What to stock a 23 Gal tank with

[jackson_uk]

Hey all
I have been keeping tropical fish for 9 years (im 16 now) and have been keeping Discus succesfully for 2 years...i figured its time to bring on the salt!
I have a 22 Gallon cubed tank, filtration includes a standard Jewel internal and a Fluval 204 external; both combined are doing roughly 180GPH so i think thats enough Lights include 2 15W tubes
I work at a LFS and know ALOT about Tropical fish so i know about water management and stuff...but im not sure what fish i could put in, and if corals and inverts can go in. I would definatly Like:-
a Clownfish (pref Maroon)
a regal tang
madarinfish
Powder blue tang (not if i have regal. Powder blue prob too big but worth askin)
Starfish
Cleaner Shrimp
Royal Gramma
Flame dwarf Angel
i know all of these cant go in together, just wondering whats possible.
Thanks in advance
Jackson

 

[jim672]

Jackson_UK,
Welcome to the Board!
Your 22 gallon tank is too small for any kind of tang and I wouldn't put an angel in there either....even a dwarf like the flame you mention. Angels need lots of grazing room that they wouldn't get in a 22.
The "rule of thumb" used in sw is 1 inch of fish per 5 gallons of water. That limits you to around 4 inches of fish. The maroon clown and royal gramma you mentioned would be good choices and would about max you out.
You'll need to upgrade your lighing if you want to keep corals.
Good luck with your new tank!
Jim

 

[jackson_uk]

that Rule of thumb is very rough though because it doesnt account for Filtration, feeding patterns and maintainance; and when the filtration is filtering all the water over 8 times in an hour then i would have thought it would allow more room for fish.
I was thinking in the tank:
Maroon Clown
Royal Gramma
a few cleaner shrimp and hermit crabs.
possibly mandarin
and for the corals i'd try to upgrade but definatly change bulbs to ones especially for corals (like Tritons Blue moon)
that sound ok?

 

[jim672]

Jackson_UK,
Agreed that the rule of thumb is rough....that's what a rule of thumb is....an average, an approximation, etc. No amount of filtration or water movement will create enough swimming room for a tang in a 22 gallon tank.
Anyway, about the mandarin. Great looking little fish but difficult to keep. A very high percentage of them die of starvation because most won't eat anything other than the pods that are found in the tank substrate. If your lfs has one that YOU'VE SEEN eating prepared foods it would make an interesting addition.
Lighting for corals isn't just about color spectrum but also intensity. Adding a blue actinic bulb is a good start. Another "rule of thumb" is the watts per gallon measurement. Corals that can thrive in "low light" environments, like most mushrooms, can usually live at around 2, or so, watts per gallon. I've just upgraded my lighting and right now I'm at over 8 watts per gallon. Before you spend more money on 15 watt bulbs you might want to investigate lighting upgrades. You may be able to find Power Compact (PC) lights that will fit your tank and add lots of "watts per gallon".
Good questions. Keep them coming!!!
JIm

 

[jackson_uk]

Its a Jewel Tank so it would prob have to be custom made cuz the exact dimensions of my lid are 55cm x 41cm so will me hard. Also what about the Inverts? could i have the ones listed? and maybe id have a Goby or Blennie instead of the Mandarin....Any thoughts?

 

[jim672]

There are retro-fit kits available. I don't know if any will fit your current hood but if you are considering keeping corals, it would be a good idea to look into one. If you're not going with corals, the blue -tint light will make the colors of your fish look nicer, IMO.
I don't believe our hosts here on the Board sell lighting so I think it's okay for me to provide some sources for you: reeffanatic.com; aquariumlighting.com; marinelights.com. Lots of others.
Sorry I didn't answer the invert question.....check out the inverts offered here for lots of ideas. Hermit crabs are very good to have in a clean-up crew and snails will help keep your glass clean of algea. Shrimp are fun to watch.....but some, like the camel-back are pretty timid. Blennies are scavengers, too. All these scavengers require an established tank.....there needs to be enough food available for them so they don't starve.
Most gobies like to dig.....so a sand bed of some depth is required to keep one of them happy.
I hope this is helping some........
Jim

 

[jackson_uk]

i'll look into those PC things, do you know if they're availible in the UK? also how much depth of sand do they need?
I appreciate all of this help

 

[fshhub]

cleaner shrimp and hermits should be fine, especially if you go with the normal reef hermits like blue legs or scarletes(small guys)
other than that, i will not step on toes, it has been well said, only to add to the rule of thumb, although a rule of thumb exceeding thes limits is possible with many species, but not to an extreme and 8x per hour is not an awful lot in sw tanks, i reccommend at least that as a minimum, ours is just a couple of gallons shy of 20x
and a scooter blenny may be a good fish, often they are easier to get to take to food than mandarins, sometimes you just have to be sure you get the food down to it is all
4 inches of sand
and i cannot see why PClighting is not available,and if not it is available through mail order
HTH and welcome aboard, it is a very rewarding hobby i am sure you will love it

 

[jackson_uk]

ok then, no corals for me then
Im only 16 and from work i get £140 a month (Roughly $200)
Hows this Sound for my set up...
1 x Maroon Clown
1 x Chromis xanthurus
2 x Hermits
2 x Cleaner shrimp
1 x Starfish (whats the smallest variety?)
Any thoughts for that? and how much LR and LS will i need?
I really Appreciate all of this help

 

[wingnut]

1 x Maroon Clown
1 x Chromis xanthurus
10 x Hermits
1 x Cleaner shrimp
1 x Starfish (maybe a bule)
10x turbo snails
good luck to you
20lbs+ lr 30 lbs ls

 

[jackson_uk]

I read on a website that i have to have 3-4 watts per gallon if im having live rock or sand. is that true? its a 22 gallon tank and i have 2 15W tubes that sadly i cannot upgrade. At the moment it works out a 1.36Watts Per Gallon. Could Feather dusters live in that light?
Also any other ideas of how to stock the tank? Im not sure whether to go for a:-
Chromis Xanthurus
Royal Gramma
Orange Anthias
or Cleaner Wrasse
Which would you advise?
Thanks Again!!!

 

[bang guy]

Originally posted by Jackson_UK
I read on a website that i have to have 3-4 watts per gallon if im having live rock or sand. is that true
No.
You will not be able to keep light loving animals but the rock and sand infauna will be just fine. Featherdusters actually prefer shade and don't need any light at all, just a nice current to bring by lots of micro-plankton.
Have you looked into Clown Gobies or a Barnacle Blenny instead of the Scooter Blenny? Dragonettes do best in large well established reef tanks. They are really cool fish (my 2nd favorite) but your tank will be less than ideal for them.
Have you considered a more docile/smaller Clown like a Percula? Maroons are beautiful, but get rather large and agressive.
Just some suggestions
Guy

 

[jackson_uk]

Yeh, have thought about a Percula, so i think i'd have one of those instead of a maroon.....what about the other fish i was thinking of putting in? any comments on which i should get?
Also how long do you think it will take to cycle?