Three Tangs Too Many?????

[dadbehj]

Hi all.
I have a 180 gal tank with a 30gal sump. 200lbs of live rock. Protein skimmer. Key k3 leds. Tank has been set up for a year now. (i started with dry rock and just added nitrifying bacteria)
Very healthy. I do a 10-15% water change every 5-6 days and add viatamins every 3 days.
I have 2 healthy tangs
Yellow-4 inches
Blue. -5 inches
I want a naso blonde.
Will they get along?(thinking about getting a 3-4 inch naso blonde)
Are they suseptible to any diseases?
Are they reef safe, i have sps and lps?

Thank you for sharing your knowledge. Cheers!

 

[CHSUB]

They get really big, but i would tell you yes, with caution....the "experts" here will say you need a public sized tank that is opened to the ocean for filtration....

 

[BrianD]

the "experts" here will say you need a public sized tank that is opened to the ocean for filtration....

Please cite your source for this comment. Thank you.

 

[BrianD]

To the original poster, I assume your "blue tang" is a hepatus. While the three species would probably coexist, I don't think an 180 gallon tank would provide an appropriate home for a Naso.

 

[BrianD]

Also, it appears that you set up a 150 gallon tank last September, and had a 70 gallon at that time. Is this the 150, not a 180?

 

[Reefing Newbie]

Hepatus and naso tangs get too big for 180 gallon tanks. They both need 8' foot long 240 gallon tanks or bigger.

 

[sandwi54]

+1. Most people don't realize how big a naso tang gets as an adult. a 180g is too small for it and arguable too small for a regular blue tang as well.

 

[Jeremy Blaze]

I agree, naso will get huge. Too big for a 180 IMO.

 

[Toddrtrex]

+1. Most people don't realize how big a naso tang gets as an adult. a 180g is too small for it and arguable too small for a regular blue tang as well.

Yep, they are downright huge. Back in college (( some 20 years ago )) I held one for a buddy who was moving. It was in a 4 foot 55, it was downright scary how big that thing was, and how fast it could move. Honestly, it could get from one end to the other in a second -- with minimal effort -- and the wake that it created was huge. In the 3 days that I held it, I swear I lost a couple of gallons just from its wake.

I don't see how one could be kept in anything less than a 10 foot tank.

 

[sandwi54]

Yep, they are downright huge. Back in college (( some 20 years ago )) I held one for a buddy who was moving. It was in a 4 foot 55, it was downright scary how big that thing was, and how fast it could move. Honestly, it could get from one end to the other in a second -- with minimal effort -- and the wake that it created was huge. In the 3 days that I held it, I swear I lost a couple of gallons just from its wake.

I don't see how one could be kept in anything less than a 10 foot tank.

agreed. i've seen full adult naso in a nearby 16-foot library aquarium, along with a few unicorn and vlamingii tangs. those guys are just completely porky! they are obviously built for swimming, as their caudal fins are very large compared to their bodies. all it takes is a couple of swags of the tail fin and they can go from one end to the other end in less than 4 seconds (in the 16-foot aquarium).

i own a naso tang right now which will be moved into my next 8'x3' tank build later this year. I wish I had room for a 10' tank but I don't (maybe some day when I buy a new house). After seeing the behavior of an adult naso tang, I don't I'll own another after this one passes, unless I have a 10' tank. this species, while beautiful, should really be left in the ocean.

 

[DrBegalke]

If small, they would be OK for a year or two. After that, they will need a larger/longer home.