Fish beneficial to reef?

[JAMSOURY]

How beneficial are fish to a reef tank? How much are they needed vs a reef tank without fish?

 

[ScottR]

How beneficial are fish to a reef tank? How much are they needed vs a reef tank without fish?

I’ll weigh in. I had fish in my tank. I went fallow (have lots of inverts and still fed them and my LPS. Mostly frozen and reef roids) for a couple of months or so. Little algae growth. Phosphates were low. Nitrates were about 20, so a little bit higher. I added 3 blue chromis and had algae start to come back. My hammers looked so much more alive. My torches started coming out more. I swear my xenia started growing before my own eyes. Phosphates went up slightly. Nitrates went down - I attribute this to probably the fish pushing the nitrifying bacteria into gear.

You don’t need fish. But IMO, if you get the right type and your bioload is in check, they keep the tank happier. This is only my experience and I’m sure it’s different from everyone. Some fish nip at corals, knock them down, host in them even. Picking the right kind, size and amount would be key.

 

[ZoWhat]

CB Butterflies are super beneficial bc their long snouts pick at LR and clear out baby pest including Aiptasia

Tangs are super beneficial bc they graze on newly formed algae that builds on LR

Lawnmower blennies keep GHA in check

Orange Diamond Gobies eat the algae off the sand by scooping sand in their mouths, scraping algae inside their mouth fir food, then spit sand back out. They're the Rumbas of the sandbed.

Soooooo.... corals thrive when pests, Aiptasia and algae are in check. Algae alone ROBS SW nutrients away from corals. Fish that consume algae are benefiting coral growth



.

 

[JAMSOURY]

Cool, thanks for the write up guys!

Going to go fallow for a little bit, just wondering how much it’ll take a toll on my coral

 

[o2manyfish]

Fish are pooping - which is the nutrients that feed your corals. No Nutrients -- No pretty colors, no happy growth.

Dave B