When it comes time to stock

[kdogg85]

Hopefully the cycle won't take too long, when it comes time to get fish, is there a certain order I should get them in?

Here's the list
1 yellow tang
2 ocellaris clowns
1 flame angel
1 pearlscale butterfly
1 either firefish or purple firefish goby(do they sift sand?) if not then what would be a good sand sifting goby?

The cuc will be first in the tank(75g) before any fish

 

[fishboy444]

I heard that the tang can get a bit nasty and you should add him close to last or last.Sleeper goby maybe?

 

[melosu58]

I agree add the tang last. Attitude always goes last.

 

[kdogg85]

Ok, I could see adding the tang last. Is that the only concern you guys see? If so, then I believe the pearlscale will go first, from what I've seen they are finicky and I believe it would be easier to deal with him by himself. And from what I've read I believe I will go with a 2 spot goby for sand sifting duties. Do you guys think a purple firefish goby will get along with a 2 spot or am I asking for trouble?

 

[melosu58]

1 either firefish or purple firefish goby(do they sift sand?) if not then what would be a good sand sifting goby?

They do not sift sand. If you want a good sifter I would get a bullet goby. That`s all they do is sift sand.

 

[AdamHorton]

I have a firefish goby and a 2-spot goby. No problems, since they don't really hang out in the same area and look totally different. The 2-spot goby sifts sand. People warned me that they were sensitive but I haven't had any trouble with him, but if you want to be safe, you can try a Watchman goby also.

 

[austinsdad]

The two spots don't have a history of living too long in my experience. never seen anyone with older two-spots either.

 

[kdogg85]

I would like to keep a 3-4'' goby for sifting sand. The biggest fish I will have will be the yellow tang(for some reason the more I look at them the more they grow on me.)I'm going to skip the pearlscale for now due to some of the articles on them being so finicky they will starve themselves. Maybe one day after some more hands on experience I will get one, but for now I think I might get some sort of blenny or cardinal.

 

[AdamHorton]

The two-spot is considerably smaller than most other sand-sifting gobies I've seen, mine is about 2", though he's kind of young, where watchman gobies are around 3-4".

austinsdad - it was you who warned me about the two-spot gobies in the other thread. Granted I've only had him for a couple of months but mine is doing fine so far, I hope that keeps up.

 

[austinsdad]

I do love those little guys. Can't say I won't try them again.

I do believe they'll get no bigger than that 2".

 

[melosu58]

I would like to keep a 3-4'' goby for sifting sand.

The bullet goby is what you want then.

 

[austinsdad]

The ONLY caution I have with the larger sand sifters such as the bullet goby is that having coral at the bottom of the tank could be covered from time to time with the sand dunes they tend to make.

 

[kdogg85]

I'm not going to have any corals as of yet. Don't have the experience. If one mysteriously pops up then so be it. I looked up the bullet and seen it has not been known to go above 4.5''. Plus it looks really cool, and seems pretty tough. From what I've seen and read, if I can keep a snail alive, I should be able to keep ''most'' any fish alive. I'm not going to have crabs is the main reason for a sand sifter. Also I don't believe a purple firefish should cause problems as they do not look similar. Could I be wrong?

 

[kdogg85]

Well guys I have good news and a question. According to the api lquid test kit my ammonia is 0, nitrite is zero, and nitrate is between 0-5 ppm(color was slightly orange but not as orange as the 5 ppm indicator. Should I be worried at this low of a nitrate reading or could this be normal? Doesn't seem like there was much if any die-off. When I begin stocking, I planned on going in 6 week intervals. CUC will be 1st then the first fish will be introduced 6 weeks later, I will still be testing but is this an overall good rule of thumb for stocking?

 

[2002 FLHR]

I have a blue dot goby and he sifts sand all day long... actually moves it from place to place i even have a patch with no sand at all... i probably need to deepen my sand... anyways he is really cool to watch..

 

[kdogg85]

I was told to wait 2-3 months before getting a sand sifting goby, to let some detritus build up then get the goby. I did get some snails today. 2 mexican turbos, 3 nassarious, 2 astereas. Everybody but the 2 astereas seems to be moving all over the place. Are astereas not very active or do I have a problem?