Powder blue tang primer

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15509227#post15509227 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Amoore311
Those dimensions seem a bit small. That tank is only around 3' long I think, if the conversion website I checked was correct:

39.5" x 25.6" x 31.5"


If that is the case I would definitely not try it. A 3' run is not nearly enough space for them. This would lead to a very aggressive Powder Blue, not a good thing for your foxface or any other fish in the tank.

Thanks for the info, maybe in the future when i get more experience and get a bigger aquarium.

What would be a good length? 2 Meter (6')?

See my tank now


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What would be a good length? 2 Meter (6')?


6' x 2' x 2' (180 US Gallons) would be the minimum tank I would recommend.

The bigger the tank, the better chance of success with this fish.



Your foxface looks a little stressed, everything ok with him?
 
I don't really know, as I'm a real beginner.
I made a special thread about it.
it likes to hide when the light changes to blue light
the rest of the time it just keeps swiming against the glass.
but it eats well and get very excited during feeding time.
I feed it twice a day noon and evening

Check my other post, maybe you can tell me what's wrong, it's releasing strange white stuff once a day looks like white skin but it comes from the fins.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1686636
 
I had a PB in my 4x2x 12in tall frag tank for about a year. It ate well and only had one other tank mate, a smaller yellow tang. PB ruled the roost.

They ate Mysis, Nori, Broccoli crowns, and everything was going well.

I started to get a bunch of Apstasia so I added a similar sized Kleins BF. I thought that they were getting along fine, but within a week the BP was dead. No marks, no torn fins... just dead.

It was a very cool fish and it will be missed.
 
I had a PBT that lived for 2 years plus before I sold him. Here are the keys to my success. First find a healthy fish with plump uniform body. These fish have an extremely high metabolism and tend to find themselves emaciated by the time they become available to the hobbyiest. Next ich, like stink on pooh. So QT is vital, making sure o2 levels are super high, water quality perfect, and large quantites of nutritious foods. I had my PBT ibn a 150 and IMO this tank was a little small. This fish love to move and move fast. They need copious amounts of water flow, thus creating high levels of o2. These guys can become quite aggressive once established. T
 
I've had my powder blue in an 8x2x2 240 gal for about 18 months. In that time he hasn't grownmuch- less than 1". He's now 4-5". Is that normal?
 
Just found these pictures in my liabrary of pics. Not mine, but wanted to post this pic for two reason. Firsy to show what healthy PBT's look like and more importantly the area in which they are swimming. They are swimming in the surge zone where water currents are super strong. So strong that we can only barely replicate this in a aquarium setting. So the importance of O2 saturation is vital and very little to no nutrients present in the water. T
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125Gal 6foot tank
10x water flow(estimated)
salinity:1.022
ph 8.2-8.4
temp 77-79
Tank mates: Blonde Naso, Blue Regal

Foods: Seaweed sheets, mysis, Plankton

I've owned two powder blues in my reefing experience. Previous was about 5.5 inches long and I owned him for about 1 and a half years until a major bacteria outbreak/heat problem this past summer claimed half my livestock ( gotta love it when your AC breaks on a 102 degree day )

PBT #1 - 6 inches
Personality: Non-aggresive, seemed to really just do his own thing during the majority of the day. Was a very light and dainty eater, and would only eat nori/seaweed. Had absolutely no interest in anything else.

Habbits: Would usually swim the length of the tank at a medium pace, and quite often sit 6 inches from my Koralia 4 "surfing" the current. It was quite fun to watch him zip around surfing the tank, they really do like LOTS of water flow when they get older.

Health: I've run both a UV and no UV on the tank for some time while having the fish, Ick was here and there from time to time, the cleaner shimp would usually get it off overnight. I thought my UV was helping but after taking it out, it seems Ick outbreaks are almost entirely based off the overall mood and stress of the fish. Happy, stressfree = Clean, no ick. Stressed / Hungry = ick.

Granted i have no real data to back this up, just something i've noticed :)

PBT #2 - 3.5 inches
owned this one for about 4 months now, He exhibits some of the same habits my old PBT had, although he's a bit more interested in other types of food. This one has yet to start coasting in the water column around my koralia's - but seems to follow the same ick = stress/hungry signs that my old PBT had.
 
I completly agree that these fish show some sort of out break when stressed/or hungry and clear up over night when made happy again. In fact with my first powderblue I freaked out and moved him to QT and he died with in two days. To this day I honestly believe he would have been fine if I just left him alone. Wether these out breaks are Ich or not, I dont know.
 
Tank Size: 75g 4 feet long.
Koralia 4 and 2 for movement

I have had my PBT for about 3 months now. He is about 3.5inches long and has quite the beer belly on him. Never had a problem getting this guy to eat. His diet includes nori and enriched brine, loves both. Definitely has the most aggressive personality in the tank. Stays calm and plays nice if he is fed well, otherwise he will pick on the other tankmates. Loves to swim directly into the K4's current. Great personality, love that he comes and says hi to my hands when in the tank working. My aquascaping has many spots for him to zip in and out of rocks. Had ich when I bought him, cleared up in about a week after settled in the main tank. Love the color and activity of this fish. Makes a great addition to any tank!
 
I've had my PBT for close to 6 years now and love it :thumbsup:

It's in a 140 G tank with 2 Tunze 6100 on pulse mode.
Skimmer is an ATI BBM250. The tank is currently lit by 2*250W 14000K + 2*36W T8 blue lamps.
I wish I had a larger tank but unfortunately can't modify my set-up at the moment.

It is now about 5 inches and eats whatever I put in the tank, dry food, mysis, brine shrimps, nori...
He's getting along in the tank with other tangs, far too much would one say: purple tang (close to 10 years old), hippo (7,5 years), sohal (close to 7 years) and achilles (5 years).
They all get along quite well but I would not advise anybody to try to do like me.

For so many tangs, lot of open space + lot of water motion + lot of hiding places + very good feeding is very important in my opinion :D
 
I have to take some... will do soon.

Something I forgot to mention is that a cleaner wrasse has been living with them for 6,5 years now.
I think this fish is a key addition to a tank if you want to maintain difficult/sensitve fishes like achilles or PBT for example.
 
Would all this information about Powder Blue Tang also apply the same as a Powder Brown Tang? Picked one up recently and assume the two are very similar, but would be interested in knowing if there are any subtle differences between the two?
 
From what I can tell both are as difficult to care for and share the same requirements.

Make sure to get a healthy one that shows great coloration and eats.
 
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