I was told...

[jden092901]

I was told that I could have a blue tang in my 29, IF it was small, like 1/2 inch to 1 inch long. It would only be in the 29 gallon tank for a year. Next year were building our home and putting a large tank in the wall. I have one clown right now, and thought about getting another and one very small blue tang? Or just one clown and one tang..wouldnt that be ok for a short time?

 

[renogaw]

why don't you just wait till you get the bigger tank?

 

[ice4ice]

I'd wait til you get a bigger tank.

 

[jden092901]

O I can wait, my wife was just really wanting one. Thats why im here asking. It would be kinda cool, but whatever is best is what I will do.
Josh..
Thank you

 

[integral9]

Do yourself a favor and don't get the Tang until you have the bigger tank. I was told the same thing by my old LFS about a blue tang for a 30g, and what happened? Ich explosion. Tang got stressed out, got ich, infected the other fish and they *all* died. I lost about $300 in fish in about 2 weeks. btw. blue / hippo tangs are notorious for getting ich. Wait till you get a tank that's proper for the creature.

 

[jden092901]

great help...thanks so much. SOLD on that now. What fish would be good for a 30? 2 clowns and a firefish? or what else?

 

[renogaw]

firefish, royal gramma, something small like them would be perfect

 

[jden092901]

royal grammas are so pretty...are they ok with clowns? And, would a maroon clown be ok with a per clown?

 

[1journeyman]

While I would hold off on the Tang, if you practice proper QT procedures Ich is not an issue no matter how stressed the fish become.

 

[jden092901]

how do you do that?

 

[ackdaddy]

QT means a quarantine tank......so basically if you get a fish that has gotten a disease such as ich, youtake out the fish and put it in a seperate QT

 

[1journeyman]

Originally Posted by jden092901
how do you do that?
Ich is a parasite, not a disease; Therefore it must be introduced into your tank.
To avoid ever having ich in your tank, QT all fish for 4-6 weeks in a seperate tank. If they are symptom free for the entire time introduce them to your tank. If they show signs of ich in your QT tank treat them accordingly.
What often happens is hobbyists inadvertently introduce the parasite into their tank. The fish successfully fight it off to the extent that the hobbyist never notices it. Then a stressed fish or environmental cue sets off a serious outbreak. That's why Tangs are considered Ich magnets.

 

[srfisher17]

Originally Posted by 1journeyman
While I would hold off on the Tang, if you practice proper QT procedures Ich is not an issue no matter how stressed the fish become.
I agree. If your sure you're going to move him; getting a tiny tang into a 30 gal isn't going to be any harder than getting him into another tank down the road. I think a big reason to wait is that you will have a lot more experience when introducing a fish that can be difficult to acclimate, (but easy to keep). As to other fish; maybe consider a fish that would swim more in the open water. Like a dwarf or pygmy angel. I really like flamebacks and have found them easy to keep. But; do your research and avoid damsels!

 

[renogaw]

Originally Posted by ackdaddy
QT means a quarantine tank......so basically if you get a fish that has gotten a disease such as ich, youtake out the fish and put it in a seperate QT

well, to clarify you should put the fish in the QT before putting in your display tank. there's no point in putting a fish into the display tank, noticing it has ich, then taking it out and putting in the QT. the whole point of quarantining is to prevent the disease from getting in the DT.

 

[jden092901]

So, I have a 10 gallon I could use for my qt tank. I have had it up and running...clown is in there now, switching to my 30...Do I need sand or anything special in the qt tank? When im not using it for QT, could it be my "holding" tank for my water changes? That way I could just take it out and move it over? Would I be ok without a filter and powerhead..or would I need one of each?

 

[renogaw]

technically you should keep it up and running.
you should have a sponge filter of some type to act as live rock and be a bacteria area, but other than that just some pieces of pvc fittings, a heater, a light, and a filter (and maybe a powerhead if you want) and that's it.
you should keep it up and running and cycled just in case you need to put a fish in there. if you use it for holding your water, you'd have a cycling issue when you put a fish in.

 

[lawman]

Originally Posted by jden092901
royal grammas are so pretty...are they ok with clowns? And, would a maroon clown be ok with a per clown?
Royal grammas are great and mine gets along fine with my sebae clown. The problem would be the two different clowns. definitely take the advice about staying away from damsels. I put a yellow tail damsel in my tank and he terrorized the clown and gramma. It was a pain to catch him also.

 

[jden092901]

I think ill get another clown (same kind) and a royal gramma. There way pretty little guys. Thanks for all of your help!
Josh

 

[cgj]

Originally Posted by renogaw
firefish, royal gramma, something small like them would be perfect

I second that. I have two percula clowns and a royal gramma who hides and peeks his tiny purple head out of a cave... possibly one of the cutest things imaginable.

 

[srfisher17]

Originally Posted by renogaw
technically you should keep it up and running.
you should have a sponge filter of some type to act as live rock and be a bacteria area, but other than that just some pieces of pvc fittings, a heater, a light, and a filter (and maybe a powerhead if you want) and that's it.
you should keep it up and running and cycled just in case you need to put a fish in there. if you use it for holding your water, you'd have a cycling issue when you put a fish in.

Good point. another way to be sure you have some ready bacteria filtration (depending on your set up) is to keep a sponge filter in the sump, media chamber, filter basket, or any other area of your DT. Just pull out the sponge when you need it. Be sure to completely disinfect the sponge (a few days in the sun) after use in the Qt before putting it back in the DT sump--or just toss it, they're cheap.