Don't bring your wife to the LFS

[DaughterwantsNemo]

Hey All,

I had to return my skunk cleaner as I caught it stalking my little clown on many occasions in the evening. I over fed the tank with some frozen food which kept the shrimp busy and most of all, away from the little clown. The clown is 1/3 the size of the shrimp.

At the LFS, my Wife and 2 yr old went crazy over the selection of colors and variety of fish available. "I want that one" "Neemmmo" "Marlin" "Look at that one" Please remember I have an 8 Gal BioCube.

After an hour of listening to multiple sales reps saying "No, this fish is to big, this fish is to aggressive, you only have 10 lbs live rock"..... I ended up trading 1 skunk shrimp for a Yellow Tang and a cleaner wrasse.

Yes I know the fish are too big for this tank. However, I have to live with the my wife and daughter. That being said.

How do I maintain a proper tank with these two new fish?

How often should I water change?

How often should I feed them?

What would be the next size tank I should be upgrading to as my wife wants Discus fish?


Thanks

 

[pat8you]

I can understand your situation but unfortuanly i don't have much good news for you.

How do I maintain a proper tank with these two new fish?

It is not going to be possible to properly maintain and 8 gallon tank with the fish you have in it now. Cleaner wrasse are a difficult fish in any tank because they can be such picky eaters. They have a poor survival rate in general. Your best option is to try frozen mysis or brine with this fish to see if you can get it to eat. Adding garlic can sometime also encourage them as well. Let us know how your doing with this guy and we will do our best to help. The tang is just really going to be stressed in this tank. Yellow tangs need a minimum of a 4' tank. They are very active swimmers and need a lot of room to keep happy.

How often should I water change?

With the amount of fish you have in there now you would need to do them quite often i would think to keep your nitrate levels down. Once a week minimum. Probably 15%

How often should I feed them?

I would do every other day. About what can be eaten in a minute or two.

What would be the next size tank I should be upgrading to as my wife wants Discus fish?

Discus are freshwater fish. As i said before to keep a yellow tang happy you would need a 4' (75,90,120tall) tank min.

I don't want this reply to come off as me scolding you because that is not my intention. I'm sure you were only basing decisions off of what you were told by LFS employees and a pressuring wife and daughter. The reality of this situation is you really need to return those two fish or go out and buy a significantly larger tank and start it cycling it almost immediatly. If you return them send me a PM and i'm sure i can help you find some fish that will keep the family happy and the fish in a good home.

Just remember... don't shoot the messenger.

 

[Durvish]

I don't want this reply to come off as me scolding you because that is not my intention. I'm sure you were only basing decisions off of what you were told by LFS employees and a pressuring wife and daughter. The reality of this situation is you really need to return those two fish or go out and buy a significantly larger tank and start it cycling it almost immediatly. If you return them send me a PM and i'm sure i can help you find some fish that will keep the family happy and the fish in a good home.

A look on the brighter side would be this is an absolutely perfect excuse (provided by the women of the family!) to get that big tank you have always wanted!

 

[pat8you]

Haha very true. This would make for an excellent pitch as to why you need a bigger tank.

 

[iDream]

i wouldnt even recommend a yellow tang for a 4' tank, but thats just IMO i tend to be a bit safe on that side, but i overstock, so whatever lol. the tang unfortunately will not do very well for any length of time in that tank

and like pat said, discus are freshwater, and they also need larger tanks

 

[Brad.Sedore]

and i thought i was bad for silly buys. That tang will not last long at all in that tank. minimum 100 gallon tank for the tang..for the size of that tang right now you could probably get along with a 40 gallon extra long but that would just be a short time food and you would be able to have swimming room for the guy. in teh end id go for at least a 120. your looking at at least 1500 or so to set up a proper tank for these fish

or just take the wrath and take your fish back

 

[DaughterwantsNemo]

Thanks for being so understanding. I should have included that I knew Discus are freshwater, however, that example was specific for size and style preference.

I told my wife that she will have the pleasure of reading all your posts as she has imposed her opinion on my tank. She actually said that the yellow tang "might" have to be returned. I will respond with the "I will get a bigger tank" line, sit back and enjoy the fireworks, lol.

The Tang and the wrasse seem to have gotten comfortable, eating and moving around uninhibited. The two are even exploring what live rock I have. EATING well too.

I am going to research larger tanks and use the 8 gal for I am not sure. Any suggestions?

 

[Brad.Sedore]

i have done seahorses in my 8 gallon. damsels, frags and a mantis all great options

 

[Brad.Sedore]

or you said you daughter wants nemos why not her own nemo tank for her room or something ... sorry for double post

 

[Zer0]

Hahaha where's the Tang Police now!? lolol i feel so bad for that tang lol. Sorry it's just funny. A tang in an 8G biocube? That's hilarious.

It's gonna die bro. And probably sooner then later. Not to be a jerk, but the first thing you'll most likely start to see is white spots all over the fish and it hitting/scraping itself all over your rocks. If your tank doesn't crash before then.

 

[DaughterwantsNemo]

Thanks for all your helpful hits. I am going see if I can convert an old freshwater tank into a saltwater tank. As for a private Nemo tank for my daughter, that was the plan, until I didn't follow rule number one, say it with me now, "Don't bring your wife to the LFS"

How did seahorses do in the biocube? Check out ocean riders. They are located in Hawaii.

 

[Brad.Sedore]

you need to be really dedicated to keeppp seahorses. constant checking of perameters you need to keep the heater away from them as they tend to hook on it and cook themselves. you likely could pull it off but its tough

 

[iDream]

i wouldnt suggest horses to a beginner SW aquarist. though a mantis shrimp may be a scary option for your daughter, they are very cool inverts, never owned one, but seen plenty of videos etc.

the single clownfish is a good idea as well

 

[DaughterwantsNemo]

I wouldn't begin to entertain sea horses. Not yet anyways. My wrasse has officially disappeared. I am not sure where this guy set up shop, but we have not seen him swimming about for a few hrs now.

We checked the usual hiding spot in the live rock, but no wrasse. The clown and tang are still in the open and exploring. I hope not to have some hitch hiker that I did not know about lurking in the rocks.

FYI - I found a used
75 Gal tank with live rock and all equip $375.00
46 Gal all equip no rock - $550.00
25 Gal tank with live rock and all equip $400.00

Oh the options

 

[tjm80]

I wouldn't begin to entertain sea horses. Not yet anyways. My wrasse has officially disappeared. I am not sure where this guy set up shop, but we have not seen him swimming about for a few hrs now.

We checked the usual hiding spot in the live rock, but no wrasse. The clown and tang are still in the open and exploring. I hope not to have some hitch hiker that I did not know about lurking in the rocks.

FYI - I found a used
75 Gal tank with live rock and all equip $375.00
46 Gal all equip no rock - $550.00
25 Gal tank with live rock and all equip $400.00

Oh the options

There's only one option if you want to keep the tang. Conveniently, it's the cheapest/best deal you listed.

 

[Mitchell0605]

Sadly I agree with Kev.

I'd return it today. Now. Please.

It won't survive long enough to be put in the big tank if you get it. Ask your LFS to hold it.

The 75g is the only choice that can support a Yellow Tang so go with that.

 

[Brad.Sedore]

Your wrasse in more than likely in your sand bed.. if you spooked him or the bull in the extremely small china shop did (yellow tang in an 8 gal LOL) he will take off quick and burry himself.. just leave him be for now you will see him swimming around later today or tomorow

 

[Mitchell0605]

Or he jumped. They are know for that.