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Stocking Questions

Started by mysterysnail, February 09, 2016, 12:41:39 PM

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mysterysnail

Hey All,

So I got an amazing deal on a 65 gallon tank with almost everything I need. Im currently scrubbing everything and testing the seal. The Live Rock is in a few buckets with circulation pumps. I should be putting everything together this weekend and start the long month of cycling.

While I wait I thought I would get input on stocking.....
The tank is 36" x 18" x 24"tall so if my math is right I should be ably to safely house 14.5" of fish

Here's the ones I like so far.
Kauderns Cardinalfish
White Banded Possum Wrasse
Yellowtail Damselfish
Chalk Bass
Black Cap Basslet
Yelllow Stripe Clingfish
Ocellaris or Percula Clownfish
And lastly a green or red Mandarin Dragonet
Before you reply, I know how hard the Manderin's are to keep, and will be farming pods and live food to compensate.

Any cool mixes from these that will work?



fish finatic

Only one basslet per tank they will usually fight.

yellowtang

#2
The yellowtail damsel will pretty much terrorize all other fish smaller than him. You be better off with chromies or anthias. My yellowtail damsel now lives in my sump due to being very aggressive in my 120g. 
However - the set up you have plan seem like fish only non community tank - so it might work .

120g REEF Upgrading to a 180g soon
38G REEF

Nienna

I agree with the other two above regarding the basslets and damselfish. I'd suggest trying to ensure you get tank bred clownfish since there will be a much lesser likelyhood of them deciding that half the tank is theirs and terrorizing any who enter their territory.

For the mandarin, you should be okay as long as your sump is at least 25g and has some kind of refuge for the pods.  You'll want to seed your tank with live pods sometime soon after your tank is cycled (don't count on the live rock for pod diversity) and wait a couple of months before adding the mandarin.  Your sump refuge is to prevent the mandarin from hunting down all the pods in the display tank and then starving to death.

Add the most aggressive fish last, after the mandarin is settled in.  You'll want to look for a plump mandarin when you're shopping for it.

mysterysnail

#4
Thanks for all the advice. This kind of discussion is why i love this forum.
As for community, i will be adding around 4-5 fish max and the rest will be shrimp,clams,starfish,coral,mushrooms, and everything else i can think of. So a breading pair of clowns, 3 other fish 1 each, and the manderin. I will be using a finnex hob refuge for my pods and aquaclear 70 packed with matrix for filter. 80lbs of live rock as well. No sump as i have no space. I may add a small wet dry down the road but no sump as i dont think i can fit under the stand.

In terms of sump I love the idea for extra quarentine room and fuge, but in terms of filtration there should be plenty of space with live rock and 1L of matrix would easily equal a sump full of bioballs. Still if i can find a way i would love to drop a sump in the stand before i build the tank.(stand doors to small to squeeze one in and could only drop one in from the top. Once the tanks on and filled i doubt i can get one in there

DrReefer

wet/dry or bioballs are not optimal and a bit outdated for reef tanks IMO, the HOB is nice for the fuge area but your media in the AC70 is only pumice stone... it will have same function as your live rock but the size of the filter / amount of media compared to the tank's live rock will render it useless as you have more than the recommended 1Lbs per Gal of live rock. I would use the AC70 for carbon/gfo in small media bags and filter floss to polish out the water. just make sure to change the floss regularly not to create a nitrate trap :) After having both a tank with and without a sump, I would recommend one if you can do it before you put the tank together on the stand. You will be able to incorporate your fuge and you can also make some baffle to have water pass trough media bags that would let you remove both the AC70 and HOB fuge. This will also leave you room in the future when you will want to get a skimmer ( trust me, you will need one at some point). Its also a nice place to hide thermometers and other equipement you dont want hanging on the tank to give it that ultra sleek look . I taught I did lots of research with my first tank but building / stocking / caring for one was what got me to prepare myself better for my second tank. As for the fish stocking, you got very good info from all the other members , I would definitely also stay away from the Damsel and also the chalk bass and basslet due to the fact that they are semi-aggressive. Even my Royal Gramma (from the basslet family) that is listed as a peaceful specie on Liveaquaria is the biggest bully in my tank yet he is the smallest fish  >:(

Good luck with your new tank and happy reefing ! ;D

mysterysnail

Funny enough the entirety of my stocking list was taken from liveaquaria. Guess they dont know there stuff. I like the site since they organise the info well. I do agree a sump would be ideal, i almost made one for my 55 mbuna tank but I lack the tools to make good use of diy. Also it was a pain finding affordable pumps for 10x capasity at 4ft.
Without diy, sumps just seem way to expensive(as do all things aquarium related.
I will be adding a skimmer within a few months and will unfortunately have to deal with the unsightly in tank or hang on type.
Thanks for the tip on using hob for polishing. I generally dont use charcoal unless medicating but I'll have to see if its more important to SW.
On the matrix thing, i cant believe pumice seems to be imposible to source in canada....
Sooo i guess ill have to put more thought ino stocking taking your points consideration.

mysterysnail

So here's an update to the list taking into account your suggestions.

Breading pair of clowns 6" total
Breeding pair of White Banded Possum Wrasse 4" total
4 Yelllow Stripe Clingfish (technically 2" each but they are elongated so I'm counting as 2" for 4 of them)
Manderin Dragonette 4"
This would put me at 16"ish of fish where as tank allows for 14.5 per standards.
I know bioload wouldn't be a problem, and with skimmer oxygen shouldn't be a problem....
What do you think everyone?


Sharbuckle

In a 65 gallon that should be fine. Lots of room. Never seen a cling fish before.