How Many Fish to Start With?

[ebosshard]

I have a new 220 gallon tank that has been up for a week with 175 pounds of live rock. No ammonia, good PH.

How many fish do I start with, all damsels or something else too?

Thanks!!

 

[Anonymous]

Don't put damsels in ther unless you want nothing but damsels.

They are very aggressive, even in a large tank, and these little bastards is PITA to catch if you ever decide to get rid of them.

Start will a few hardy, relatively cheap fish that you want to keep, and go from there once they got comfortable.

Let us know what you want to end up in your tank, then we can be more specific....

 

[ebosshard]

I have been told to start with damsels as they are the most hardy and easiest with which to cycle the tank. I have had 175lbs of live rock in the tank for 4-5 days which should be helping. Is there some other fish to put in at this stage to help the cycle along and won't die?

goal long term is a tank with a lot of reef/coral/growth with fish.

still learning

thanks

 

[Anonymous]

What fish do you want to keep in it ?

 

[Anonymous]

Starting a tank with damsels is the 'old' method of doing things. Just by having the LR in your tank, it will cycle. Wait awhile until all your water parameters are good, then like LOULE says, get a couple of good fish that you want to keep.

 

[Jolieve]

Definitely.. wait for the tank to cycle first before adding any fish. Damsels can/do die during the cycling process, though they are a very tough fish and many water changes would be required to keep them alive and healthy. Give your tank a good solid three weeks to get through the cycle and if you don't see any activity by that point, try adding some thawed frozen meat product such as mysis or brine shrimp. This might help start the cycle for you and it will save the lives of a few fish.

 

[ebosshard]

so i watch my ammonia and nitrite levels. watch them go up and then watch them go down. once they have made this "cycle" then I am cool to start putting in some fish that i want to keep?

when do i put in my shrimp/brine to aid the cycle process?

and again, if i want to put a fish or two in during the interim, damsels are not the right thing, what is hardy, will make the trip with me, and add some interest? (not that patient nor are my little girls!)

thanks!

 

[Anonymous]

When you add live rock, there is usually sufficient dying organisms on it to kick start the cycling process, unless you got some *real* cured rock from a hobbyist 5 miles away.

So you don't really need to add anything to see the A/N/N peaks and get the cycle going. Have fun!

 

[Jolieve]

If you haven't seen the ammonia rise after three weeks, then try adding the shrimp to jump start the cycle. From there, just wait until you see the ammonia levels rise and then drop back down to zero. Then you can try a relatively hardy fish.

Some good fish for beginners that you will want to research while you wait for the tank to cycle are: damsels (these get mean and then even more mean as they age, but they are very hardy and will survive most major disasters in your tank), clownfish, grammas, several members of the blenny family (bicolor blennies are neat, but do read about these first and know what you are getting into!). Also check into the neon goby and the watchman goby. Neon gobies are not terribly long-lived, but my goodness are they cute and sturdy.

I would add fish only after the tank has cycled. Let me say that again, AFTER the tank has cycled. If you haven't seen an ammonia spike after three weeks, and the shrimp are not helping to jump start the cycle, then please post here and ask for help before you do anything else!

You want to start with the most peaceful fish and add more aggressive fish last. This way you can ensure that your more peaceful community members are established and less likely to get picked on by the more aggressive fish in your tank.

 

[hsosa]

I would recommend clown fish. they are hardy and not shy. they swim out in the open. smaller fish like blennies usually just hide and you wont see them for a month or so. till they get use to their new sorroundings. You should be fine. check the salinity and ph levels. by now you should be ok to go.

 

[Jolieve]

Not if he hasn't seen any ammonia in the tank. The tank has only been up for a week! Absolutely not, I heartily disagree here. Putting in clownfish now would be signing the death warrants of these fish. Wait for the cycle to happen. It will happen. You have all the time in the world to wait. I know you are excited, I was too when I set up my tank. But please, please wait. It's really worth it, I promise.

This hobby is all about three things: research, knowledge and patience. If you don't have the patience the other two will not make up for that lacking. Be patient. Wait until the tank cycles before you add fish...

 

[ChrisRD]

Personally, I would give it a month. I know it's hard to be patient, but it's worth-it later. There are several advantages to waiting IMO. If you wait, you have time to see what's come-in on your rock (possibly something harmful that you need to get out). Also if there are any harmful fish parasites that have hitchhiked in on your rock, they will likely perish if enough time elapses with no host animals (ie. fish). Also, you give your tank a chance to develop a pod population. Without fish, the pods will multiply quickly and establish a good population.

In setting up tanks with live rock for myself and others over the years I've found that you won't always see much, if any, ammonia spike, and sometimes little to no nitrite and nitrate levels. It really depends on the condition of the rock and a few other factors IME. This doesn't mean the bacteria is not there. There's just not enough of an imbalance between the load (decay) and bacterial populations to see a build-up of that compound (ie. ammonia, nitrite, etc.).

Adding shrimp or other substances to "help" things along is really not necessary IMO. I've never done this, nor have I done in it in setting up anyone else's system. I'm not saying it would hurt - it won't, I just don't think it's necessary. The bacteria is there on the live rock whether you see spikes in the nitrogen cycle or not - just stock-up the system slowly and the bacterial colonies will quickly multiply to match the new load. I think the idea of having to "kick-start" the nitrogen cycle is leftover from the days when live rock was not commonly used in saltwater systems and you needed to get an inert plastic media or substrate populated with bacteria. Live rock comes "ready to use" so to speak.

JMO & HTH

 

[rachyl756]

I let my tank cycle for about 2 months in the dark before adding anythihg. Then we added cnails and hermits.

Then a bit farther along we took the fish plunge. My vote for hardy good fish to see how things go ... green chromis.

peacful hardy fish that are cheep and school does it get any better than that?

Rachel

 

[SpecialK]

The tank will cycle give it time..... You don't need fish to do this..... Be patient with it, thats what this hobby is all about...Patience!!!

Kaye