Stock List

[jumbaaa]

Hi ,
so for free so far i have gotten 100 lbs of live rock , a 10 gallon for a refugium, and a 60 gallon tank with a stand
the live rock is in a friends refugium right now getting seeded.
My current time table (though it is flexible)
is to SLOWLY build this tank into a healthy, thriving reef tank.
I am planning on 18 months before its where I want it to be.
Going slow for 2 reasons.
1) want to do it right
and 2 (and more importantly)
Funds can be somewhat tight at times

So my question is this with this in mind what livestock lists would be something to look at
and also what kind of time table to add them into the tank am I looking at
(like which order)
Thanks

 

[PrettyFishies]

It totally depends on what you like - color, areas of activity, must have species...

I think you should do some research on the fish and look at people's tanks in YouTube then build your own list and come back for comparability feedback.

You'll inevitable see some fish you really like and while you cant have em all, you should be okay for a good number.

As for order, I think you add most peaceful to most aggressive. Doesn't always work out that way. Normally, people add their cleanup crew right after the cycle (fishless) to get some activity.

 

[joy13]

There is a serious problem with looking at peoples stocking on youtube most are way overstocked or stocked with fish that are to big for their tank. Try to stay way from specialized eaters like the copper band or mandarin. Pick one fish you really want and plan your stocking around that. Decide which fish are available and are compatible with it and go from the most peaceful to most aggressive keeping in mind every fish varies somewhat.

 

[jumbaaa]

The three fish I really liked was the clown, the six lined wrasse and the manderin. Why not a manderin And what fish would pair well with a clown and the wrasse

 

[PrettyFishies]

The three fish I really liked was the clown, the six lined wrasse and the manderin. Why not a manderin And what fish would pair well with a clown and the wrasse

Ok, so here's the fun part where we tell you that you can't have what you want and why - in some cases.

Clowns are great and you can definitely house them in much smaller tanks. I would recommend a mated pair (or two juries where one is larger than the other). I have 2 semi-picassos and 2 black and whites in my 125.

The 6 line Is a beauty and very active fish. Here's the issue. They hunt micro fauna and will eat bristleworms. They do eat pellets and flake food as well. So, I would prefer adding to an established tank as I did so you can increase the food sources but if yours eat prepared food, you're good.

Mandarins need copepods to survive. You cannot add a mandarin for probably 6 months and even then, it's no guarantee. One exception I have seen in my experience is if you can find an ORA mandarin that's acclimated to prepared or even live foods like mysis. You'd need to target feed, but if they're already acclimated to taking food it's a diff situation than the norm.

I have a sixline and lost a mandarin even though I didn't add for 7 mos and have a fuge. Either he was a dud or I didn't have as much copepods as I thought.

Have you considered a goby?

 

[jumbaaa]

Can u have both a gobbie and a manderin ? Something about them always attracted me

 

[joy13]

A sixline and clown combination is a good start for a 60 gallon tank. They are both great to watch but the clown will probably be more personal when it gets to learn who feeds them.

A mandarin usually only live 2 or 3 yearsi if they eat prepared food in most tanks which is a very shorten lifespan for them. Even if you get one that is trained to eat prepared food they still might go back to eating pods and starve to death when they run out of food. Gobys usually a good fish to have some like the sand sifting ones don't have a long lifespan in our tanks as well because of the food situation. Other gobys like the wheeler and neon .are great in the tank. Here is a list of goby Gobies for Sale: Goby Fish Species Including Shrimp Gobies there are a couple that are cold water so you will probably want to stay away from them.

 

[jumbaaa]

Ok so I was thinking
Standard clean up crew
2 black white clown
2 true clown
1 six lined wrasse
1 goby ( not sure the type yet)
When I have the lighting right I want to add an anonmie

Any other suggestions?

 

[jumbaaa]

Then eventually some Coral

 

[PrettyFishies]

Two pairs of clowns may be an issue. Your best bet is to get them together and really small. No guarantees.

Watchman gobies pair up with pistol shrimp, so that's a good combo. Make sure your rock is on the glass and sand over that. Pistols will borrow and dislodge rockwork. So will sand sifting gobies like Diamonds <I have one>.

Your tank is too small for a large tang but you could do a small one like Kole, Scopas or Bristlenose. They get about 5-6".

I would get a cleaner shrimp once tank is stable and nitrates are under control. I believe in working fish and inverts.

The anemone does have to do with light, but more about water parameter stability. No matter what you do, you will have fluctuations in the first year that could kill your nem. You shouldn't even think about for the first 10 months min.

 

[jumbaaa]

I was going to add the clowns and then slowly add one fish at a time.... My plan is that it is going to take months still for the live rock and the like to be where I want it . I aa firm believer that I need to go slow and let nature do what works.i was thinking in terms of shrimp, 2 or 3 pepermint shrimp

 

[Nu-Nu the eel]

Add shrimp first and the most non agressive fist first as well. Add the most agressive last, so if its a community reef tank your clows will probably be the most agressive.