Just startin + fish compatibility

[stjpball]

First of all im gunna mention i have a 26 bow and ive heard fomr a ton of lfs that this would be ok, with these fish

Heres the list i evetualy i wanna have
1, Bicolor Blenny
1, Salfin Algae Blenny
1, Watchmin Goby
1, Yellow HAwian Tang
1, either bicolor Angle or FLame angle (which would eb better)
3 pistol shrimp

Also id like some sort of anemones (eventualy)

Is all thsi ok? anythign wont get along with the other and will anything mess with some coral or anemones?

Dont know what itrs called but i tohink it Pseudchromis (purple saw it at a store)

Thanks

Sean

P.s. any other idea of some fish instead of teh ones ive chosen would be good to our any beginner tips

[MikeS]

Hi there

That's way too many fish for a 26 gallon....you'll need a tank about 75 gallon for that many....

MikeS

[Telco Guy]

Also, the Yellow Tang needs at least a 75Gal tank. In a smaller tank it's best to go with smaller fish. Blennies and Gobies are good. But as a general rule of thumb you should have at least 2 gallons per inch of fish. Some say 1 gallon per inch, but you need to be careful to not overfeed then.

Also, will this be a FO (fish only), FOWLR (fish only with live rock) or reef tank? If you are going to have coral in the tank you will need to be even more careful with water parameters. So the more fish you have the more waste your tank and filtration will have to deal with.

[stjpball]

Eventually id liek some corals and anemone, i have a penguin 330 hooked up s that should eb mroe then enough for my 26,

how about thsi list then

1. Flame agel
1. Yellow Watchman Goby
1.Lawnmower Blenny
2-3 Firmani Pseudochromis
2 Pistol Shrimp


Live rock
Live sand
eventualy anenomes and coral

[Charles Poole]

Things to consider when purchasing a fish for your tank:

1. Size of fish as an adult.
2. Food
3. Water Chemistry

Active fish generally need more room to swim.

Also, to help keep water quality as managable as possible, going with a 1in. of fish ( not including fins or tails ) for every 5 gallons of actual water volume. For Saltwater fish that is.

This is in actual water volume, as rocks and sand will diplace water, leaving you with less than the original 26 gallons. :)

[crazy_reefing]

First of all the flame angel is not reef compatable so it won't work with corals. Plus they need a tank of at least 30gals.

Flame Angel info:
http://www.coralforum.com/viewtopic.php?p=6527#6527

What type of anemone are you wanting to get? That will raise some more questions and answers too. Also, what type of lighting is on your tank? You need different lighting for corals then you do for a fish only tank.

[stjpball]

How Much Live Rock SHould i put into a 26 gallon tank, the lfs charges 15 a pound (complete rapage right?). I want to have it built up nice how many pounds you guys think?



Thanks
Sean

[crazy_reefing]

I think the rule of thumb is 1.5 - 2 lbs. of LR per gallon. Someone chime in if I'm wrong. A sponsor here (reefer rocks - www.reeferrocks.com) has really nice aquacultured rock with A LOT of life on it. He is really good to deal with and a really nice guy. His rock is $4.25/lb. but it's worth it due to the life and quality. They also send you a pic of the LR before they ship it to you to make sure it looks good to you. The LR at the LFS is plain and usually doesn't have life on it (depending on where you get it).

[Charles Poole]

First of all the flame angel is not reef compatable so it won't work with corals.

I totally disagree. I have had a Flame Angel, Lemonpeel Angel and Coral Beauty in my 125 gallon reef for over 2 years now. Never had any problem with them at all. Although if a coral is ailing, the Lemonpeel will nip at it a bit. :)

Plus they need a tank of at least 30gals.

