Yellow Tang in a 55 gallon tank?

[smork81]

Originally Posted by Garfunkle
I have taken all of your opinions into consideration and have decided to not get a tang. BUT, do you ever wonder where the tangs (and other saltwater fish) go that are at your local pet store? My guess is most of the saltwater fish go into 30 gallon or less aquariums not suitable for ANY living thing that are usually bought for children because of Finding Nemo. On Numerous occasions, I have been in my lfs while kids run around asking if they can put a "Nemo" in there fish tank, and in some cases a fish bowl. I know that the aquarium specialists will not sell a fish if they know it will not be given a proper home, but what about all the parents that buy a "Nemo" for little Suzy just to get them to shut up. To me, this is the immoral side to this hobby, not raising a juvenile tang in an adequate tank until it outgrows it. I have a friend with a 180 gallon tank that trades with me all the time and I am sure he can house a tang when it is too large for my 55 gallon tank. The bottom line is, what I was going to do was not immoral at all, because the fish would be given a MUCH larger home after I raised it to a decent size. Would all you dedicated Tangiacs out there rather see me raise a Yellow Tang baby in a 55g reef tang with proper care, or a small child feed it bread in a 10 gallon tank until it turns belly up? Just think about what I said, it makes sense.

 

[ophiura]

Originally Posted by kalied20
You know most people on here that talk about not have a tang....DON'T HAVE ONE and have never studied to be a marine biologist. :
Sorry but this sort of thing annoys me though it is common in threads. Why on earth would studying MARINE BIOLOGY have anything to do with this question?

I have studied marine biology. I have no idea why people think this has anything to do with anything in this hobby frankly. People are seriously misinformed, IMO. If anything studying the ichthyology bit of a marine bio course would tell you these are big active fish, therefor....
BTW, there are a whole lot of marine biologists who would see this hobby shut down ASAP.
A degree in marine biology has NOTHING to do with whether you can or can not have an opinion on what fish to keep in what size tank. If that is the starting point, then there would be very very few people participating on this board.
Look, there is one SIMPLE fact. These fish SHOULD outgrow a 55g tank within a year or two at most. If your fish has not, then something is wrong. Either you can't tell it doesn't belong there anymore, or it is unhealthy because it has been stunted.
Few people really share their failures - a couple of people presenting their short term success (yes, short term) is not necessarily the big picture.
For those who want to tell everyone to shove it, frankly, that is fine if done politely. It is your right to believe that. If you don't particularly care what anyone else thinks, or what happens to fish or your investment, so be it. But if you choose to share this decision, yes, people will disagree. That is what these forums are about.
DO listen to the arguments, and DO make an informed decision. Long term these fish do not do well in small tanks. Just because it works sometimes for some people for a certain period (BTW, lots of things work in the short term...success over YEARS is what is really meaningful) does not mean it will work for you, in your situation....even for a few weeks.
I certainly do not consider myself a member of the tang police - in fact, many do annoy me with the no way, no how, never answers. But I am equally annoyed by those who thumb their nose at anyone who disagrees or shares a contrary point of view.
Do what you want. It is your tank, and your right, but it may not be the most responsible thing. What is the balance? IMO, your primary responsibility is to make an informed decision, and accept the consequences of that decision.

 

[teen]

garfunkle:
so because your tank that is too small, is bigger than the rest of the small tanks, it makes it o.k? im not following you.

 

[teen]

Originally Posted by ophiura
I certainly do not consider myself a member of the tang police - in fact, many do annoy me with the no way, no how, never answers. But I am equally annoyed by those who thumb their nose at anyone who disagrees or shares a contrary point of view.
if everyone would just give a straight up "no" for an answer, eventually people would understand 55 gallons is too small for a tang. the people who say "the fish may be o.k. for a year or two" are the people who fuel the fire and put the thought that it will be "o.k." for a year or two, when in reality, it wont be o.k. people who ask this question are normally new to the hobby, so its hard for them to make a decision on there own. obviously they've done some research to contemplate putting a tang in a 55 gallon, so they come to us the more "experienced" hobbyists, and all we have to do is answer there question honestly.

 

[garfunkle]

Originally Posted by teen
garfunkle:
so because your tank that is too small, is bigger than the rest of the small tanks, it make it o.k? im not following you.

This may sound wierd...I see my tank as a "safe house" for the fish at a local pet store (not to be named) because of the type of buyers I always see in there. I have NEVER seen a serious hobbyist purchase a fish from this place and I am in there at least twice a week. The way I see it is, if I can get a baby Tang that will either die in the store tank, which is a 20 gallon, or it will be sold to an inexperienced person/child. I am an animal lover, so I would never house an animal unless I felt sure I could take care of it successfully and adequately throughout it's life. If I ever get a Tang for my 55g, rest assured it will not be in there for more than a year at most. Would you, as an experienced aquarium keeper rather see a transfer at 1 year or a death at 3 months. Like I said, it just makes sense.

