65 Gallon Hex Stocking

captaincaiti · 07/23/2016, 08:42 AM

hey everyone! so i got bit with the saltwater bug and now apparently my 29g biocube isn't enough. i'm planning on buying my friend's 65g hex tank to have as a fowlr and keep my corals in my biocube. but now i'm stuck on stocking! in my cube i have: two snowflake clowns, a lubbock's fairy wrasse, and a yellow watchman goby. and a mantis shrimp hitchhiker that i have yet to see and am trying to catch (the joys of live rock).

the wrasse seems pretty happy but i may move him over just to give him more space anyway. other than that everything else would be staying in the cube. so i have a potential stocking list, knowing that not everything can go in the 65g. it's basically just a "these are some of the fish me and my family like, would any combination of a few of them work?" so without further ado, here's the list with a lot of questions attached.

one spot foxface (almost 100% want it unless anyone things it would be unhappy in a hex. i haven't read anything about that yet in my research).
coral beauty (my mom's favorite, i only haven't gotten it because of my corals)
some kind of puffer (leopard? saddle?) my sister is practically begging me but if i can't find one that'll work then it's a no go.
midas blenny
diamond watchman goby (i've heard they can be a pain but mostly with spitting sand on corals. i love the sandsifting though.)
maybe a pair of clownfish? i love my two but i'm not sure if i want the same thing in another tank.
a pair of ruby red dragonets or a single mandarin (down the road if i would even get one, making sure pod population is fine. would a 65g be enough for the mandarin as far as pods?)
some kind of starfish, i haven't done enough research to see about one yet but again my sister is practically begging me. any suggestions?

thanks for any help! the biocube seems easy to stock in comparison.

farfromsea · 07/23/2016, 03:33 PM

Most stereotypical starfish starve to death in the tank; particularly the typical ones I've seen at the store who all seem to be Fromias. Some have reported success keeping this so-called common starfish from this supplier for longer periods of time. http://www.kpaquatics.com/product/common-starfish/

Others happily report success keeping brittle stars in tank. Just be cautious with the large green brittle stars who like to eat fish. I believe besides that common one above, the harelquin brittle stars have more of that typical starfish-look your sister may be looking for and they are smaller, less able to eat the fish.

If I didn't have shrimp I would definitely get the Mimic Saddle Puffer (Paraluterus prionurus). It is a filefish but looks virtually identical to the Valentini Puffer without the (IMO) pesky puffing situation.

If you're doing a FOWLR why would the sand-spitting behavior of the goby be a problem?

Can't comment on the pod population exactly but I have a 60 cube so I've done research for my own tank and had understood my tank is too small to maintain enough pods for a mandarin. Yours is a little bigger than mine, but I'm sure others will chime in with better knowledge. But with my understanding, I wouldn't do a mandarin or a pair.

I would consider a midas blenny or golden (or blue) assessor (Assessor flavissimus or Assessor macneilli) instead of the pair of clowns.

07/23/2016, 08:42 AM	#1
captaincaiti Registered Member Join Date: May 2015 Posts: 15	65 Gallon Hex Stocking hey everyone! so i got bit with the saltwater bug and now apparently my 29g biocube isn't enough. i'm planning on buying my friend's 65g hex tank to have as a fowlr and keep my corals in my biocube. but now i'm stuck on stocking! in my cube i have: two snowflake clowns, a lubbock's fairy wrasse, and a yellow watchman goby. and a mantis shrimp hitchhiker that i have yet to see and am trying to catch (the joys of live rock). the wrasse seems pretty happy but i may move him over just to give him more space anyway. other than that everything else would be staying in the cube. so i have a potential stocking list, knowing that not everything can go in the 65g. it's basically just a "these are some of the fish me and my family like, would any combination of a few of them work?" so without further ado, here's the list with a lot of questions attached. one spot foxface (almost 100% want it unless anyone things it would be unhappy in a hex. i haven't read anything about that yet in my research). coral beauty (my mom's favorite, i only haven't gotten it because of my corals) some kind of puffer (leopard? saddle?) my sister is practically begging me but if i can't find one that'll work then it's a no go. midas blenny diamond watchman goby (i've heard they can be a pain but mostly with spitting sand on corals. i love the sandsifting though.) maybe a pair of clownfish? i love my two but i'm not sure if i want the same thing in another tank. a pair of ruby red dragonets or a single mandarin (down the road if i would even get one, making sure pod population is fine. would a 65g be enough for the mandarin as far as pods?) some kind of starfish, i haven't done enough research to see about one yet but again my sister is practically begging me. any suggestions? thanks for any help! the biocube seems easy to stock in comparison.

07/23/2016, 03:33 PM	#2
farfromsea Registered Member Join Date: May 2016 Posts: 549	Most stereotypical starfish starve to death in the tank; particularly the typical ones I've seen at the store who all seem to be Fromias. Some have reported success keeping this so-called common starfish from this supplier for longer periods of time. http://www.kpaquatics.com/product/common-starfish/ Others happily report success keeping brittle stars in tank. Just be cautious with the large green brittle stars who like to eat fish. I believe besides that common one above, the harelquin brittle stars have more of that typical starfish-look your sister may be looking for and they are smaller, less able to eat the fish. If I didn't have shrimp I would definitely get the Mimic Saddle Puffer (Paraluterus prionurus). It is a filefish but looks virtually identical to the Valentini Puffer without the (IMO) pesky puffing situation. If you're doing a FOWLR why would the sand-spitting behavior of the goby be a problem? Can't comment on the pod population exactly but I have a 60 cube so I've done research for my own tank and had understood my tank is too small to maintain enough pods for a mandarin. Yours is a little bigger than mine, but I'm sure others will chime in with better knowledge. But with my understanding, I wouldn't do a mandarin or a pair. I would consider a midas blenny or golden (or blue) assessor (Assessor flavissimus or Assessor macneilli) instead of the pair of clowns.