Ive officially caught the bug!

arammell · 02/06/2008, 01:32 PM

I would love to have as much feedback as possible so I thank you in advance. I am getting ready to buy a 210 Gallon Reef tank and I am formulating a list of the specimens I plan to put in my tank. I am a Tang lover and also love anything rare so I am willing to make changes as time goes on, but I wanted to get a base list I can work off of.

I love tangs so I am going overboard. I have read that if you have many tangs they can spread out their aggression and don't ever really pick on one fish.

3 Green Chromis
6 Blue Chromis
3 Yellowtail Blue Damselfish
1 Orchind Dottyback
1 Striped Dottyback
2 Gold Striped Maroon Clownfish
2 Banggai Cardinalfish
1 Flame Angelfish
2 Green Mandarinfish
1 Japanese Swallowtail Angelfish
1 Yellow Watchman Goby
1 Purple Firefish
1 Flame Hawkfish
1 Achilles Tang
1 Blue Tang
1 Red Sea Sailfin Tang
1 Yellow Tang
1 Flame Fin Tomini Tang
1 Orange Bar Tang
1 Spotted Yellow Eye Tang
1 Fox Face Rabbitfish
1 Barred Spinefoot Rabbitfish
1 Blue Spot Jawfish
1 Garabaldi Damsel
1 Pistol Shrimp
2 Fire Shrimp
2 Cleaner Shrimp

I know I may be going way overboard, but I can't help it...I love so many fish

Please let me know what you think is possible and what is not
Thanks again everyone

dileggi · 02/06/2008, 01:35 PM

WELCOME!!!!

arammell · 02/06/2008, 01:37 PM

Thank you very much!!!

dileggi · 02/06/2008, 01:40 PM

Good luck with everything. I'm going to let someone with more experience at stocking answer your questions.

fish4lyfe · 02/06/2008, 01:44 PM

to me that looks like to many fish for a 210 gal

sufunk · 02/06/2008, 01:50 PM

I'd agree, too many fish by far. I feel ya wanting all those nice fish. I got my tank and wanted an achilles and naso tang so bad but eventually decided against it after having a million and one people here and elsewhere tell me it was a bad idea in a 180g.

I have basically the same tank(6 inches shorter) with about 1/4 the amount of fish you want. 7 tangs(including an achilles) is way too much for that size and will probably be a problem,imo.

I have 3 tangs, 4 anthias, 2 clowns and a mandarin in my tank. I couldn't imagine having 4 more tangs in there, definitely wouldnt be enough room. If you put that many tangs in a 210g, its very likely they will fight.

I'd suggest cutting the tang list in half and then cut the rest of the list in half as well.

arammell · 02/06/2008, 02:17 PM

Here is my updated list
tell me what you think
Still way too many?

2 Gold Striped Maroon Clownfish
2 Banggai Cardinalfish
1 Red Sea Sailfin Tang
1 Yellow Tang
1 Flame Fin Tomini Tang
1 Spotted Yellow Eye Tang
1 Blue Tang
1 Japanese Swallowtail Angelfish
1 Fox Face Rabbitfish
1 Yellow Watchman Goby
1 Blue Spot Jawfish
2 Green Mandarinfish
1 Garabaldi Damsel
1 Pistol Shrimp
2 Fire Shrimp
2 Cleaner Shrimp

seapug · 02/06/2008, 02:22 PM

Start by narrowing down the Chromis/Damsel factor. It'll be perpetual warfare.

Same goes for the Dottybacks. Very aggressive and territorial.

The Garibaldi is a coldwater fish and gets big. 70 degrees max on those guys.

I'd decide if you want Tangs or Rabbitfish. If you want the tangs, forget the rabbits and pick one or two of your favorite tangs and care for them well. Remember, some of those on that list get 1 1/2 feet long and very aggressive.

The Jawfish would be scared out of it's mind in a tank with that many fish.

That's my 2 cents.

sufunk · 02/06/2008, 02:24 PM

That's much closer. I dont know the compatability of all those fish but other than still having 1-2 too many tangs, thats much closer to being feasible.

The mandarin you should wait on though. They need a lot of pods to eat so you should give it some time to build up a big enough pod population for them.

sgarron · 02/06/2008, 02:32 PM

I saw you took out the flame hawk, good choice, they eat cleaner shrimp. You should still shorten that list a bit. Maybe more like this:

2 Gold Striped Maroon Clownfish
1 Red Sea Sailfin Tang
1 Yellow Tang
1 Blue Tang
1 Yellow Watchman Goby
1 Blue Spot Jawfish
2 Green Mandarinfish
1 Pistol Shrimp
2 Fire Shrimp
2 Cleaner Shrimp

This will give the tangs room to grow and swim. The mandarins shouln't be added until your tank has been established for a year or more. Maybe throw in a trio of bartlet or randals anthias just to give you a fuller look.

arammell · 02/06/2008, 02:44 PM

The Yellow, Flame Fin, Sailfin, and Blue Tangs are my favorites.
Can they coexist?

sgarron · 02/06/2008, 02:53 PM

Yes, they can co-exist. It's just that tangs grow rather large and are poop machines. Don't over crowd your tank, your water quality and most imoportantly your fish will suffer.

sufunk · 02/06/2008, 03:33 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by sgarron
Yes, they can co-exist. It's just that tangs grow rather large and are poop machines. Don't over crowd your tank, your water quality and most imoportantly your fish will suffer.

