Gonna be Adding Stuff - Need Help!!

[neurotech]

Hello all. I've got a 10 week old cycled tank, 54g, getting 250 watts o' MH lighting friday, w/ 43 lbs of LR, 60 lbs of live sand. Current inhabitants include:
1 condy (I think)
2 false perculas
1 coral banded shrimp
1 yellow tail damsel
3 black snails, 3 turbos, 6 red legged
hermits.
I am looking at aquacon's specials etc. I would like to order more than one fish so that I could save on shipping. (Don'y you hate that?) I am thinking about getting 1 small Kole tang, a small Hippo, a Yellow Tang and a neon goby. Do you think that this is possible both from a behavioral/social and a bio-load perspective? Hey a clam or some stars would be nice too. That would be all the fish I plan on for this tank, and then start with corals and slowly adding more rock till I get to about 80 lbs. Whaddya THink?

 

[Anonymous]

I would say that your tank is too small to keep any tang at all, not to mention 3! I think your tangs would be unhappy, fight, and not get enough food, being the grazers that they are. Doubt they would make it.

If you want more than one fish, how about a pair of Banggai Cardinals? They're great fish!

 

[pez]

I have to agree with the tang thing. These fish need a lot of room to move around. However, I think you should be able to keep one of them if you feed it a lot and/or provide it with a lot of algae to graze on.

As an aside, I would never add 3 or 4 fish to my tank at the same time, unless they are all very small, like a group of chromis or a couple of banggais. Please ensure you quarantine the fish.

-Tom

 

[Leopardshark]

In a 10 week old tank i would never introduce 4 fish at the same time, or be prepared for disaster.
A tang is way too much for your tank.
Better add some gobies and blennies.

 

[neurotech]

Thank you - If I were to be stupid enough to pick a single tang, which would you folks pick for my tank? The Kole, Hippo, Yellow or Purple. (Do you know the adult likely sizes?)

 

[neurotech]

Also - any info about different clown compatibilities? I have two false perculas - What other clowns could I get? Thanks much.

 

[tazdevil]

Your not going to last long on here with that last reply, neurotech. (asking again about tangs-still no permission granted!)

First, I would wait a month or 2 yet before adding anything more. Let the tank age more, get a better developed bacterial colony, then slowly add a few more (1 every month or every other month, until capacity is reached). I'm partial to pygmy/dwrf angels, and they're much hardier than tangs. Only problem is they sometimes eat various corals, so it depends what types you are thinking of adding. The anemone would be safe though.

[ December 26, 2001: Message edited by: tazdevil ]</p>

 

[Rich-n-poor]

clownfish compatability is tricky, any clown you add may fight a Maroon will definately kill another clown.

But if you want different types of clowns I have successfully kept 3 pairs of tank raised clowns together in a smaller tank. they were false percs, tomatoes, clarkis.

HTH

_________________
Mercedes CLS Class

 

[samurai9]

i am not going to comment, but run a search on "aquacon". I was thinking of ordering from them, as they appear to have good deals, but after running across that particular thread...

 

[neurotech]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Rich-n-poor:
<strong>clownfish compatability is tricky, any clown you add may fight a Maroon will definately kill another clown.

But if you want different types of clowns I have successfully kept 3 pairs of tank raised clowns together in a smaller tank. they were false percs, tomatoes, clarkis.

HTH

</strong><hr></blockquote>

 

[slojmn1]

Definately nix the tang idea. If you are H**L bent on getting one I would get a small yellow perhaps. You may want to add it last so the other fish establish themselves first and the tang comes in the underdog.
I notice you said you would be getting 43lbs of live rock on Friday with your new MH lighting. This will, most likely, produce another complete cycle in your tank. I have concerns for your present inhabitants. I am unsure whether your condy, percs, etc. will live through a complete cycle. I would say probably not. I hope I misunderstood your original post.
Add fish one at a time. It is a pain but your system is a baby, 10 weeks old and you already have quite a group in there. The bacteria and ecosystem must catch up with each new addition before another is put in or things go bad rather fast. I really encourage you to try and buy a few things locally so you don't have the shipping woes to worry about. Once your tank is very established, months down the road, you can add a couple of fish at one time. FWIW, I added one fish,'cept for a mated pair of percs, to my 120g system one at a time with 3-4 weeks between each fish. All survived for the duration, till I had an oxegyn depletion nightmare one night and lost three fish. Seriously though, take your time and be patient your tank will reward you for this. Go to fast and your tank will make you pay.
Your final sentence about adding more rock over time may put your tank in a cycle each time you add the new live rock. If it is a small amount and fully cured you could get away with it. Fully cured means that it is in someones established tank for a long time and transferred to your tank quickly, this leads to less die off of sponges and other life on the rock. Good Luck and please heed the suggestions on this board, no one has anything to gain from you. Most just care about the welfare of the animals and that you have a nice stable tank