What fish to get?

[Michaels Mom]

Our 55 tank seems nice and stable right now. All the water tests consistently come out great, although the PH can be considered a little low (consistent at 8.0).

We have added the following:

5/24/2006 3 Black Legged Hermit Crabs, 1 Red Legged Hermit Crab, 2 Clownfish
5/29/2006 3 Large Turbo Snails
06/04/2006 3 Small Conch Snails
6/10/2006 Blue Linkia Starfish
6/15/2006 3 Red Legged Hermit Crabs

Our LFS is having a sale on Tuesday where the fish are half price. I'd like to get someone new for the tank. One or two fish would be good I guess since I've read to introduce 2 or more fish at a time to avoid the new guy getting picked on.

So, my question. What should I get? I want reef safe and non-agressive. Pretty would be nice. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

[dorkfish]

3 blue green chromis or 2 firefish (purple or normal firefish) or 1 royal gramma or 1 of any kind of cardinalfsih or 1 coral bueaty or flame angel (*may* pick at corals). IME, if I add only one fish(like I usually do), the percula clown will chase it a bit, but nothing so aggressive as to cause any damage.

[Michaels Mom]

Thanks!! Does it matter if they are 'false' clownfish? I don't remember the exact name. So, you'd recommend just one at a time? Or one kind at a time?

[dorkfish]

1-3 fish at time. only one kind at a time as well. False and true percuala clowns have basically the same temperment.

[fsa]

Mom, I've never heard of black or red crabs. Are they pretty safe for a fish tank (just asking because I don't know)? I second the royal gramma and/or a pygmy angel of some kind. I just added a Cherub (also called Atlantic Pygmy), already have a royal gramma, percula clown fish and a "sunrise" dotty back. I like them all. I've also had a coral beauty and a lemonpeel angel fish. They all did good in my tank. Most angel fish are known to sometimes "pick" at coral, though and dottybacks are known to be somewhat aggressive, too.

My sunrise did chase the cherub around the tank for a few days pretty aggressively, but looks like he is letting him settle in some now. It's not near as bad as the first couple of days (been about 3 weeks).

You can't go wrong with any of the ones that have been suggested, I don't think. Good luck.

Frank

[Michaels Mom]

Thanks for the advice! I can't wait to go tomorrow and see what they have as part of the sale. I'm going to print this thread out and take it with me! And descriptions of each fish too!

The crabs are black and red legged hermit crabs. I should have been more clear, but had just been keeping the log for my own use. I'll go back and fix it, and fix the post above to be more clear.

I think my son got bored with the tank pretty quickly because it just has the two little fish. He can't really see the crabs/snails too well, and the starfish doesn't move enough to interest him. I'm hoping when we get more fish he'll take more interest. Then again, he's just turned four so I don't expect too much!

[Lorna]

Against my previous experience I am going to suggest the chromis and possibly a coral beauty or flame angel The reason I suggest these is that these fish are out in the open more than the others on your list. The others tend to be more docile and shy.......chromis are a member of the damsel family and may be a good choice as they spend a lot of time swimming out front in the upper part of the water column. Flame/Coral beauty are also out in the open constantly cruising the live rock picking for food. You must give them some seaweed, algae or nori to nibble at though........ good luck and one thing you may not have thought about is some sort of quarantine for your new purchases. You may want to think about setting something up for them to ensure you don't add anything to your tank.....just a suggestion.

[Michaels Mom]

Lorna, we haven't thought about a quarantine at all. I'm assuming that's not something we can set up quickly. Is there an article you can point toward?

I was sortof leaning toward the royal gramma since they are peaceful and considered easy. And it looks like they'd eat the same 'marine cuisine' we give the clownfish. If we only have 55 gallons and got one royal gramma and 3 chromis, would we pretty much be done? How big of a mistake would it be to get all three at once since they're different species? (Just an idea so we'd be done, not really going to, especially if it's a bad idea) If this is the end of our stocking, would it make sense to set up a quarantine tank we'd likely never use?

[dorkfish]

Including your two clowns, and the addition of 1 royal gramma, you could get 5-6 chromis. Yes, it would make sense to set up a quaratine you would almost never use becuase
if your really into fish, a few months after you get this tank set up you'l either upgrade or set up a new tank
a quarantine is your ONLY control of disease in the main tank

[rightnow]

I would actually buy a better quality fish if you are almost done with your tank. Try a Hippo Tang or a SailFin. Especially if they are half off. I thnk you are going to be very un-impressed with your tank if youre best fish is a flame angel. Think Big and your 4 year old will watch the tank instead of Barney!

Other top of the line fish
-Powder Blue tang
-Imperator
-Koran Angel
-Cortez Angel

All of these fish do very well with Invert's.

