First fish suggestions...

On Jun 25, 3:21 pm, Aroon wrote:
On Jun 25, 1:45 pm, KurtG wrote:

Pszemol wrote:
I have heard stories about this blenny being aggressive towards other fish.

Mine is fairly tame although I've seen it chase a blue damsel out of his
rabbit hole. He roams the entire 110g tank, but seems mostly content to
sit and watch happenings both inside and outside of the tank. I wonder
what goes on in its little head sometimes. I've seen my tang and
blenny feed on the nori simultaneously. No fireworks.

But, Pszemol is right. Definitely think about what you want and plan
accordingly to avoid aggression.

--Kurt

thanks for the comments. i only plan on having 4 or 5 fish in my 58g
as i would like to get anemones and coral when the time is right.

anemone ... singular, not plural, and you might want to reconsider
even putting that many in there if this is your first SW tank. They
can be can be problematic and difficult to keep in the long term,
exceedingly so when you mix them with other cnidarians (eg. corals or
even other anemone species/genera). Too many people give up on this
hobby due to early catastrophic failures, and I'd hate to see another
one - I'm sure most other hobbyists would agree.

Sounds like I shoould start with the clownfish i want, or go with a
damsel? i have been considering a talbot damsel.

Honestly, since this is your first SW tank, a clownfish or lesser
aggressive damsel is an excellent choice. Down the road when your tank
is matured and you're ready for a new challenge you can always swap
the clownfish out for something more exotic and put it in a small,
dedicated 20g or 30g tank with your first anemone (they are much
easier to keep in a species-only or dedicated system)

are there any issues you've heard about keeping blennies and gobies
together? i expect that have similar habitat needs. and gobies can get
alot bigger (in my field experience, anyway).

In a tank that size I'd say you'd stand a good chance of seeing some
aggression if you add a blenny and a goby (or even 2 blennies/ 2
gobies) so do some careful research before purchasing and careful
monitoring after adding the fish. Also be aware that many benthic
dwelling (sand-dwelling) fish have specific substrate needs and can
also topple rocks that aren't secured properly by digging the sand out
from under them.

Good luck and welcome to the hobby - and my condolences to your
wallet!

Dr. Thompson wrote on 6/27/2007 1:02 PM:
anemone ... singular, not plural, and you might want to reconsider
even putting that many in there if this is your first SW tank. They
can be can be problematic and difficult to keep in the long term,
exceedingly so when you mix them with other cnidarians (eg. corals or
even other anemone species/genera). Too many people give up on this
hobby due to early catastrophic failures, and I'd hate to see another
one - I'm sure most other hobbyists would agree.

Anemone are not what a person should start out with,
but the main reason most people fail with them, is
because they don't give them enough light. Often
Aquarium stores will mislead customers into thinking
that they don't need much light in order to make
more sales.

Honestly, since this is your first SW tank, a clownfish or lesser
aggressive damsel is an excellent choice. Down the road when your tank
is matured and you're ready for a new challenge you can always swap
the clownfish out for something more exotic

People setting up a reef tank, don't swap clown fish
out for something more exotic. About the only time
people swap clown fish out, is if they get one of
the more aggressive clowns, like tomato, or maroon.
About the only time people swap an ocellaris out is
if they are going with bigger fish, but such bigger
fish don't fit well in a reef tank.

Also be aware that many benthic
dwelling (sand-dwelling) fish have specific substrate needs and can
also topple rocks that aren't secured properly by digging the sand out
from under them.

Yep, so many people don't think about this when they
set up a reef tank. Before you stack rock, you
should always put base rock on the glass with the
sand around it, and then stack the rock on top of
the base rock, because many fish and things will dig
the sand out of under the rock, and it's not a
matter of if, but a matter of when.

Wayne Sallee
Wayne's Pets

Wayne Sallee wrote:


Anemone are not what a person should start out with, but the main reason
most people fail with them, is because they don't give them enough
light. Often Aquarium stores will mislead customers into thinking that
they don't need much light in order to make more sales.


Well I'm happy to report that my LFS is one of those that advises
against buying anenomes without sufficient light.....although my T5s on
the current tank could well be enough I am still cautious....I have some
hard corals doing really well but.....well.....if I lose an anenome it
will be bad for my water quality....



People setting up a reef tank, don't swap clown fish out for something
more exotic. About the only time people swap clown fish out, is if they
get one of the more aggressive clowns, like tomato, or maroon. About the
only time people swap an ocellaris out is if they are going with bigger
fish, but such bigger fish don't fit well in a reef tank.


My common clowns are great but I haven't mixed them with other fish
yet....they did decapitate my tube worm though.....I'm in the process of
moving them into the bigger tank and I am still thinking anenome in
spite of the above reservations....



