Fish Stock
- Thread starter Warr7207
- Start date
Mike
Retired Moderator
Ok bear with me, 400lts=90gallons (ish) at around 1inch of fish per 4 gals you are looking at about 22inches of fish (expected fully grown length) = 55cm's of fish.
You also need to look at swimming room i.e. tangs are fast swimmers and need bigger tanks, other fish like shoaling (anthias and chromis) so you will need some rather than one and some fish (angals) tend to like eating certain corals, although the dwarf angels (centropyge) seem to be less likely to be coral nibblers it is always a risk to introduce angels to reef systems.
You also need to look at swimming room i.e. tangs are fast swimmers and need bigger tanks, other fish like shoaling (anthias and chromis) so you will need some rather than one and some fish (angals) tend to like eating certain corals, although the dwarf angels (centropyge) seem to be less likely to be coral nibblers it is always a risk to introduce angels to reef systems.
Thanks for the formula. I am staying away from "advanced" fish like butters and angels till I have more experience. I am looking at clowns & damsels and cleaner crew.
Any idea how many hermits I should have in the 400l tank ?
Any idea how many hermits I should have in the 400l tank ?
Mike
Retired Moderator
Your clean up crew should be mixed, i would get 6 red leg hermits, 6 turbo's, 6 nassarus snails to start with - once they have settled in (bearing in mind they should be acclimatised for several hours) see how well they cope, then slowly increase numbers to keep algae in check
I would honestly say none.
Start off culturing and nurturing life on your liverock. Slowly start off by introducing a few hardy corals such as star polyps and mushrooms (NOT ricordia spp) Once you have them multiplying nd growing, slowly work your way towards things like leathers, colts and kenya trees. First develop, establish and maintain your reef, then add fish. If you must add a fish, steer clear of damsels, (often become annoyingly agressive) and rather add a clown (prefferably tank bred)
Without the formula, I would have said 7-8 fish woudl be cool, one of which can be a larger one eg. yellow tang, 1-2 medium sized fish eg. dwarf angels, and 4-5 smallish fish (eg clowns, gramma's, blennies etc.)
The formula is a good start, but like someone said above, more important is a) the lifestyle of the fish, and b) how well they get along with each other, and c) what they eat. So, not only do you consider the volume of the tank, but the shape of the tanks and its aquascaping. a 1000l tank with LR piled up so that there isn't more than 10cm of straight swimming space would be unsuitable for a tang. A 1000l tank with a bare bottom would be unsuitable for a jawfish. A tank with a pajama cardinal would not be a good place to put a Banggai. And any fish that eat the same food are going to compete with each other.
So...spend some time thinking about what fish you would like in the long run, so you can plan your aquascaping and other fish accordingly. And I'll agree with the damsel advice--they can be nice when they are small, and they are hardy and colorful, but they can be aggressive later. If there is enough space in the tank for each to have a territory, it won't be too bad. And remember, clownfishes are in the damsel family--and anyone who has had a Tomato clown will agree. If you choose clowns, I'd choose an ocellaris over a tomato any day.
Everyone here with a tank can relate their experiences with which fish work well with others so, do rely on your friends to help you plan.
So...spend some time thinking about what fish you would like in the long run, so you can plan your aquascaping and other fish accordingly. And I'll agree with the damsel advice--they can be nice when they are small, and they are hardy and colorful, but they can be aggressive later. If there is enough space in the tank for each to have a territory, it won't be too bad. And remember, clownfishes are in the damsel family--and anyone who has had a Tomato clown will agree. If you choose clowns, I'd choose an ocellaris over a tomato any day.
Everyone here with a tank can relate their experiences with which fish work well with others so, do rely on your friends to help you plan.
From someone with all most no experience (1 fish so far), won't the number of fish also be determined by the size and efficiency of your skimmer and or other filtration? Also if I remember correctly carnivorous fish leave more waste than herbivores.
