Fish choice help

[meg79]

I am in the process of setting up a new 75g and I am trying to decide what I eventually want in it after it gets established. My plan is to get a tang and choose other fish accordingly. My top three choices are a blue hippo, powder blue, or a yellow tang. I don't know much about any of these other than what I have read in books and would really like some first hand opinions, especially about the hippo and powder blue. I also have a coral beauty in my 30g and would like to move him into the 75 if he is compatable. Feel free to also give me opinions about what fish would compliment these.

 

[blemmy_guy]

Well i will tell you my expierences and maybe that will help. I have a yellow tang, that i love dearly, and it is doing great!. I really like the blue hippo, but ive had trouble with them getting ick in the past. My favorite ine is the purple tang!! there a great lookin fish. And your coral beauty should do fine with any fish other than another angel fish. And of course you should get some type of clown fish, there always great to have. And do you like Blennies??? there full of personality, and a blast to watch. so good luck! and let us know how it gos. Todd

 

[meg79]

Thanks for the input! I do already have a maroon clown and bi color blenny in my 30. I love them both and will definatly be adding clowns and a blenny to the 75. I like the purple tangs too, but with putting the coral beauty in there, I don't want too much of the same color. What is the temperment of yellow tangs? I have heard they are fairly aggressive (as most tangs are?). Do they normally only show aggession tward other tangs? I have read about the hippo's getting ich a lot (which I DO NOT want to go through again). That was one of my big concerns with that fish.

 

[jacknjill]

blemmy, do you know what the best brand of garlic is to get?

 

[blemmy_guy]

jack and jill, i use kent garlic extreme, it seems to work really well for me., and Meg, ive never had a problem with my tangs being aggresive, I have a coral beauty and a yellow tang in my 125, they never bother each other. And if im not mistaken all tangs dont have any natural defense against ich. i would put your tang in first, then wait at least a week before adding other fish, this will help reduce any stress for your tang. goodluck. todd

 

[jacknjill]

thanks blemmy, do you think i could soak flakes in it?

 

[blemmy_guy]

yep you can.

 

[rubberduck]

yeah, tangs need to get confortable, so i would add them first (if your tank is ready. or second if u have a gobbie or something timid

 

[jacknjill]

no, you add tangs last because they are territorial and will boss/fight with any new fish around

 

[blemmy_guy]

JnJ its ok if they think there the boss, it doesnt stress them to be bossy, only to be bossed. Todd

 

[calvoley]

are you going to or will you set up a quarentine tank

 

[harlequinnut]

I tend to side with JNJ and say add the tang last especially the YT. Tangs don't usually get boss around cause they have a natural defense build in on their tail. Once the tang sets his territory, it'll be hard to add newcomers without the tang harassing the new fish. I've had a Yellow tang and a hippo before and now a powder blue and I've yet to see any of those tangs get bossed around. JMO

 

[gati]

I have had my yellow tang for 5 years and he was one of the first in tank. He is not aggressive at all, in fact he is one of the most shy fish I have. Dosen't bother anything new I introduce into the tank.
I have yet to have success with powders though, tried twice in 8 years without luck.
good luck.

 

[meg79]

Ok. Now I'm a little confused, but would everyone agree that it would be ok to add the tang and my timid fish first, then add the more agressive angels and such after the first batch settles in? Also, am I correct when I assume that I can only have one tang in this tank?
calvoley:
Yes, I already have a quarantine tank set up. I learned that lesson when everything in my 30g got ich from a fish that I added.
Harlequinnut: Was your powder easy to establish, or did you have to take some special steps to help it? Do you know why they are considered a delicate tang? What special needs do they have? Basically, whatever info you can give me on this fish would be great.
Thanks!

 

[guineawhop]

ok i think i'll put my input...i would only put 1 tang to a 75 gallon tank. i wouldn't recommend trying the powder blue until the tank has been set up for at least a year. these guys need a well established tank so if ur in a hurry to get one soon i wouldn't waste ur money and get oneof the other 2 tangs. with the hippo if you are to get one i would keep the salinity on the lower side somethin like 1.019-1.020 because it makes it harder for ick and other parasites to thrive. this also would mean no inverts because they need teh higher salinity. the yellow tang is an all around descent choice same as the purple tang but all my yellow tangsin the past have been aggressive towards some of my other fish like it was aggressive towards my koran angel, porcupine puffer, and valentini although the valentini stuck up for himself and nipped his back fins a lot. then again every tang has it's own personality. i would agree with jnj in saying to add tangs last unless it is a hippo cause those really aren't aggressive at all. good luck

 

[meg79]

Thanks for the tip of not adding the powder until the tank is well established. That's what I was thinking, since they are more dificult to keep. Fortunatly, my LFS allows you to get credit for fish that you bring back in, so if I were to get a yellow or hippo and later decide I want a powder, I can trade them. The idea of the lower salinity for the hippo is great. My only question would be, without inverts, how do you control algea, etc? Sorry, I'm really invert dependent in my 30g, and let them do a lot of the work. And since I can have only one tang, any suggestions on another larger fish? Are the larger angel fish going to be too big? And if they are not too big, do the large angels get along with the pygmy's? Again, sorry for all the questions. My knowledge is currently limited to fish that I can put in a 30g...I know a lot about them! I just never had a reason, unitl now, to get this in depth with the big ones.

 

[jacknjill]

i would still say add the tang last and here is why. no its not stressful for the tang to be "bossy" lol, its just stressful for the fish that are being "bossed". once they start to have torn fins and are constsntly being chased around, they could develop ich and be constantly hiding.
my yellow tang is shy also and will go into hiding when you first come to the tank. but after a minute he will come out. when i got my blue hippo, the yellow tang did not like him and tried to fight with him. but since the blue was twice as big as him it didnt really botherhim and the next day, the yellow had a big chunk out of his top fin.
so what im saying is it would be best to add them last to either wait for your tank to become more mature, buy a fish that can put up with the tang, or just add it last to eliminate all possibility of fighting

 

[harlequinnut]

I only have two words to describe the powder blue, ICK MAGNET! Other than that, it's been good for me as far as it's health. I have the ick in control with copper since my tank is FO with base rocks. Also the PBT harasses every new fish that I tried to add to the tank, all in all, a very aggressive fish.

 

[guineawhop]

if you want inverts, go with the yellow tang then. hippo is really hard to keep healthy because of the ich and parasite factor that they catch it so easily. but if you want a hippo instead lower salinity and ur gonna have to scrub algae urself. if you go with the yellow tang though add him last. i havn't seen a hippo get aggressive unless another fish starts with it first.

 

[jonny bolt]

My friend has a 55g with a regal tang, clown, gobie, 3 stripe damsel, royal gramma, and a saddle valentini puffer, and the tang has done exceptionally well. It's getting huge! He upping to a 75 or 90 soon. The only time there was any rumbles in the tank, is when the royal gramma was introduced, the damsel was pecking at him a pushing him to the other side of the tank. Even the puffer and the tang didnt care. I think if you add the tang earlier rather than later, it will be better off. I think my friends tang was the 2nd or 3rd to be added, and it has acclimated better than expected.