wanting to add a purple tang

K

kmac

Member
I would love a purple tang. However i have a lot of tangs already and Im not sure if it will work. I have a kohle tang, naso, redsea sailfin, yellow, blue and a powder blue who runs the tank.

They are in a 180 gallon tank and I have plans to upgrade to an 8ft tank.

I use an acclimation box to add new tangs.
 
IMO you already have ALOT of tangs for a 180 , ones that get very large quick as well and especially of the same boy type.. adding the purple will add some aggression to the tank and alot of bioload.
 
that would have to be one big, healthy and mean purple to withstand a powder blue bully + the established yellow and sailfin. If it were me, I would hold off till the new tank was ready to go.

~Will.
 
PTs are really hard to find now, like all Red Sea fish, because of the turmoil in the Middle east. How do your sailfin & yellow get along? Very often tangs of this genus will be fatal to one of them, but keeping them in groups of 3 or more isn't as risky. The PT is the same genus,Zebrasoma. However, I agree with the posters above---that is quite a tang load. But, if you have a quick rescue plan and you really want to, I think it could be done. I assume you would QT the purple; then put the PB in QT when the purple goes into the DT. Reintroduce the PBT after 10 days or so. This works very well with tangs. You're bound to have some pecking order skirmishes, but how it works long term is probably 50/50. All this drivel is IMO & IME.
 
My yellow and sailfin get along just fine. The only time the tangs have had any issues is when I add a new fish. But I started using a acclimation box and havent had any issues since. There is bout 5 mins of crazy once the new fish is released form the box and thats bout it. I am concerend with bio load but the fact that the purples are getting harder to find is what is leading me to consider risking it.
 
Purples arent that hard to find, i just went on 5 sites and they all have them in stock, Although imnot aware of the problem that they may be dissapearing, i just think that is a HUGE bioload on a 280, not to mention someof the tangs you have will get VERY large very quick if your feeding them properly.
 
You must buy a very large and mean purple so it won't be bullied by the powder blue. Purples are beautiful
and easy to keep so don't worry anything.
 
Acclimation box? I still suggest QT especially for Tangs. I get heat for having 2 tangs. Can't wait to see the heat you're going to get. Especially from a certain .... lol
 
You already have seven Tangs in a 180. I have a 180 with over 300 total gallons of water in my system and have only one Tang, with plans to add only one or two more. I would not recommend adding a Purple Tang, and I am definitly not a member of the Tang police.
 
I agree that you have a lot of fish in that tank. Assuming it is a FOWLR and not a reef, I really don't think bio-load is a problem. Is one fish really going to matter? Aerobic bacteria multiplies at an amazing rate, and assuming you have enough LR (and any other place that cultures bacteria) you should not have an ammonia/nitrite problem. But nitrates may rise a bit. I just think the term "bio-load" is way over used; I'm not really sure what it means any more. But, that's based on my thinking that nitrate, at say under 60 ppm, is harmless in a fish only system. I have heard anecdotal reports that high nitrates bother some sensitive fish; but I'll stick with Bob Fenner's book until there is real evidence to the contrary. I think your big problem is going to be aggression as the fish mature; and I think thats inevitable. Cramped quarters=stress=aggression. I'm rambling; but, IMO, there is a big difference between bio=load and simply too many fish. Your tank is going to look like one of those Asian tanks. they are crammed with fish and little else. The aggression is just spread around more.
 
psusocr said:
Purples arent that hard to find, i just went on 5 sites and they all have them in stock, Although imnot aware of the problem that they may be dissapearing, i just think that is a HUGE bioload on a 280, not to mention someof the tangs you have will get VERY large very quick if your feeding them properly.
Click to expand...
Just curious, where did you find them? I checked live Aquaria, Blue Zoo, and SWF.com,. None had them. I didn't check any of the smaller dealers, though, and they often have stuff you can't find elsewhere.
 
all of the more popular sites sell them VERY quickly but i have a few links to them if you want one just pm me.

Also any wholesalers can get them pretty easy ( any of your local stores usually have access to a few wholesalers they dealw ith that can order them for you)
 
Last edited:
In my opinion (and I have an 8' tank) you already have about 4 tangs too many.
 
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