*S.O.S* 55g tank and 1 fish.. huge issues

[salty444]

I have been reading this forum for roughly 2 weeks now. I have a major problem and need some advice.
Anyway,
I used to have 1 large yellow tang and still have 1 large tomato clown in my 55g fish only with live rock tank. I have roughly 30 pounds of live rock and other various plastic plants that look completely cheesy but whatever.. I got sick and tired of the huge bristle worms in my tank... if there was not 5000 worms crawling through the sand and through the rocks, there was not a single one.. SO........... what do I do?!?! I took my live rock outside onto the driveway and powerwashed them with a high pressure hose.. YUP you heard that right.. I then proceeded to vacuum the sand thinking It would be great to do a 20 gallon water change and scrape the red slime off the sides of the tank also... Well... about 2 days later my yellow tang was half dead and the clown was still swimming.. The amonia spiked to dangerous levels and the fish had to be taken out. It was almost like setting up a new tank and watching it cycle with my fish in it but not knowing what was happening.. The LFS was nice enough to let me bring my fish to their store for some baby sitting which the Yellow Tang has since died (7yrs old) and the Clown is still going strong!! I have since replaced all sand last friday and completely stripped my tank and I believe it is ready for fish.. I did not do the shrimp method because there are still some bristle worms that lived though this ordeal as well as a few dead ones laying around.. All levels are normal except I do not have a PH test kit.. I am assuming it is Ok. Salinity is 1.022, amonia is near 0 and nitrites are good also.. Questions I have are:
1) What fish can I safely add with my tomato clown when time permits...
My list would be a couple hippo tangs, wrasse (for the worms), coral banded shrimp, Arrow Crab, a porcupine puffer and whatever else more knowledgeable people recommend. ???? any help is appreciated...
2) How in the world do I keep the red slime from comming back? I have added an extra powerhead (now have 2) but I believe the problem will be unsolved by this.
3) I have a Amiracle 15 hang on wet/dry with the built in skimmer which collects major scum, I also have a mechanical filter for particulates.. I know it's not necessary but I keep it just for water flow and filtration..
4) I have a normal glass hood with a standard daylight bulb.. is this OK for a fish tank?
I keep the water at 76* is that good?
Thanks in advance and I appreciate any help given...

 

[fraggle_a]

Unless your getting a bigger tank in the near future, forget the hippo/royal tangs. Those suckers can grow to 12" and would be very unhappy in a small 55G tank.
A yellow tang is alright.
Id get some snails, some kind of sand sifter. those would do well to control the algee.
How often do you feed?. If your feeing too much too often, your going to get a lot of nastyness in the skimmer.
For just "Fish" that light is alright.
If you plan on adding inverts like Anenomies or even corrals, youll need more lights.
The water temps in the high 70's is fine.

 

[teen]

you cant keep any tangs, your tank is to small, and im not sure about the puffer, but im pretty sure they need a bigger tank also. look at dwarf angels, gobies, and clown fish.
the light is fine for a fish only tank.
not sure about the slime, my guess is cut back on the hours your light is on, and less feedings, and more water flow.
im pretty sure the bristle worms arent hurting anything, and are actually helping your tank, so i would just leave them.
i think your tank is just starting its cycle if ammonia isnt at zero, and there are no nitrites.

 

[salty444]

my tank is too small for tangs? I had that yellow tang in there for 7 yrs... He was one of the largest tangs I had ever seen.

 

[crazyaqua]

the tang police are the fanatics you can keep a yellow or kole in a 55 any other tang should be 100 plus.

 

[some1fishy]

I always thought yellow tangs were docile. The others are semi aggressive and require more swimming room

 

[salty444]

one more question...
A local store has tanks full of damsel fish. Along with the damsel's, There are many other fish in the same tanks.. I thought the damsels were meaner than piranahas? They all seemed to be getting along quite fine.. They were blue with yellow tails. There was a yellow tang and valantini puffer in along with them. Is this ok to do?

