New Tank, want fish.

[jester8877]

How long should i wait to put a fish besides a damsel in it? I would like to put a Yellow Tang or a Tomato clown! The fish store were i bought my tank said atleast 3-6 months, is that true and if so is there anyother type of fish I could add besides damsels that could surrvive is a 3 week new 20g tank?
Thanks for the help....

 

[nero]

no fish for at least 2 months... i would recommend a percula clown for a 20 gallon (i think tomato clowns get too big), and i would highly recommend not putting any damsels in at all (aggressive little buggars). oh yes, you will soon find out about the "tang police" if you plan on putting a yellow tang in a 20 gallon. they need at least 4 feet of swimming room to survive in an aquarium. and that goes for almost every tang. just keep with a clown or two and a few gobies perhaps, they are much better for a 20 gallon.

 

[jester8877]

So much to learn, so many different suggestions and out looks on how it all works, I think its safe to say that I am clueless and confused...much more education on saltwater tanks, i think i'll stick to the learning process before moving on!
Thanks abunch
Jason

 

[armlocker]

lol @ "tang police". Is a 36" tank ok for a blue hippo tang since its one of the smaller tangs?

 

[birdy]

ummm- not sure where you got your info but the hippo tang is one of the larger tangs and needs at least a 125 gallon tank.

 

[laddy]

With a 20g you have a bunch of options, however, a tang isn't one of them. Ten years ago I attempted my first SW, it was a 20g, put a yellow tang in there 'cause I always wanted one, it died, and I broke down the tank. Slow and steady is the way to happiness in this hobby.

 

[armlocker]

Sorry Birdy, was just a dumb assumption since the "size" on the fish page was 1" compared to most being 3-5, obviously they grow much much bigger but i thought i could use that starting size as a guideline. Thanks for the correction.

 

[birdy]

The size of the fish on SWF is the size they send you not the full grown length I agree it is a bit confusing.
I recommend Aquarium Fishes by Scott W. Michael. It is a pocket book (small size) that has a list of pretty much every common and some uncommon aquarium fish, thier habitats full grown length, how they do in captivity. A must have IMO for any aquarium owner.

 

[big911dog]

i'd suggest sticking to a smaller clown like an ocellaris or percula. ocellaris are a little more forgiving of beginners. tomatos get a little bigger and i'd suggest a 30-40 gal for them.
there are still TONS of fish which would do great in a 20. get the book Birdy recommended. Its informative and will give you some guidelines.
3-6 months is extreme... figure 4-6 weeks for ur tank to cycle. after the cycle, do a water change and u can add in ur cleaner crew (snails/crabs). at the same time you can put ONE fish (or two if its like an ocellaris pair) in a quarantine tank for a month. after that month the clown(s) can go into the show tank. if ur not running a QT (which i think most would recommend) they can go into the main tank, but be prepared to deal with problems down the line if they get sick.