I think my Coral Beauty in my 20 gallon reef would disagree with this as well. He has been in this tank for over a year now, and grown considerably as well as healed from a bad bacteria infection. ( The reason I bought him in the first place )

Reefman,

Your link to Flame Angel info is not correct. It actually links to the post on voting for CF on Aquarank. :)

[crazy_reefing]

Oh sorry :oops:

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=21&pCatId=444

[Charles Poole]

The "with Caution" is a blanket response. This actually applies to anything you add to your tank.

I don't like their choice of words when they say it is "prone" to nip at SPS, LPS, and Clam Mantles. I have all three of these in my tank, and the Angel could care less about them. If underfed, it is not the fishes problem if it resorts to alternative food sources though...:)

[FishinInTheDark]

I'm glad to hear that you're all keeping Flames in your reefs without incident. I really, really wanted one, but thought it would be a "no no" when I change my fowlr to reef. It's nice to get good news! (It still needs to be the last fish added, no?)

Conni

[stjpball]

I wasnt gunna go with live corals because you said no flame angel but if hes ok with it, si there any way i could get away with one bulb that would take care of the corals because my hood only has slot for one bulb, or will i ahve to buy an all new hood?

Thanks
Sean

[MikeS]

I'll go with clkeep's opinion on the flame angel, I've also talked to many reefers who have kept them in their tanks with little or no problems. I'd say you'd be more likely to have problems with the angel fighting with other fish than picking at the corals. I'll qualify this by stating that although I have kept many dwarf angels over the years, I have yet to put one in my reef tank, so my opinion on the angels reef compatiblity does not come from first hand experience.

Here is the "MikeS" philosophy on the issue of fish compatiblity..... :D

1.) there are very few hard and fast guidelines to fish compatibility that do not have exceptions. I've kept "aggressive" and "incompatible" species together with no problems, and I have also watched "peaceful" and "compatible" fish kill eachother in my FO days.

2.)there are numerous varibles that determine how a fish will behave in your tank. Some can be controlled, others can't, and there are many we are probably not even aware of.

3.)How a certain fish behaves in my tank may be completely different than how that fish would behave in your tank. Along that same line, seeing a mixture of fish species in one LFS tank is not a very accurate method of determining fish compatiblity in your tank.

4.) If a species of fish has a reputation for a certain pattern of behavior, there is probably a reason for that reputation. There are however always exceptions...(see #1)


5.)If there is a species of fish that intrests you, do as much research as you can, talk to others with tanks similar to yours who have kept them, then try to make an "educated guess". Be prepared to intervene if the fish is tearing apart your corals or fish, or getting torn apart itself. Also, try to find an LFS that has a good policy on taking back a healthy fish if you encounter compatiblity problems with it.

Mike

[Charles Poole]

Those are excellent guidelines Mike. :)

I currently have 2 Dwarf Angels in my 125 gallon reef.

Lemonpeel Angel
Flame Angel
Coral Beauty Angel

They have never posed a problem with each other. They don't school together, but aggression is not an issue either.

I have noticed that the Lemonpeel Angel does seem particularly fond of sick or ailing LPS corals though. He leaves well established, healthy, growing LPS corals alone, but will vigorously pick at sick or "brown jelly" infected corals, not allowing them to regain health. So with this Angel, I have to be extra careful when placing a new specimen in the tank... :)

[stjpball]

I relize theres a huge size difference form 26 to 125, btu i thought two dwarf angles in the same tank was a no no,

if im wrong would a flame and i bi color angel do ok in my tnak?

Thanks
Sean

[MikeS]

I kept a Rusty angel and a coral beauty in the same 55 gal.

Mike

[Charles Poole]

I would try to stick with only 1 in a tank that size. To close of quarters my cause some territorial issues.

My coral Beauty is housed with a Skunk Clown. No other fish, and 1 Hermit crab, 1 Gold Coral Banded Shrimp and some corals and a couple species of Caulerpa.
In my 20 gallon. THe 2 fish get along fine, and the Angel seems to think he's a clownfish at time. He goes right up to the anemone and says hello my name is DUH!!!! :lol: