looking for friendly fish...HELP

[ag0r]

hey, i'm just looking for some experienced advice on fish to add to my tank and possibly in what order. i have a 40 gallon hexagonal reef tank, established for close to 3 or 4 months. i have a yellow tank and a silver sand-sifting goby, red glass star fish, tan sand star fish, 6 turbo snail, 1 red skunk shrimp, and 2 peppermint shrimp. i also have a green brain, 2 sun polyps, and an anemone. i am looking for hardy fish that are friendly, not to territorial, active, and overall just a good add to a mini reef. i have had past problems with territorial fish (i.e. marron clown, blue damsel) and recent bouts of ich as well as me removing some have limited me down to just those two fish. i cant seem to get good advice from my dealer. so now i am researching my fish. my current thoughts (after some research) are two percula clown, 1 coral beauty, 1 6-line wrasse, and a royal gramma. are these friendly and good fish? any ideas? corrections? addint order ideas? i am waiting another 2 to 3 weeks or so before the next add to make sure that the recently disappeared bout of ich is fully cycled and eliminated. Thanx a bunch

 

[jacknjill]

you have a yellow tang in a 40 hex? you need to get him out first.

 

[ag0r]

why? will he get territorial

 

[greatfullreefer]

Originally posted by ag0r
why? will he get territorial
Very possible but that is not your main concern. A hex tank does not offer the horizontal swimming room that a Yellow Tang requires. Sturgeon fish are open water swimmers and not reef dwellers (with the exception of the Kole Tang). Usually in a small tank the tang will become stressed as it has nowhere to go which usually ends up in disease and death.

 

[tizzo]

I put my yellow in my qt and he developed HLLE. A smaller tank was the only cause I could pinpoint!! When I returned him to the 90 it immediately cleared up.
Friendly fish...neon gobies are cute.
Lemonpeel angel can replace your tang. They are just as yellow.

 

[jacknjill]

yeah, also, they are VERY aggressive to new tank mates. he should me your main concern. just about as bad as a damsel. plus he will get too big and your tank isnt big enough

 

[ophiura]

Originally posted by ag0r
my current thoughts (after some research) are two percula clown, 1 coral beauty, 1 6-line wrasse, and a royal gramma. are these friendly and good fish? any ideas? corrections? addint order ideas?
I think that you can not put this many fish in the hex tank. Perhaps - and only perhaps - in a rectangular tank of the same volume, but not in a hex. It just is too many fish in a small area. They are all somewhat territorial, and will really stress things out.
I also think that you have had an ick issue with the tang especially because it is in a young small tank...a tang, and I will add the dwarf angel, should not (IMO) go in a tank under at least 6 months. That is the best bet at success. These fish do better in more mature tanks.
If you get rid of the tang, I the above fish may be OK, but I would still omit at least one of them.

 

[ag0r]

the odd thing is is that my tang has survived two different bouts of ich that have killed 3 clowns, a damsel, and a cb angel. will rearrangeing rockwork be enough to eliminate his territoriality or is a total removal that only true cure. cuz he seems to be quite happy in my tank, he swim playfully side by side with the goby all day, and has grown much fatter, as well as a bit bigger in the last two months.
anyway, if a removal is neccessary i have a couple of questions before i formulate my final list and its order. if i were to, say, replace the tang with a lemonpeel dwarf angel would he eventually be able to coexist with the cb angel, or will there be problems due to their incredibly similar size and shape?
also, about the neon goby. they are very good0looing fish. would he be able to exist with my sand-sifting goby, or will there be problems there also. once i know all this i will change my list. does say, 7 small to medium sized fish sound good for my sized tank, or is that way to much?
thanx a bunch again

 

[lizzard]

Again as everyone else has said a yellow tang needs at least a 75 to 100 gal tank. The rule of thumb is 1 inch of fish for ever 5 gallons of water. 40 gallon tank gives you 8 inches of fish. That is if you actually have 40 gals. Which you wont if you take into account the space that your rocks and sand are using.
<<the odd thing is is that my tang has survived two different bouts of ich >>
Well not really. There’s a 100 % chances that the tang also has ick and should be treated.
Your tank (without any fish in it)will carrie the parasites for a period of 4 to 6 weeks before it is again safe to add fish.

 

[ag0r]

yes, i kno that it has ich. its just that it survived it. i have been treating for close to 4 weeks. i am waiting 3 more b4 fish just to play it safe. either way i think i am gonna pull the tang and possibly put in a lemonpeel, but i am not sure if a lemonpeel will eventually be compatible with my coral beatuy i want to get.

 

[greatfullreefer]

Extremely bad idea to mix dwarf angels usually will result in injuries or death (especially in such a small tank) Additionally your tank will never be free of Ich if it has fish in it. You need to remove your fish to a QT and leave your tank empty for a period of 6 weeks. Also NEVER medicate your main tank.

 

[jacknjill]

the tank is the one who is CAUSING the ich becasue he is stresseed. it will just keep coming back as long as you have him in there