How many fish at one time?

[trevbo44]

I just started a 75 gallon tank. Power compact lighting, 80 lbs live rock, Protein Skimmer on back, power filter also on back. Tanks been up for about 5 weeks. Levels (nitrite, nitrate, ph, phosphate, ammonia, ca is a little low as is dKH) all seem pretty steady thus far. I have two damsels and one Lawnmower blenny, and some small soft corals as of right now & some snails. Question is: How many fish can I add at one time?
I have read that if you want a tang and you want more than one you need to add them simultaneously. Is this true? Any suggestions on fish that I will want to add in pairs so they live harmoniously?

 

[Brian5000]

You should add as few fish as possible at one time given temperments.

You're right, some species must be added simultaneously if you want more that one of the same type. Clown pairs or certain angels or tangs should be added at once to prevent one dominating the other.

Adding two tangs (and nothing else) probably won't do anything to your tank. Adding more than that at once will make to want to watch your tank extra close for a week.
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[Anonymous]

I'd add that certain fish will do better in a well established system. Tangs, angels, butterflies (to name a few) fare best when a tank has been up and running for a few months with consistantly stable parameters. Not sure if you are considering two tangs but IMO, a 75 is very marginal for even a single small species. What types of fish do you have in mind for your tank?

 

[Ben1]

Levels (nitrite, nitrate, ph, phosphate, ammonia, ca is a little low as is dKH) all seem pretty steady thus far.

Stable being what? 0 Ammonia? 0 nitrite? Just be sure the tank is fully cycled although that should be plenty of time you may still be getting a bit of die off on the LR.

Not sure if you are considering two tangs but IMO, a 75 is very marginal for even a single small species.

Depends on the tang but I agree, 75 is a bit small for the majority of tangs.

 

[Anonymous]

Not picking on you Ben, but "fully cycled" is a bit of a misnomer, most people equate that with the rock not dying off, i.e. cured so they feel a tank is ready to roll, overstock it and wonder why they have problems. That's not a true indicator of the maturity of a tank, all that means is there is equal bacteria and bioload at that time. A tank can show no appreciable ammonia, etc but still not have enough bacterial colonies to support the additional bioload that adding too many new fish at one time can add. The bacterial colonies are fuel driven, and only grow up to the amount of available nutrients. That's why adding too many ammonia producing critters too fast will cause problems, the bacteria can't reproduce fast enough to handle the extra waste.

the old adage is best, nothing good happens quickly in a reef tank, and I'd go with slow and easy additions of fish. If the species you choose requires more than one to be added, simply wait a few months and then do it, at five weeks the tank might not be able to handle it.

 

[Ben1]

Not picking on you Ben, but "fully cycled" is a bit of a misnomer, most people equate that with the rock not dying off, i.e. cured so they feel a tank is ready to roll, overstock it and wonder why they have problems

Well of course, my point was when he said stable levels, I wanted to be sure he wasnt still seeing stable levels of ammonia in the tank or nitrite, and his tank was for sure ready for any fish additions.

 

[SnowManSnow]

Or you could follow my plan and just have 4 small fish after 3 years haha... I actually plan on grabbing some more ASAP

 

[trevbo44]

I appreciate everyone helping me out. When I said stable I meant 0 ppm. It is possible that the tank has not fully cycled or the bacateria are equal to that of the bioload. I would hate to see a crash or spike in levels but if it has to happen so be it.
I was thinking about a yellow tang, a yellow eye tang, or hippo tang (at some point). What is the best survivor of the tang species? I was also thinking about a coral beauty, or flame angel and possibly an orange anthias. How many total fish do you think for a 75 would suffice?
Thumbs up or thumbs down on my choices?

 

[Ben1]

IMO a 75 gal is to small for the yellow tang, hippo tang, even the kole I think has a max size of 7" but probably the best choice if you wanted a tang, although they are harder to feed then the others you listed. The kole tang has more of a scraping eating behavior and IME is harder to feed. The dwarf angels are cool but you need to watch them with corals if you plan on going that route. I have had dwarfs be safe for years then suddenly start eatting polyps. Anthias can be a picky bunch at times to and do better with more frequent feedings. Depending on speices the 75 might also be a bit tight. Is the tank covered?

 

[trevbo44]

Yeah, the tank is covered. A little opening in the back but nothing too large, two inches or so. Thats a shame about the tangs. They are nice looking but I don't want to waste money. Any other suggestions on fish species for the tank? I want to gear towards looking like a reef.

 

[ChrisRD]

Personally, in a tank that size I would stick with one of the smaller tangs like a Kole or Tomini (as suggested).

As for other additions that can be added as pairs, check into captive bred clowns and dottybacks. They're colorful, reef safe, hardy, easy to care for and can generally hold their own against aggressive tankmates like your damsels (just generalizing here as you didn't mention what species you have...).

As for stocking rate - just use common sense. Adding a couple of small fish together is fine. For something larger like the tang, add it alone. Just try to space out new additions by a couple/few weeks.

HTH

 

[trevbo44]

Sounds good. Does anybody have suggestions about whether or not to buy fish online and if so who should I buy from?

 

[Anonymous]

While a lot of folks have had luck buying fish online, I like to see what I'm getting. To visually observe a fish, see it eat, move about, etc..at the lfs is worth the extra price (most online prices are less than lfs). JMO

 

[ChrisRD]

I agree, I prefer choosing livestock in person.

That said, I live in the boonies and don't have any local saltwater places so I have resorted to getting some stuff from www.liveaquaria.com. So far my experience with them has been mostly positive.