Powder blue Tang!

It is possible to have a pbt in a 4ft tank but it will outgrow it soon, so you can enjoy them for a bit then give it away or upgrade to a bigger tank
 
megatron8121 said:
I trust people's opinions on here on everything except fish. It's all personal preference, some people have success mixing certain fish some don't.

The hippo is 10 inches, is the only fish in tank though. I'm pretty sure if it's lived over 20 years it's been healthy enough. I hope one day I have 20 year old fish. He basically has the same opinion as me though, every fish is different and there is no set standard on tank sizes or tank mates. Some work, some don't.
Click to expand...

This fish deserved a better life.
 
megatron8121 said:
I trust people's opinions on here on everything except fish. It's all personal preference, some people have success mixing certain fish some don't.

The hippo is 10 inches, is the only fish in tank though. I'm pretty sure if it's lived over 20 years it's been healthy enough. I hope one day I have 20 year old fish. He basically has the same opinion as me though, every fish is different and there is no set standard on tank sizes or tank mates. Some work, some don't.
Click to expand...

Well, I certainly want more than just one fish in my tank. I guess this isn't practical for me.
 
megatron8121 said:
every fish is different, there isnt a set thing saying itll be aggressive.

I know a guy with a 20 year old hippo thats lived entire life in a standard 4 foot 75, so maybe the experts dont really know what tangs need..I still want to talk to someone who can talk to fish so they can ask mine how they are doing.
Click to expand...

True every fish is different. They fall along a bell curve just like most things in biology. Of course it's not set that it will be aggressive, and of course there will be exceptions. However, looking at probabilities, chances are very high that it will be aggressive, even in a much larger tank; putting it in a smaller tank increases those odds even more. Watching stressed out fish swim around and fight is not all that enjoyable, and makes a tank much less relaxing.

As for your friends hippo, I could keep a dog in a crate for its full life span. That doesn't mean I should. If you can't tell that some of these fish are stressed, especially if you compare them to living in better conditions, then you're probably not watching closely enough.
 
Wolverine said:
True every fish is different. They fall along a bell curve just like most things in biology. Of course it's not set that it will be aggressive, and of course there will be exceptions. However, looking at probabilities, chances are very high that it will be aggressive, even in a much larger tank; putting it in a smaller tank increases those odds even more. Watching stressed out fish swim around and fight is not all that enjoyable, and makes a tank much less relaxing.

As for your friends hippo, I could keep a dog in a crate for its full life span. That doesn't mean I should. If you can't tell that some of these fish are stressed, especially if you compare them to living in better conditions, then you're probably not watching closely enough.
Click to expand...

I think in this hobby, the bar is often set too low. Many hobbyists, who got into the hobby because of hypes or "coolness" of saltwater tanks, don't truly have an interest in the welfare of the fish. They see fish swimming around and not having apparent health issues, and think that the fish are healthy. They are not observant enough nor caring enough to put themselves in place of the fish. they may also ignore the little stress signs that the fish give, possibly because they've never seen a normal-behaving fish before (since they and their friends have always crammed large fish into small tanks), or simply because they choose to.

I once had a small puffer in my 225g. It would swim around during feeding time and for a few hours afterwards, but half of the time it would just sit in its cave watching the outside world. I then added a larger puffer who immediately started attacking the small puffer, so I had to move her into my sump temporarily. While it's in the sump, it's constantly swimming around and never sat down to rest. Now, many people may think that's normal and cute, but it totally isn't!!! The puffer was really stressed out from being in a small environment and I could see it in her eyes too!

I urge everyone to watch fish in their natural environment (or large public aquariums), try to study its calm swimming behavior, and compare to his/her own tank which most likely has fish too big for it. I bet you will notice a difference.
 
ok thanks for all your opinions i will skip the pbt because it will be unfair and also i will skip the regal tang, but will a yellow tang be ok?
 
k4ndyk1ng said:
ok thanks for all your opinions i will skip the pbt because it will be unfair and also i will skip the regal tang, but will a yellow tang be ok?
Click to expand...

Honestly, I really wouldn't put a tang in your tank. I think a yellow tang will be marginal in a 48x24 footprint, but the height is really restricting. In addition, I would limit the size of the fish to 4-5" as well. Even though fish swim horizontally most of the time, they do go up and down as well.