 

[some1fishy]

damsels are aggressive in groups. I dont think they eat other fish though. They are just more of a nuissance in a home aquarium. Especially if you try to catch them.
Down with the damsels! ---- although the blue ones are kinda, and I stress kinda nice to look at. But thats it.

 

[salty444]

I mixed a bag of crushed coral with a bag of sand.. Is that OK to do? I didn't want the sand blowing all over the tank.

 

[teen]

im telling you, no tang should be in a 55 gallon. look at your tank, and think to yourself, would a tang in the wild swim in an area this small. if you can confidently say yes then go right head. a tang MIGHT be able to survive, but would it be happy, i doubt it. but hey, then again its your tank. as for the mixed sand and crushed coral, its a bad idea, after a month or so, all the sand will end up on bottom, and crushed coral on top. just go with all sand, or just a bare bottom tank. as for the damsels, ive found the yellow tailed to be least agressive, but all damsels will get big, and loose there color and become a greyish color, imo pretty ugly.

 

[teen]

Originally Posted by crazyaqua
the tang police are the fanatics you can keep a yellow or kole in a 55 any other tang should be 100 plus.

i dont understand how you can say that, tangs need a lot of room to swim, its like keeping a horse in your bedroom. he may live, but hes not going to be happy, or get anywhere near enough exercise that he needs. in the long run, they will become sick, and not live there full life. and to top it off, he already said he has live rock, so that just leaves even less swimming room.
and by the live rock thing, im not saying get rid of it, because its very beneficial to your tank, im just saying it takes up swimming space for your fish.

 

[salty444]

im telling you, no tang should be in a 55 gallon. look at your tank, and think to yourself, would a tang in the wild swim in an area this small. if you can confidently say yes then go right head. a tang MIGHT be able to survive, but would it be happy, i doubt it. QUOTE]
:thinking:

 

[crazyaqua]

Its the same thing as saying teen that we should have no marine fish in our tank because none of our tanks can be the same as the ocean because in the ocean no matter how small the fish they still get a bigger area to swim then a tank. So then everyone would be wrong in keeping marine fish since we cant put them in our own ocean. A kole or a yellow can be healthy and live in a 55 as long as you dont have any other large tank mates

 

[sharkbait9]

Tang police, yyyyyyuck they just nauseate me . I have a yellow tang in my 55 gal and his just fine. You want a tang get a tang. The yellow tang is a 55 gal fish. So tangs can go in a 55 and some not. I have seen more info stating the smallest is a 55 then a 75gal min.

 

[wallie]

a yellow tang is ok to keep in a 55 will he is a jovanile but as they grow he will definetly need a larger tank so inless you are planning on upgrading your tang in the futor dont do it. ther are lots of cool fish you can get for a 55. just not tanks, but thats just my opinuon

 

[ophiura]

You know, here is a thread about a guy with some problems.
Someone says no tang!!...and lots of people shout back about how terrible the tang police are, and how then no fish from the ocean should go in our tanks, etc, etc, etc.
And all we focus on is a little issue.
Both sides of this argument drive me nuts to be honest.
SOMETIMES tangs can go in these tanks but the SHOULD NOT go in there for life, IMO, perhaps apart from a Kole. I do not understand why a yellow would be OK but a scopas or purple needs 100g.
But we need to understand that we should strive to provide a minimum level of comfort to these fish. NO it is not the ocean, but honestly is that an argument? Why not keep a tang in a 10g tank then? Is there a point at which people would say "no, actually, that is not good?" THis issue comes up a lot and I think we can agree that we have a responsibility to provide a minimum amount of care and "habitat."
IMO, and many disagree, some of these tangs as the only fish in a tank would be fine to "grow out" in a 55g but they SHOULD outgrow this tank. If it is one of the largest yellow tangs you've ever seen, then truly it needed a larger tank. When you see them in large long tanks, you see why, IMO.
So to me it is not a question of can you have a yellow tang. I think you can have one for a short period, but understand that they really need and deserve a larger tank. Other fish are more territorial and don't swim around all that much, such as the clown. Several other smaller species of fish do fine as well. If you want a nice yellow fish, try a lemonpeel or yellow dwarf angel...perfectly suited for this size tank. There are a lot of fish suitable.
But these arguments get no where because they are either or and a lot of

