2 Tangs in 90 gal

reef dude

reef dude

Member
Hello all,
my 90 gallon reef has been setup for 6 and a half months now, i have 2 true percs(fiesty as can be) 3 fire gobies, yellow wrasse, and Marine betta(4 in. very docile w/ the smaller guys)
I know multiple tangs is never a good thing, unless its a school in a large tank.. However today at work(lfs) i ordered a 4in. red sea sailfin tang and a 3-4 in. powder blue. I figured with different colors, different body shape, and a difference in size, and acclimating them into my tank simultaneously, they should get along???
ive heard that this was a good mix for 2 tangs...
any input from experience and what not would be a great help!!
btw...water conditions are great, starting to see lots of corraline too!
 
azonic

azonic

Active Member
I'd say go for it. The powder blue may be slightly aggresive at first, but he should come around with time...mine did. Also, I would add the sailfin first...add him...give him 2-3 weeks on his own to sorta establish his "territory"....then add the powder blue. I wouldn't add them at the same time for that reason..and as well, two large fish could affect your bioload if it's can't handle that much of an addition at once.
Your GUARANTEED to get people saying NO NO NO to 2 tangs...but speaking from personal experience, they get along fine.
btw, If it were me....I'd get a juvenile chevron tang, instead of the red sea sailfin...they look so much cooler.:D
 
reef dude

reef dude

Member
THanks azonic,
do you really think that putting them both in at once is a bad thing? ive heard its better so that neither one fights over territory. I just want to go about this as peacefully as possible!!
 
azonic

azonic

Active Member
It's completely your choice...you never know for sure with tangs until they are in the tank together...I think adding the sailfin and the powder blue would be ok in terms of one being aggresive towards the other....but do you think your bioload could handle the addition of both at once? If you are confident that your tank is stable enough i'd say go for it. All that's in my 90 right now is a yellow tang and a sixline wrasse..thanks to a huge outbreak of marine velvet. :-( lost 5 fish from it...my next fish will be a second tang :)
good luck with them, and lemme know how they work out...Im leaning towards either a red sea sohal tang, chevron, powder blue, or a purple. I cant decide.:D
 
reef dude

reef dude

Member
well im pretty sure my tank could handle it, i have been sooo patient in adding fish that i have never seen a trace of ammonia, not even durring the cycle(wierd story.....anyways) water params are great, im still trying to work on calcium tho....
If my tank could def. handle them both at once, what do you think the best way to get them in there would be? separately or together??
The fish should arrive tomorow afternoon, i'll let ya know how they look and if they get along(in the lfs that is) i usually give them a minimun of 5 days before i bring them home
 
azonic

azonic

Active Member
If it were me, I'd go for it. Those two fish don't come from the same part of the world, and are in two completely different families/genus/group/whatever of tangs.
One thing to be sure of, make sure the powder blue is eating before you take him home. Make sure both are eating for that matter but the powder blue especially. Mine took 6 days before I got him to eat...I got him sent directly to my door. I won'd do it again for a powder blue.
 
almarktool

almarktool

Member
If i wanted to add 2 tangs i would do it a once that is what i am planning on doing with my 200 when i am ready, what size quaritine tank u got u should prob get a pretty good idea on how they are going to behave when they are in there before u put them in your main tank
 
musipilot

musipilot

Member
I'll tell you that from our tangsperience, its hit or miss depending on the temperement of the fish. If you get two that are territorial, you're doomed to get rid of one, no matter when they're added in relation to each other. If you try to get a new tang in a tank with an existing one, you can move around the rock to "displace" the established tang, and you may have success keeping two or more. BUT -- if one of your tangs is too territorial, it won't matter if the rock moves once an hour, he'll still be nasty to the other until one of them is removed.
You can certainly try, and you may succeed, but be sure you have a backup plan for one of the tangs (pick your least favorite, hard!) to go somewhere else.
 
almarktool

almarktool

Member
i agree tangs should not be in 4 ft tanks ( i should be on tang patrol ) i have a yellow one which is a small species in my 72 and he moves like a bolt of lighting i am dieing to get him into my 7 ft long 200 gall as soon as i can but due to his territorial nature i must put a few other fish in there before him i would suggest perhaps a dwarf angel
 
sistrmary

sistrmary

Member
Ditto to the above. (aka jwtrojan44) The thing you have to think about with sailfin tangs is that they grow long *and* high. I have one, so I'm speaking from personal experience. When they're content and healthy, they will swim with every single inch of fin extended (unless something spooks them, in which case they'll suck the fins up and fly)
Keep in mind that their two extended fins are at least as long (if not longer as in my tangs' case) than their bodies. With a fish that averagely reaches 13" and can reach 16"...that's a whole lot of area that you have to account for.
 
reef dude

reef dude

Member
point well taken jw, i have thought about size and i know the sailfins get big. I ordered them between 3-5 inches. the size issue has crossed my mind and it may become an issue. Since i do work at the lfs, theres a good chance of trading it in down the road...
 
flamehawk

flamehawk

Active Member
Didn't realize 90 was only 4 ft. Take back other posts on 2 tangs in a 90. Only one. Smaller version like yellow,purple .
 
ssc351

ssc351

Member
I've got a Naso and Yellow Tang both in a 5ft 100 gal. One stays one the left side of the tank the other on the right. THere were a few problems when I first put them in but after moving the rocks around a little everything is cool
 
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