[dorkfish]

-hippo tang - grows to anwhere from 9-12", there's a lot of conflicting info about them on the web, to big for a 55g
-sailfin tang - grows to 15", to big for a 55g
-Powder Blue tang - grows to 10" , just borderline too big for a 55g, to big if there's rocks in the tank
-Imperator - grows to 15", to big for a 55g
-Koran Angel - grows to 15", to big for a 55g
-Cortez Angel - grows to 18", to big for a 55g

[jasonpc]

Take a look into this topic:

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28549

The big thing to try to consider is "what will you want to add later and what will live together down the road?"

[Michaels Mom]

OK, one last question before we go off to the big sale. Does anyone have any preference on which salt to get? We're almost out of the instant ocean that came with the setup, and had read somewhere that there was something more recommended?

Also, my hubby wants to know. What exactly is the purpose of the water change? If our tank parameters are perfect - no amonia, no nitrites, no nitrates, and the skimmer is running happily, what does the water change do? And how often should we do it? We've been doing about a 10-15 % change every week when we vacuum. We've been unable to do more than that since if we take the level down too low it exposes the live rock and half the time our star is at that level and would be exposed to air. I guess the question is - is this ok, or do I need to re-arrange the rocks?

This is an old picture, but it shows how the rocks are arranged. We're still in the process of getting a bigger pump and doubling the flow, so that's a problem we know about. http://www.line21.org/aquarium/website.htm

Thank you so much for all your help!!!!!!!!

[dolfans1]

I've had great luck w/ Tropic Marin salt. I also used Coralife without any problems. For fish, I think the green chromis are a good choice. They were my first fish (6 of them). They've never bothered anyone else, and are very active. 6 might be a bit much for a 55 g if you'll be adding other fish later, but 3 - 4 should be fine. The royal gramma is a beautiful and peaceful fish, but also likes to hide under rock overhangs and in caves, so sometimes it is hard to find. Cardinal fish (pajamas and banjai) are also very good fish, but not very active either.

[Lorna]

stick with the instant ocean, there is no reason to switch salt as this is a good reliable product and as far as salt goes it is not as expensive as say tropic marin. The point of the water change is to remove built up nitrates and phosphates and to replenish both calcium and other essential minerals that are used up by your tank, rock and any corals etc that are there. It is just good housekeeping practice to get into.

Fish.....I think you would be disappointed with a royal gramma as it spends most of it's day hiding out in the rockwork and not swimming around. Most of those tangs mentioned are way too big for a 55g even if you buy them small thinking you will upgrade it is not good for the fish and puts them into undue stress. Quarantining new additions is a good habit to get into and something that is recommended more than it is discouraged. Personally I haven't done this with new fish as my tank is relatively new and up until now haven't had a large population that I would be putting at risk. One should always have an old 10g or so kicking around to set up in an emergency in case you need it. Treating sick or diseased fish in the main display is not a good idea if you have ick......which is one of the biggest risks you take introducing un-quarantined fish into your tank. Check them over very carefully at the store before you buy anything, ask the lfs to feed them and make sure that they are eating and that the food is something you are familiar with. I usually don't buy fish that the lfs just gets in as they are sometimes still stressed I like to wait until they have been there a week to 10days or so......that is just my personal opinion. here is a good website for all things fishy and salty....

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/index.htm

[fsa]

A royal gramma is a great fish. Mine stays out all of the time. I think you should still consider a pygmy angel of some sort. They are always swimming and picking on the rocks.

A qt is the best way to go according to most people. But, I have no problem buying fish from my lfs and not qting him. I think my lfs does a good job with his fish. I do not like to buy one unless it has been in his tank for 4 or 5 weeks or so. To me, that is just like qting him at home in a qt tank. My opinion only.

Some people go a long time between water changes. I would not advise to completely doing away with them. Your water change routine/schedule seems great to me. I don't think exposing the rocks to air for short periods of time as in your water changes is a worry. I doubt that it affects your star, but really have no idea. Water changes, with a good salt, replenishes a lot of the minerals, etc that are used up by fish, corals, inverts, etc. These need to be replenished periodically.

I do agree after looking at your tank. Those two clownfish do look lonely. Another fish or two will do wonders to the beauty of your tank.



Frank

[Michaels Mom]

Thank you everyone for your advice! We ended up getting a lawnmower blenny. It was pretty much all they had left that met my criteria, and had been in store since the beginning of May, so I was pretty confident he was healthy. From what I read, they have cool personalities and should help keep the algae under control. The only thing I don't like is that the compatability chart said to use caution with him and the Gramma (if we can find one)?

He seems to be doing pretty well so far. Just hiding in the rocks right now but I imagine it will take him a few days to adjust to his new home.

We decided to stick with the Instant Ocean since it seems to be working well for us. And probably stick with our water change routine as well. If it's working, why mess with it, right?

Once we get the new pump installed and Benny gets more active we'll try to get some new pics and see what you all think.

[jasonpc]

Good Job Mom! This is what I LOVE about saltwater. The excitement and the payoffs.

I really like the Green/Blue Chromis. A few of them guys will definately brighten up your tank. As mentioned earlier they are hardy, active, visible, and I think really pretty. Just My Opinion though