will this community work together?

[cody57]

i visited my local pet shop and the owner said these fish will live happily together. the fish i want and order of introduction: 1(flame angel and several gobbies. 2) auriga butterfly 3) naso tang 4) queen angel 5) porcupine puffer 6) volitan lion 7) snowflake eel. i wanted a humu humu trigger, but was told he wouldnt work out. i found a great price on a 120 gal tank, but i dont like their stand. does anyone know where i can find a good stand at a decent price in the chicago area? my tank will be 120-125 gal. wet/dry filter, skimmer and power heads.

 

[broncofish]

If by work together you mean die, then yeah they will be fine. Those are some pricey fish so you LFS guy saw one thing $$$$$$. Do you want to go Reef, Docile Community, Semi Aggressive Community, or Agressive?

 

[saltyshark]

That figures...I can't believe your LFS said that gobies and snowflake eels would be "just fine!" I don't think gobies were meant to be feeder fish. And that would be just the beginning of your problems. If I were you I would seriously find a new LFS.
But Anyways...
1-3 an 4-7 should be considered two different groups. 1-3 would be community fish while 4-7 would be for an aggressive or semi tank. The community fish should not be mixed with the aggressives. So now you have to decide what you want your setup to be.
HTH
SaltyShark

 

[jarvis]

Aren't porcupine puffers toxic if they die, reqireing 100% water change? I have seen some sites post this but only a few. It not as clear cut as sea apples, some spicies of nudibranch and boxfish. I am just curious because I see alot of people have them in their tank.

 

[cody57]

if i were to go w/the first three:flame angel, butterfly and naso tang, what other docile fish beside a fox face could i put with these guys. how many fish could i put in the 120gal tank? thanks for everyones advise.

 

[saltyshark]

So many choices...You could get some firefish...they are colorful, cheap, and friendly. Maybe some percs, or a royal gramma. Maybe a small school of Bangaii Cardinals. Oh...and before you go any further you have to decide if you want a reef, a fish-only, or a FOWLR like broncofish mentioned.
HTH
SaltyShark

 

[broncofish]

Originally posted by jarvis
Aren't porcupine puffers toxic if they die, reqireing 100% water change? I have seen some sites post this but only a few. It not as clear cut as sea apples, some spicies of nudibranch and boxfish. I am just curious because I see alot of people have them in their tank.
Be careful about believing everything you read. I like to consider myself pretty well read on boxfish and I can tell you that, no after a boxfsih dies you don't need to do 100% water change, hell that will probably kill more fish than the small amount of toxin they would release.

 

[jarvis]

yea I understand about being carefull about what you read. I just figured I would throw it out there and see If anyone knew anything about it. I don't have the desire to have one, but I am just curious.

 

[kspink]

Where is your LFS? I am also in the Chicago area and am starting a new system (will want to avoid that store). As for the fish stand, we have been shopping around. I will look up where the best one was for stands, but we (I should say my engineering husband) did not like the sturdiness of most stands and are now building one.

 

[cody57]

the lfs is pet paradise in downers grove. i too thought the stand included w/the tank i want is too flimsy.

 

[cody57]

actually, mercedes, i think i'm going to switch to docile fish, since i'll be able to keep more fish in my tank. havent decided on which or how many fish yet. does anyone have knowledge about the "premium live fuji rock" they sell on this site? would it be okay to add the rock in stages? my lfs sells it for $8/lb. that would be $800 for my tank. i'm in the process of buying everything except the wet/dry, which i already have. i cant lay out an extra $800 at this time. how long will 'live rock' stay live in the box shipped from this site?

 

[marinemarty]

Hi, The live rock that comes from SWF is already dying. That is why you would have to re-cure the rock before placing it in an established aquarium. If your starting a tank from new then you can place it in your tank right away. If you plan on storing the rock more creatures will die off. HTH
Martin

 

[cody57]

i was thinking, if the rock was delivered at noon and i didnt get home til 6pm or if i had to pick it up the next day at ups or fed ex., would that make a big difference?

 

[kspink]

cody,
I never really talked to anyone, but I liked pet paradise. Is that the place that offers a guarantee on their fish? There is store in Glen Ellyn that has a wide variety of stands. Scott's (sorry can't remember where that is at the moment, but it is off of 31 by the brookfield zoo) has a wide variety of stands and fish. They are always very busy. Have not talked to the people there but their fish seem to be in good condition for the most part. They also have cured live rock and invertebrates. Old Towne Aquariums (or something like that) in Chicago only sells acrylic tanks and should have a better choice of stands as well. The best LFS that we have come across is Splash of Life. It is in a little town past Aurora-known for its meat market. Can't remember the name of the town right now, sorry. It is a little shop that is only open in the evening and the weekends. They specialize in reef systems (have a really cool reef set up that is worth the trip to go and see). The owner is just starting back up again but is very friendly and knowledgeable. He has lots of live sand and rock, and as he specializes in reefs, they have lots of invertebrates. He doesn't have many fish at the moment, but they are expanding, and we are thinking of ordering our fish from him.
Good luck with the stand hunt.
Katie

 

[cody57]

thanks for the info katie. the pet paradise in d.g., il has a good variety of swf and they look in good condition, but now that i look back, they have sold me fish i shouldnt have bought. i think if you know what you want and dont rely on their advise too much, you'll be ok. thats why i'm looking for advise on this site for what fish i can have in my tank, so i wont have to rely on them. they also have lots of sw suppls. i visited a scott's fish store in westchester, on 31st st.(dont know if they are same owner). they also had lots of eqpt., but not a lot of swf. although we stopped by after hours, the owner let us in to look around, so i was kind of hurrying myself. we'll have to go back during hrs and check it out. bob

 

[kspink]

cody,
Got my stores mixed up. Never been to pet paradise. The place I was thinking of, with the fish quarantee, is in Lombard. Scott's has been hit or miss when it comes to fish, depending on when they get their shipments. They had a bunch right after Christmas. This is the place with the sting ray pond in front. They are always jam packed with people so if you want to talk to someone get there early. Splash of Life, the reef place I mentioned, is in Elburn. It is actually advertised as a pond specialty shop but the owner is starting up his reef systems again.
Katie