Question about my tank

[fishorbust]

I just got my PowerCompact light and i'm so happy with the results. So bright and wonderful. I have a question about my powerhead. Right now i have a Maxi Jet 400 powerhead in my 20 gallon tank. I have it aimed at the top of the water moving the top around. Is this enough for my tank or should i invest in a larger one or just another one? I added my second fish to my tank also. I now have a Percula Clown in with my Coral Beauty. The LFS is holding a Blue Tang for me. Its a baby and its not even an inch big. he said it would be ok in there for about a year. Then i could sell it. It is ok if i do this?
Also!! Is the SeaClone Protein Skimmer (up to 100 gallons) a good skimmer for my tank?

 

[fishorbust]

I have a 20 Gal FOWLR. Been up and running for 3 months (thats counting after it cycled) so all in all 4 months. I'm soon going to be adding corals. I have around 10 lbs of live rock and have a Coral Beauty and a Percula Clown in the tank. The Tang is only 1/2". The fish guy i know there said it would be a year before i would need to think about selling it. He said i could have 4 fish in there and that would be plenty. He said that once the fish got too large that i could sell it. He also said i could sell it back to him and that he would pay around 15 less than what he will sell it for. I know him pretty well. He is gonna charge me 35 for the tang and they have a large one for 79.00... so $64.00 isn't bad to sell back. He said the fish would be ok until it got bigger. By then i plan on buying a 72 gal bowfront. Why is the seaclone a low end skimmer? I'm farely new to this so help is appreciated, thanks

 

[coxy101]

Eeks! Don't get the tang. Everyone falls into the "I'll upgrade to a larger tank soon" or "I'll sell him back when he gets big". Why would you buy a fish knowing he's going to outgrow your tank? It's like adopting a dog knowing that you're going to give him to the pound when he's not a puppy anymore. I don't know, I couldn't give back a fish once I had him for a year (even though it will be a LOT sooner than that). I had a 20 gallon when I first started this hobby and I was sold a blue hippo tang by my LFS. I was ignorant and I fell for the "you can have 4 fish". No you can't. The water quality will show this and things will die. Already with a coral beauty and clownfish you are overstocked. I know it's not what you want to hear. With my 45 gallon I have a pair of clownfish and I'm planning on getting 2 firefish gobies and a coal beauty. And I think that's a full bioload in a 45 gallon. It's easy to overstock a tank, especially a small 20. I would recommend a pair of clownfish and calling it quits. I know it's not what you want to hear, but the common rule is 1 inch of full size adult fish per 5 gallons = 4 inches for your tank (about the size of ONE clownfish).
With the Seaclone, it's not a great skimmer, but it would work just fine on a 20 gallon, but not much larger...
Also, if you plan on upgrading to a 72 gallon keep that in mind when buying equipment. Buy a skimmer that would be good for the larger tank. It will save you from having to buy multiple items.

 

[greatfullreefer]

I concur, bad idea with the tang, blus Tangs need a huge amount of swimming room, even a juv needs at least a 75 in order to swim. In a year or 2 it could be up to 14 inches and require a 150 or larger. Your LFS is giving you bad information, sure he said bring it back in a year, but he knows full well that it will not live that long. The life expectancy of a blue in a 20 gallon is about 3 weeks.
Good Luck

 

[fishorbust]

More than likely i will be upgrading to a larger tank in about 6 - 8 months... I like the 72 gallon bowfront. I'm gonna invest in a skimmer to that i have the best care for my fish. Also i can transfer it to my larger tank. The Blue Tang is about a 1/2 inch in size. And the guy i was talking to said it would do fine in there, but whenever it started to get alot bigger then it would need alot more room.
Whats a good skimmer that i could get?

 

[robb]

It sounds like you are dead set on getting the tang.:nope: If I were you I would listen to what people are saying. A tang, even a juvi needs ALOT of room to swim! A 20 is not enough room no matter how small he is. I have been to sooo many fish stores that gave me bad advise and I have learned the hard way. So now I check this forum out before I buy something in question. My opinion is don't buy the tang until you get your bigger tank.