55 reef

[aquariumlover10]

In about 2 months i am starting a 55 gallon reef tank and i know that i'm goning to have 1 yellow tang, 1 or 2 fire dartfish, 2-4 occelaris clownfish,1 royal gramma, 1 brittle star, 2 skunk cleaner shrimp what is compatible with these.

 

[Tkey3425]

In about 2 months i am starting a 55 gallon reef tank and i know that i'm goning to have 1 yellow tang, 1 or 2 fire dartfish, 2-4 occelaris clownfish,1 royal gramma, 1 brittle star, 2 skunk cleaner shrimp what is compatible with these.

Your limit is your size tank rather than your tank inhabitants at this point. I would say you're pretty close to your max bio load. That's almost as many fish as I have in my 180

 

[Mebbid]

Firstly, the yellow tang needs a much bigger tank. A 6 foot long tank is the minimum otherwise they will get stressed out and usually get sick from elevated stress levels causing an early death.

Having more than a single pair of clowns will result in the one pair killing off all of the others. Clowns really are huge jerks. I would just stick with the one pair.

Other fish that would work:
Fairy wrasse
Most blennies and gobies
1 chromis
Cardinal fish
Possibly a flame angel but it might nip at some corals
Tuxedo or Rock borer urchin
Assorted shrimp

I would wait until the tank is fairly well established before adding in an urchin or the brittle star so the tank can produce enough food for them.

 

[aquariumlover10]

Firstly, the yellow tang needs a much bigger tank. A 6 foot long tank is the minimum otherwise they will get stressed out and usually get sick from elevated stress levels causing an early death.

Having more than a single pair of clowns will result in the one pair killing off all of the others. Clowns really are huge jerks. I would just stick with the one pair.

Other fish that would work:
Fairy wrasse
Most blennies and gobies
1 chromis
Cardinal fish
Possibly a flame angel but it might nip at some corals
Tuxedo or Rock borer urchin
Assorted shrimp

I would wait until the tank is fairly well established before adding in an urchin or the brittle star so the tank can produce enough food for them.

Fist off you are the only person i know that thinks a yellow tang needs a 6 foot long tank i mean at the store they keep them in like little 1 foot x 1 foot tanks

 

[cgthebeast]

Stores are there to sell, not keep fish long term. I agree that a yellow tang needs more room to swim then a 55 would allow. Mebbid knows there stuff an is offering great info here.
Any way, go with only one pair of clowns or they will get territorial an bully one pair to death. There are plenty of beautiful colorful that would work, such as the flasher wrasse and Midas goby.

 

[carey]

I also agree with the above posts. A tang will need a larger tank without any doubt whatsoever.

Four clowns will kill each other at some point. I had four in my 6 foot tank and the one pair came so close to killing the other pair and this happened one day after being fine for months. So you wont know when it will happen but it will most likely happen at some point. One pair of clowns are great by themselves, you dont need four. lol

There are so many fish that are appropriate for that size tank I can't even begin to list them.

What I would suggest is that you check out Aquarium Fish: Tropical Freshwater Fish and Saltwater Fish for Home Aquariums and see what you like and right on the same page they will have the minimum tank size needed as well as any special feeding or care required.

 

[Mebbid]

Fist off you are the only person i know that thinks a yellow tang needs a 6 foot long tank i mean at the store they keep them in like little 1 foot x 1 foot tanks

I'm sorry but it's really true. I have seen a large number of people that had their tangs in too small of a tank and then died prematurely. But you don't have to believe me, go to Aquarium Fish: Tropical Freshwater Fish and Saltwater Fish for Home Aquariums and check the recommended tank sizes for different fish. That site is quite accurate with their suggestions. Plus there are many many many discussions on tank size for tangs.

I would also like to point out that fish stores follow absolutely no stocking guidelines. They generally need to keep enough stock on hand to satisfy demand which means keeping a lot of fish in too tight of a space. However these tanks receive absolutely insane amounts of care. One of my favorite LFS in town does a 20% water change daily on all of his tanks which I would assume number around 40. It's also nearly impossible to keep large fish in a tank size that they are recommended for. There just isn't enough space to do it. You also have to look at the temporary nature of the tanks for these fish, they will usually spend a couple weeks in a tank on average, or maybe up to a month or two for the more expensive ones.

 

[bettaowner]

I'd leave the tang out and go with only one pair of clownfish. A possum wrasse would look nice