Can I?

[shutterbuggy]

I currently have a 110 Gallon reef tank with about 150 lbs of mixed Live rock.  I do not have a sump, however I have an in-tank Tunze protein skimmer that seems to do a fantastic job.  I have various relatively easy to keep corals and I also have RBTA.  As far as fish go I have:

2 false perculas
a yellow tang
a blue tang (I guess I should note that I bought this tank off of someone else, and would not have acquired this fish otherwise)
a sailfin tang
a 4 striped damsel
a 6 line wrasse

Up until recently I also had a flame angel, but it has since died.  It was an isolated incident.

My question is should I get another fish or am I pushing it?  I am interested in getting some chromis but am I able to get more than one?  What fish, if any would you recommend?

Thanks for all your input,

Becky

[Fishhead89]

Hey Becky,

A few different schools of thought on this. The rule seems to be 1 inch of fish for every 6-10gallons of tank that you have.

One inch for 6 Gallons for a tank that isn't completely full of liverock and corals, or one inch for every 10 gallons of full on reef tank.  This of course varies from system to system, and having a great skimmer improves things immensly.

So the textbook says you can have between 11-20 inches of fish! Keep in mind that your fish will grow too - especially the sailfin tang.

Cheers,
Bri

[Hookup]

How is your skimmer doing?  Are you pulling junk out every day to the point that you think it is under load?  I think that this would be your major limiting factor in adding more fish.  Feeding could also be a factor, if you are heavy on the foods, then you might be pushing the limits of what your skimmer can handle...

I guess to me it sounds like you are on the limit of what might be considered med/heavy load, and w/o a huge-mega-skimmer...

You have some aggressive feeders, what are you considering replacing the dwarf angel with???

[shutterbuggy]

Well, I didn't have any one fish in mind really.  I thought I would see what everyone else suggested.  I feed the fish once a day; usually sinking pellets alternating with frozen food.  I also feed the tangs some Nori about 2-3 times a week.  My knowledge on skimmers is pretty limited other than knowing that it removes waste from the water.  It gets cleaned about  2-3 times a week with about 100ml (give or take) worth of waste in it.  I guess that I should mention that I had that flame angel for about 2 years before he died.  But I don't want to be an irresponsible aquarist  either.  If the general consensus is that I am at or near my limit, then so be it.  I just wanted to see if it could/should be done....

[Hookup]

Honestly, if you kept the current inhabitants and the flame for 2 years without problem, i do not see how you could be called irresponsible for getting another dwarf angel to replace the one you lost.  Great work on keeping a happy and healthy system for that long!

[Julie]

Hello, tangs are pretty large fish.  How big are your tangs? 

[FishPassion]

Your thought of getting a few chromis IMO wouldnt upset your present load in your tank seeing that it has been up for a cpl of years. I agree with Hookup great work on keeping your system running for that long without major issues.

[kennyman]

I doubt a school of small damsel fish would contribute any more waste than a full grown tang so they are not much of an issue. Just aggression might be a problem. But if those three tangs are full gown it does seem a lot.

I have equal water volume with less rock but only 1/3 the fish mass. Remember the bigger fish have exponential increasing mass and therefore far greater bioload.

[shutterbuggy]

Hookup:  I don't think that I will be getting another flame angel.  While I do think they are beautiful fish, this one was occasionally nipping at my corals.  I tolerated it while it was alive, but for the sake of the corals, I am looking for a more friendly kind of fish --IF I get any more...

Julie:  The Blue tang is about 5" or so.  I haven't really noticed any growth in him since I purchased the tank used. That being said, I know that I may have to one day find a new home for him or upgrade to a larger system (I've been thinking about doing the latter for some time now...)  The sailfin and the yellow tangs are roughly the same size at about 3.5 - 4 inches a piece.  

FishPassion:  I have been in this hobby for about 5 years now.  I started with a 12 gallon JBJ Nano cube and shortly after that I upgraded to a 24 gallon.  Then after some time I noticed someone selling their system and I purchased it and upgraded again.  I use the KISS method and haven't had too many problems in the past. (save a powerhead over heating in the 24, I only lost a bubble coral thankfully...)  I do hope that my "success" continues in the future :-)

[shutterbuggy]

Kennyman:  The tangs sizes are: blue 5", sailfin and yellow: 3.5 - 4" each.  In the time that I have had this system I have added several corals.  They now have significant growth (anyone want some hairy mushrooms??? They are at plague proportions now!).  Mind you I do seek out the easier to keep corals...

[kennyman]

Kennyman:  The tangs sizes are: blue 5", sailfin and yellow: 3.5 - 4" each.  In the time that I have had this system I have added several corals.  They now have significant growth (anyone want some hairy mushrooms??? They are at plague proportions now!).  Mind you I do seek out the easier to keep corals...

Sorry for editing my post while you were replying. I Hope you dont mind but it was a bit redundant considering Julies post was getting to the same point anyway.


I think you are at that point where you are within the bounds of what is possible but pushing beyond what some people feel is ethical. I hate the ethics debate as it is so hard for everyone to remain objective but basically once the fish start to have pronounced growth or behavioural issues do to the confined space of captivity the ethics thing kicks in. Some would say our hobby is unethical over all. Others would say it doesn't matter the are only fish and ethics don't count because fish don't have the capcity for thought. but I think you have been thinking the same thing thing some of us are with respect to the potential of those three tangs being fully grown in that tank. I don't think there is an issue in adding a few chromis. It might reside with reconsidering a few of the existing occupants.

[shutterbuggy]

I am quite partial to the fish that I already have (including the 4 striped, even though he can be a jerk at time)  I haven't noticed any behavioral problems with any of the tangs, although the 4 striped does a submissive shake in response to the Blue tang occasionally.  I like to think that my fish are all happy.  I am very serious about upgrading my tank in the future, so I will probably put off acquiring more fish until then by the sounds of it. 

[Julie]

A school of fish is nice in a tank - how about some pics?

[shutterbuggy]

Yes, I will post some pics, however, I have to get my camera back from a friend of mine, so it might be a bit yet.

[Julie]

What model of Tunze are you running? 

[shutterbuggy]

I think its the 9005 model.  it sits directly in the main tank

[az]

how about some small gobys, maybe a royal gramma?

[NjOyRiD]

why not a yasha hase goby
i know somebody who sells them hahaha