Don't get so fixated on tangs. I like them but honestly they are not the "ultimate" fish that everyone has to have in a tank. I understand the urge for beginners to want to get fish past the typical clown and damsels, but this shouldn't be done at the expense of the fish's welfare. Tangs are very, very active animals and really do require a large amount of space to move around. In a small tank, they stress out and constantly pace the tank, back and forth, and that doesn't really make a good scene.

Why not consider other types of fish? dwarf angels, small hawkfish, maybe small toby puffers, etc? they are just as beautiful as tangs and present some interesting personalities as well.
 
I kept Tangs for years, including 2 PBT, in my 180g mixed reef with no trouble at all. Untill one day they developed a taste for my coral! Nothing was safe! SPS, LPS and my softies, they enjoyed them all. So with that being said, I'll never own another Tang. Period!
 
sandwi54 said:
Honestly, I really wouldn't put a tang in your tank. I think a yellow tang will be marginal in a 48x24 footprint, but the height is really restricting. In addition, I would limit the size of the fish to 4-5" as well. Even though fish swim horizontally most of the time, they do go up and down as well.

Don't get so fixated on tangs. I like them but honestly they are not the "ultimate" fish that everyone has to have in a tank. I understand the urge for beginners to want to get fish past the typical clown and damsels, but this shouldn't be done at the expense of the fish's welfare. Tangs are very, very active animals and really do require a large amount of space to move around. In a small tank, they stress out and constantly pace the tank, back and forth, and that doesn't really make a good scene.

Why not consider other types of fish? dwarf angels, small hawkfish, maybe small toby puffers, etc? they are just as beautiful as tangs and present some interesting personalities as well.
Click to expand...

are there any other fish that will eat algae and look cool?
 
k4ndyk1ng said:
are there any other fish that will eat algae and look cool?
Click to expand...

Algae blenny will be a good choice.

Just to let you know, getting an algae eating fish or other things to clean algae is a mistake many beginner hobbyists make. A newly set up tank will go through several phases of algae bloom in the first 6-12 months, and that is completely normal. All one has to do is wait it out. Once an equilibrium is reached, most of the algae will be gone and the system will only support a small amount of algae depending on the nutrient level in the water.

Now, if your system is relatively mature (over one year old) and still have algae issues, then you need to find the cause of this, and the most likely one is overstocking causing high nutrient levels. if that's the case, getting a fish to take care of algae will only make matters worse, as the fish eats the algae and poops it out, adding to the load of the system. That load in turn fuels more algae growth.

If your tank is new, please be patient and wait for another 6 months. Most likely your algae issue will disappear by then.
 
sandwi54 said:
Algae blenny will be a good choice.

Just to let you know, getting an algae eating fish or other things to clean algae is a mistake many beginner hobbyists make. A newly set up tank will go through several phases of algae bloom in the first 6-12 months, and that is completely normal. All one has to do is wait it out. Once an equilibrium is reached, most of the algae will be gone and the system will only support a small amount of algae depending on the nutrient level in the water.

Now, if your system is relatively mature (over one year old) and still have algae issues, then you need to find the cause of this, and the most likely one is overstocking causing high nutrient levels. if that's the case, getting a fish to take care of algae will only make matters worse, as the fish eats the algae and poops it out, adding to the load of the system. That load in turn fuels more algae growth.

If your tank is new, please be patient and wait for another 6 months. Most likely your algae issue will disappear by then.
Click to expand...

ok thanks i didnt know this :) also i love watching fish eating algae off rocks :)
 
Look at the different dwarf angles they are smaller but have a lot of color and are very active. They also are "rock pickers" and mine pick at the rocks all day long. There are a ton of really cool smaller fish that would fit in your system. Good luck!
 
Lorenz725 said:
Look at the different dwarf angles they are smaller but have a lot of color and are very active. They also are "rock pickers" and mine pick at the rocks all day long. There are a ton of really cool smaller fish that would fit in your system. Good luck!
Click to expand...

cool! thanks but are they 100% safe with corals?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

R
Tang attacking clowns
Replies
4
Views
1K
Uncle99
Uncle99
OrionN
Naso elegans, the Blonde Naso
Replies
1
Views
256
OrionN
OrionN
LJA
Fish addition order
Replies
2
Views
451
OrionN
OrionN
D
Powder Blue Tang
Replies
4
Views
1K
HumbleFish
HumbleFish
R
Sandbed depth question
Replies
9
Views
112
Guygettnby
Guygettnby
Back
Top