I do not provide commentary on aggressive fish tanks. Best answers can be found here.

 

[snorvich]

How does your blue/green chromis do by itself? I want to get one for my 50 gallon and was wondering if they do ok by themselves because they say they are a schooling fish.

this is not a discussion thread. Please post questions in a different thread.

 

[Good2Go]

46 gallon bowfront, mixed reef (corals in for 1-3 weeks), 3 months old.
AquaC Remora skimmer, HOB filter, Rena Filstar XP2 canister filter

In tank:
3x green chromis - in for 2 months
1x cleaner shrimp - just went in
snails

Would like to add (one each):
Midas blenny
Six line wrasse - aggressive to all fish? or okay with this list
Ocellaris clown - will not add until corals are larger - one year?

If bioload allows, add one or two from this list:
Clown goby
firefish
banggai cardinal

 

[snorvich]

46 gallon bowfront, mixed reef (corals in for 1-3 weeks), 3 months old.
AquaC Remora skimmer, HOB filter, Rena Filstar XP2 canister filter

In tank:
3x green chromis - in for 2 months will become one eventually
1x cleaner shrimp - just went in
snails

Would like to add (one each):
Midas blenny
Six line wrasse - aggressive to all fish? or okay with this list aggressive, will limit other options
Ocellaris clown - will not add until corals are larger - one year?

the only issue with corals is that they may be associated with the clown to their detriment

If bioload allows, add one or two from this list:
Clown goby
firefish no lined wrasse, introduce early
banggai cardinal

bioload is fine, with no lined wrasse, all can work except as noted above