Very good advice!

If you've never had a tang, they can literally cloud a tank when they poop and thats when they are 6" or less. The BIG ones will make your skimmer go into overdrive when they poop.

kathainbowen · 02/06/2008, 03:42 PM

I would really only recommend 1 mandarin dragonet, and only after your tank being at least a year or two old with an ample population of copepods and amphipods. Mandarins tend to be pretty hungry little guys, constantly cruising and picking for pods. More than one, and it may deplete the pod population too quickly, even in that large of a tank, to keep them really fit and healthy. In addition to that, if you are unfamiliar with gendering, you may end up with two of the same sex, in which case, there may be fighting, especially if you accidentally get two males.

sufunk · 02/06/2008, 03:58 PM

Sexing the mandarin's is pretty easy. Males have a large spike, females dont so that shouldnt be a problem but you do need alot of pods! Alot of live rock and a fuge for the pods to live in is pretty essential.

What kathainbowen said is right. Mandarins CONSTANTLY are cruising around pecking for pods. Mine literally seems to be doing it 24/7. If you get established live rock with some pods already in them and have a sump/fuge, it shouldnt take to long to have enough to support 1 mandarin. Enough for 2 could take a while though.

02/06/2008, 01:32 PM	#1
arammell Moved On Join Date: May 2007 Location: Provo, Utah Posts: 73	Ive officially caught the bug! I would love to have as much feedback as possible so I thank you in advance. I am getting ready to buy a 210 Gallon Reef tank and I am formulating a list of the specimens I plan to put in my tank. I am a Tang lover and also love anything rare so I am willing to make changes as time goes on, but I wanted to get a base list I can work off of. I love tangs so I am going overboard. I have read that if you have many tangs they can spread out their aggression and don't ever really pick on one fish. 3 Green Chromis 6 Blue Chromis 3 Yellowtail Blue Damselfish 1 Orchind Dottyback 1 Striped Dottyback 2 Gold Striped Maroon Clownfish 2 Banggai Cardinalfish 1 Flame Angelfish 2 Green Mandarinfish 1 Japanese Swallowtail Angelfish 1 Yellow Watchman Goby 1 Purple Firefish 1 Flame Hawkfish 1 Achilles Tang 1 Blue Tang 1 Red Sea Sailfin Tang 1 Yellow Tang 1 Flame Fin Tomini Tang 1 Orange Bar Tang 1 Spotted Yellow Eye Tang 1 Fox Face Rabbitfish 1 Barred Spinefoot Rabbitfish 1 Blue Spot Jawfish 1 Garabaldi Damsel 1 Pistol Shrimp 2 Fire Shrimp 2 Cleaner Shrimp I know I may be going way overboard, but I can't help it...I love so many fish Please let me know what you think is possible and what is not Thanks again everyone

02/06/2008, 01:35 PM	#2
dileggi Premium Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: S. Philly PA Posts: 1,171	WELCOME!!!! __________________ Eric "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled, was convincing the world he didn't exist." - Usual Suspects Current Tank Info: 90g w/30g sump; skimmer; 2x175w MH & 2x super white actinic...3g w/.5g fuge 1x150w MH Viper

02/06/2008, 01:40 PM	#4
dileggi Premium Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: S. Philly PA Posts: 1,171	Good luck with everything. I'm going to let someone with more experience at stocking answer your questions. __________________ Eric "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled, was convincing the world he didn't exist." - Usual Suspects Current Tank Info: 90g w/30g sump; skimmer; 2x175w MH & 2x super white actinic...3g w/.5g fuge 1x150w MH Viper

02/06/2008, 01:44 PM	#5
fish4lyfe Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: cedar park, texas! Posts: 367	to me that looks like to many fish for a 210 gal __________________ Send me pictures of your fish, or fishtanks i would love to see them! Current Tank Info: 29 gal

02/06/2008, 02:22 PM	#8
seapug Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: 4980 ft. Posts: 7,954 Blog Entries: 1	Start by narrowing down the Chromis/Damsel factor. It'll be perpetual warfare. Same goes for the Dottybacks. Very aggressive and territorial. The Garibaldi is a coldwater fish and gets big. 70 degrees max on those guys. I'd decide if you want Tangs or Rabbitfish. If you want the tangs, forget the rabbits and pick one or two of your favorite tangs and care for them well. Remember, some of those on that list get 1 1/2 feet long and very aggressive. The Jawfish would be scared out of it's mind in a tank with that many fish. That's my 2 cents. __________________ insert clever saying here. Current Tank Info: 200 gallon custom Marineland DD peninsular tank. LPS dominated mixed reef. Previous 90 gallon mixed reef TOTM April 2009.