 

[ronnie-k]

i have a powder brown in a 55 and he does just fine , the others get a little freaked when he takes off....lol

 

[ctkecth]

I don't know a ton about fish, but I am learning, and as I move into my 90 I look to these boards as a help. I also look at this site and the fish they offer. I look at other sites and what they offer. It bothers me that SWF.com lists many tangs as 90 gallon minimum tank size. I put this in a thread a day or so ago, and got a response that said that this is the size aquarium for a juvenile size, which is what we buy. It seems to me that if Tangs should not be in anything other than a 125 or larger than that should be what is listed. It makes no sense to me to list the 90 as minimum tank size- obviously the fish is going to grow. The people who shop here don't always know a lot about fish (me), and they put some trust in the people selling the product- a great deal more than lfs- a place I will never buy fish. I want a tang because I like them, I like the way the look, but if I can't house it in a 90 as they age, then let me know that on the site before I consider shelling out the money in a hobby that is as expensive as it gets.

 

[wangotango]

***) i have an idea where this is going...

a lot of people have brought up a lot of good points. will a yellow tang survive in a 55 gallon, yes for a while, but it will outgrow the tank. tangs are open water swimmers and dont "cling" inside the reef like smaller fish. take it from me. ive gone through two yellow tangs before in my 55. both of which got very thin and died, despite the nori i added. do i like tangs? absolutley, but i know that i cant have one. there are plenty of other beautiful fish out there that are more suitable for a 55, like a small school of chromis, that would be nice.
-Justin

 

[garfunkle]

Originally Posted by WangoTango
***) i have an idea where this is going...

a lot of people have brought up a lot of good points. will a yellow tang survive in a 55 gallon, yes for a while, but it will outgrow the tank. tangs are open water swimmers and dont "cling" inside the reef like smaller fish. take it from me. ive gone through two yellow tangs before in my 55. both of which got very thin and died, despite the nori i added. do i like tangs? absolutley, but i know that i cant have one. there are plenty of other beautiful fish out there that are more suitable for a 55, like a small school of chromis, that would be nice.
-Justin

What about a Foxface? This site says minimum tank size is 55g.

 

[triga22]

No I wouldnt do a Fox. They need at LEAST 75 and thats pushing it.

 

[garfunkle]

Originally Posted by TriGa22
No I wouldnt do a Fox. They need at LEAST 75 and thats pushing it.

I just read three different articles and all of them from reputable sites. All of them said that a Foxface could live nicely in a 4' long aquarium, and I believe my 55g is exactly that! I am going to get one, because numerous people with years experience and ownership of these have said they need at least a 55g. If something were to happen with it's health due to the tank size, I will gladly donate it to a friend of mine's 180g reef tank.

 

[julie853]

Just my two cents allthought not a SW fish think I'll share I purchased a tiny one inch oscar FW fish thinking when it got bigger it would be fine in a 55 it out grew the 55 in 7 months then I went an 80 he out grew that at 18 months then I went to 125 he out grew that after being in it for about a year he now has a 225 gallon and is still growing.If I knew then what I know now i would not have purchased him but he's my reasponibilty so I'm giving him what he needs.
If the tang is going to out grow the 55 my opion would be if your not going to upgrade dont do it.
On a side note I'm using the other tanks for my SW fish if not for my oscar I would never had started a saltwater aquarium.

 

[teen]

Originally Posted by Garfunkle
I just read three different articles and all of them from reputable sites. All of them said that a Foxface could live nicely in a 4' long aquarium, and I believe my 55g is exactly that! I am going to get one, because numerous people with years experience and ownership of these have said they need at least a 55g. If something were to happen with it's health due to the tank size, I will gladly donate it to a friend of mine's 180g reef tank.

you'd be better off putting the yellow tang in the 55.
if you want a tang, why dont you buy a tank that will hold a tang?
i want to keep corals, i buy the lighting the corals need. i dont say, ill hold onto this coral until it bleeches, then ill put it in a friends tank because he has better lighting.
is this not the same?

 

[triga22]

Teen. Dont bother. He wont take our advice. Just let him get it. Couple months down the road you will hear a thread about his foxface being sick or too big. We just cant win.. Its sad

 

[teen]

garfunkle, what you said in post #25, is pretty much BS.
im trying to help you out bro. im giving you sound advice here, and your just throwing it out the window.

 

[garfunkle]

Originally Posted by TriGa22
Teen. Dont bother. He wont take our advice. Just let him get it. Couple months down the road you will hear a thread about his foxface being sick or too big. We just cant win.. Its sad

Have you owned or currently own a Foxface?

 

[alyssia]

Originally Posted by Ronnie-K
i have a powder brown in a 55 and he does just fine , the others get a little freaked when he takes off....lol
How does a Powder Brown take off in a 55?

 

[triga22]

Yes I have owned a foxface. In a 75 gallon in NY he did fine for 3 years until a fish was sick and the tank crashed. I knew from his size that I would never put him in anything smaller.

 

[triga22]

Originally Posted by alyssia
How does a Poweder Brown take off in a 55?
Thats a good question.

 

[teen]

Originally Posted by alyssia
How does a Powder Brown take off in a 55?
lol, its more of an attempt.