Fish for large but narrow aquarium

[AaronF]

I am in the planning stages for my 225 gallon aquarium. Dimensions are 96” long, 30” high, and 18” wide. Looking solely at the volume of the aquarium and the requirements for certain fish I could technically have larger tangs and triggers. However, since the tank is only 18” wide and those larger fish can surpass 12” I believe it would not necessarily create a healthy environment that meets their needs. What limiting factors would you take into consideration when picking fish for an aquarium with such oddball dimensions?

 

[pcon]

Thank you for responsible fish keeping! Many of the "medium" angelfish would be great, Genicanthus, most Chaetodontoplus, half the Apolemichthys, the giant Centropyge and the regal angelfish would probably be fine. There are lots of kool Anthias, like Square Spots. Then the smaller tangs. Any of the fairy and flasher wrasses, most Halichoeres. All but the Giant among the hawkfish. And some of the small Butterflies, like the burgess. lots of good options but I think you are right a 12" fish doesnt belong in an 18" front to back tank.

 

[Peace River]

I am in the planning stages for my 225 gallon aquarium. Dimensions are 96” long, 30” high, and 18” wide. Looking solely at the volume of the aquarium and the requirements for certain fish I could technically have larger tangs and triggers. However, since the tank is only 18” wide and those larger fish can surpass 12” I believe it would not necessarily create a healthy environment that meets their needs. What limiting factors would you take into consideration when picking fish for an aquarium with such oddball dimensions?

Thank you for thinking about the needs of the fish! One approach is to do a large school of smaller fish. Another approach that I have seen is to segment the tank up into sections so that there are zones that are conducive to smaller, territorial fish. Good luck!

 

[Jesterrace]

A lot of this depends on whether or not it's reef or FOWLR. For Reef, the Genicanthus Angels (ie Bellus, Swallowtail, Lamarck's) and Smaller Tangs (ie Kole, Tomini, Squaretail, Whitetail Bristletooth) should be fine. Even a Yellow Tang or Purple Tang might work in that setup. A One Spot Foxface or Foxface Lo would also be a great addition to that tank as would a few Pyramid Butterflyfish. For FOWLR the options open up considerably (ie Singapore Angel, Rock Beauty Angel, Chetodon Butterflyfish).

 

[AaronF]

Thank you for all your replies! I should add that I intend this to be a reef aquarium. Maybe SPS dominant but I haven’t fully committed to that yet.

In my previous 36 gallon softie aquarium I had just one sixline wrasse and he did a great job of removing any bristle worms that managed to move from the sump into the display. I would like to follow that same trend of being minimalistic with my approach to fish. Overstocked tanks Are frustrating to look at, especially when you can visibly see the fish being stressed.

If there are utility fish such as a foxface or a tang that would be comfortable in the environment that I am creating then I would love to have them!

 

[Angel_Anthias lover]

Bristletooth tangs like the tomini and yellow eye should be fine, there may be others aswell but im not sure

 

[Jon Fishman]

I ordered a 96 x 16 x 16 tank, so I have been asking the same type of questions you are now!

At the end of the day the corals > fish for me, and I decided on 2 flurry clowns, a sharpnose puffer, and a powder blue tang. the first 3 I already have. When I get the tang, if it becomes stressed or shows abnormal behavior, I will probably rehome it for something else to replace it.

I think pretty much any tang could live in your tank depending on your scape.