Also be aware that many benthic
dwelling (sand-dwelling) fish have specific substrate needs and can
also topple rocks that aren't secured properly by digging the sand out
from under them.


Yep, so many people don't think about this when they set up a reef tank.
Before you stack rock, you should always put base rock on the glass with
the sand around it, and then stack the rock on top of the base rock,
because many fish and things will dig the sand out of under the rock,
and it's not a matter of if, but a matter of when.

I agree with you here.....not too much reef experience but my Mbunas are
certainly good at destabilising rock structures....I took the lessons
learnt onto my reef tank....

FWIW my new tank started with 6 green chromis (pretty hardy) - since
then I have added 2 bengaii cardinals and will be moving my clowns
across......I'm also planning on a coral beauty and also a yellow tang
to munch on the algae.....

I'm new to reef (since last Sept) but have kept freshwater for a number
of years....my philosophy is to tackle problems naturally so if I have
algae I buy an algae eater.......the clean up crew do a great job on
some of the stuff but a fish will do it better IMO

Gill


Wayne Sallee
Wayne's Pets

On Jun 27, 3:47 pm, Gill Passman wrote:
Wayne Sallee wrote:

Anemone are not what a person should start out with, but the main reason
most people fail with them, is because they don't give them enough
light. Often Aquarium stores will mislead customers into thinking that
they don't need much light in order to make more sales.

Well I'm happy to report that my LFS is one of those that advises
against buying anenomes without sufficient light.....although my T5s on
the current tank could well be enough I am still cautious....I have some
hard corals doing really well but.....well.....if I lose an anenome it
will be bad for my water quality....



People setting up a reef tank, don't swap clown fish out for something
more exotic. About the only time people swap clown fish out, is if they
get one of the more aggressive clowns, like tomato, or maroon. About the
only time people swap an ocellaris out is if they are going with bigger
fish, but such bigger fish don't fit well in a reef tank.

My common clowns are great but I haven't mixed them with other fish
yet....they did decapitate my tube worm though.....I'm in the process of
moving them into the bigger tank and I am still thinking anenome in
spite of the above reservations....

Also be aware that many benthic
dwelling (sand-dwelling) fish have specific substrate needs and can
also topple rocks that aren't secured properly by digging the sand out
from under them.

Yep, so many people don't think about this when they set up a reef tank.
Before you stack rock, you should always put base rock on the glass with
the sand around it, and then stack the rock on top of the base rock,
because many fish and things will dig the sand out of under the rock,
and it's not a matter of if, but a matter of when.

I agree with you here.....not too much reef experience but my Mbunas are
certainly good at destabilising rock structures....I took the lessons
learnt onto my reef tank....

FWIW my new tank started with 6 green chromis (pretty hardy) - since
then I have added 2 bengaii cardinals and will be moving my clowns
across......I'm also planning on a coral beauty and also a yellow tang
to munch on the algae.....

I'm new to reef (since last Sept) but have kept freshwater for a number
of years....my philosophy is to tackle problems naturally so if I have
algae I buy an algae eater.......the clean up crew do a great job on
some of the stuff but a fish will do it better IMO

Gill





Wayne Sallee
Wayne's Pets
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i was not planning on adding anemones untill my tank has matured a
little. maybe after 6 months-a year.
but, out of curiosity would T5 HO lights be good enough.
george patterson seems skeptical.

i have 2x 10,00k daylights and 2x 460nm actinics.

if they are not good enough, or only good for certain types or
species, it would be good to know.

as an aside, wayne, you mentioned the comment about base rock on my
first post on here over a month ago, and i heeded that advice.
base rock, then live rock, then sand. hope it works!!

i am not planning on switching out any fish. whatever i add should
live its natural course i hope.

Basically you want to aim 3 to 6 watts of light per
gallon. 3 being ok to and extent for anemones, but I
would aim closer to 5 watts per gallon. A little
more light does not hurt, and it gives them more
vigor. Also keep in mind that some anemones like
more light than others. A lot of anemones like to
put their foot in the shade, and bloom out into the
light.

You also count actinics as part of the watts per gallon.

Yes T5 HO lights are good lights.


Wayne Sallee
Wayne's Pets


Aroon wrote on 6/27/2007 7:08 PM:
i was not planning on adding anemones untill my tank has matured a
little. maybe after 6 months-a year.
but, out of curiosity would T5 HO lights be good enough.
george patterson seems skeptical.

i have 2x 10,00k daylights and 2x 460nm actinics.

if they are not good enough, or only good for certain types or
species, it would be good to know.

as an aside, wayne, you mentioned the comment about base rock on my
first post on here over a month ago, and i heeded that advice.
base rock, then live rock, then sand. hope it works!!

i am not planning on switching out any fish. whatever i add should
live its natural course i hope.