02/06/2008, 01:37 PM	#3
arammell Moved On Join Date: May 2007 Location: Provo, Utah Posts: 73	Thank you very much!!!

02/06/2008, 01:50 PM	#6
sufunk Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Davie, Florida Posts: 2,004	I'd agree, too many fish by far. I feel ya wanting all those nice fish. I got my tank and wanted an achilles and naso tang so bad but eventually decided against it after having a million and one people here and elsewhere tell me it was a bad idea in a 180g. I have basically the same tank(6 inches shorter) with about 1/4 the amount of fish you want. 7 tangs(including an achilles) is way too much for that size and will probably be a problem,imo. I have 3 tangs, 4 anthias, 2 clowns and a mandarin in my tank. I couldn't imagine having 4 more tangs in there, definitely wouldnt be enough room. If you put that many tangs in a 210g, its very likely they will fight. I'd suggest cutting the tang list in half and then cut the rest of the list in half as well.

02/06/2008, 02:17 PM	#7
arammell Moved On Join Date: May 2007 Location: Provo, Utah Posts: 73	Here is my updated list tell me what you think Still way too many? 2 Gold Striped Maroon Clownfish 2 Banggai Cardinalfish 1 Red Sea Sailfin Tang 1 Yellow Tang 1 Flame Fin Tomini Tang 1 Spotted Yellow Eye Tang 1 Blue Tang 1 Japanese Swallowtail Angelfish 1 Fox Face Rabbitfish 1 Yellow Watchman Goby 1 Blue Spot Jawfish 2 Green Mandarinfish 1 Garabaldi Damsel 1 Pistol Shrimp 2 Fire Shrimp 2 Cleaner Shrimp

02/06/2008, 02:24 PM	#9
sufunk Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Davie, Florida Posts: 2,004	That's much closer. I dont know the compatability of all those fish but other than still having 1-2 too many tangs, thats much closer to being feasible. The mandarin you should wait on though. They need a lot of pods to eat so you should give it some time to build up a big enough pod population for them.

02/06/2008, 02:32 PM	#10
sgarron Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: NJ Posts: 651	I saw you took out the flame hawk, good choice, they eat cleaner shrimp. You should still shorten that list a bit. Maybe more like this: 2 Gold Striped Maroon Clownfish 1 Red Sea Sailfin Tang 1 Yellow Tang 1 Blue Tang 1 Yellow Watchman Goby 1 Blue Spot Jawfish 2 Green Mandarinfish 1 Pistol Shrimp 2 Fire Shrimp 2 Cleaner Shrimp This will give the tangs room to grow and swim. The mandarins shouln't be added until your tank has been established for a year or more. Maybe throw in a trio of bartlet or randals anthias just to give you a fuller look. __________________ You want cheap, Get a goldfish.

02/06/2008, 02:44 PM	#11
arammell Moved On Join Date: May 2007 Location: Provo, Utah Posts: 73	The Yellow, Flame Fin, Sailfin, and Blue Tangs are my favorites. Can they coexist?

02/06/2008, 02:53 PM	#12
sgarron Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: NJ Posts: 651	Yes, they can co-exist. It's just that tangs grow rather large and are poop machines. Don't over crowd your tank, your water quality and most imoportantly your fish will suffer. __________________ You want cheap, Get a goldfish.

02/06/2008, 03:42 PM	#14
kathainbowen Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Central Jersey Posts: 667	I would really only recommend 1 mandarin dragonet, and only after your tank being at least a year or two old with an ample population of copepods and amphipods. Mandarins tend to be pretty hungry little guys, constantly cruising and picking for pods. More than one, and it may deplete the pod population too quickly, even in that large of a tank, to keep them really fit and healthy. In addition to that, if you are unfamiliar with gendering, you may end up with two of the same sex, in which case, there may be fighting, especially if you accidentally get two males. __________________ "So long and thanks for all the fish!" Current Tank Info: 3G picoreef, 18W 50/50 pc, AC20, stocked with assorted zoos, rics, xenia, and GSP

02/06/2008, 03:58 PM	#15
sufunk Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Davie, Florida Posts: 2,004	Sexing the mandarin's is pretty easy. Males have a large spike, females dont so that shouldnt be a problem but you do need alot of pods! Alot of live rock and a fuge for the pods to live in is pretty essential. What kathainbowen said is right. Mandarins CONSTANTLY are cruising around pecking for pods. Mine literally seems to be doing it 24/7. If you get established live rock with some pods already in them and have a sump/fuge, it shouldnt take to long to have enough to support 1 mandarin. Enough for 2 could take a while though.