"I have a yellow tang in my nano tank and it is fine so there" and

"no no no never never never." Well, people come on here to share their opinions which is fine but do it productively or just agree to disagree. I'm definitely getting a real short fuse, which is pretty obvious

Sorry to be blunt but we need to focus a bit more.
Let's just work on providing productive answers.
Yes, this effectively did restart the tank and it is not uncommon.
WHY, by chance, are you worried about bristleworms? Traditionally people don't like them but they are not an issue. In fact, they are scavengers, and the basic solution when you have a lot is to cut back on feeding an nutrients in the tank. That is usually what it is a sign of.
No, I would not mix the sand and crushed coral. It will be a problem. Crushed coral, IMO needs to be vacuumed so mixing it with sand is a problem.
What has your typical maintenance plan been? How have your nitrates been? What are your specific parameters like pH and alkalinity? What sort of circulation do you have (total GPH) and where are they pointing? How old is your light bulb? How often do you clean your mechanical filter? These are all critical in trying to address your algae problem.

 

[mrmaroon]

At the certain risk of people calling me rude, IMO you need to buy a good book and read it. While you may put a tang in the tank, certianly don't put in two. And if you ammonia and nitrates are fine, you should not be getting the slime. Are you using RO water? You could have a phosphate problem, but my guess is that you may have had too many fish in the tank and were perhaps feading too much. Your filter may not have been keeping up.

 

[mikeyjer]

I definatelly agree with ophiua's post!!!!!! It was a very clear statement!!!

To the orginal poster, the only thing I would ask is what type of water are you using? Tap should not be used and it will cause algae problems!!! Use RO and or RO/DI water for top offs and to make salt mixes with. It was a very bad idea by power washing with tap water, that's where your die off was coming from. Different methods works for different folks, you may get some conflicting advice. IMO, one juvenile tang may be kepted in a tank your size without a problem, but as it grows, it should move into a larger tank. Two tangs should not be kept in this size tank. Anything that works for you, go for it, don't always go by other's comments. Good Luck!!! :happyfish

 

[salty444]

Thanks for the replies.
I used tap water to refill my tank. It is town water and I realize that is not the best idea but I will top it off with bottled water. Is it ok to use DI water? I have unlimited supply of DI water. I am going to be upgrading to a new tank as soon as my house is completed. I am hoping for at least a 80G tank.. Hopefully a corner tank or a bow front. I will fill that with sand only but for the time being I am leaving that CC in with the sand.
as far as this tang issue is concerned. I had that yellow tang for 7 years and he was definitely the largest yellow tang I knew of. I only had 2 fish in there so essentially it was his own personal tank. He swam around just fine. I would not hesitate to put 3 or 4 in there right now.. But for now I will just throw my tomato clown back in and see how he does.
BTW,, This is a great site and I have learned more in the past 4 nights than 6 yrs of visiting with the local fish store.

thanks again.

 

[ophiura]

I can only tell you from experience that it would be a mistake to put 3 or 4 tangs in that tank, especially all the same. I've seen about 18 purple tangs put into a 3500g tank and they tore each other to bits. They are not all that different. They are a "aggressive" fish when it comes to a heirarchy. In a small tank maybe they wouldn't because they would be so stressed and cramped that it prevents them showing their normal behaviors. This is why they look fine at an LFS in small quarters...and they are not there long enough (or alive long enough) to really get comfortable and behave normally.

I dunno. If that doesn't bother you then I guess there is no issue. People do it for sure. You can't convince everyone, only share what you've seen or believe in terms of providing minimum care for these animals. I'll hope you will consider it, but apart from that, its your tank and your decision to make.