Help me stock my new 75g tank

[Gribbles]

Upgrading from a 20g cube to a 75g
LPS dominant mixed reef (easier SPS, no acros)

Current inhabitants:
Clownfish pair
2x Pajama Cardinalfish
Royal Gramma
Aiptaisia FileFish
Pincushion Urchin
Cleaner Shrimp

Want to haves:
Wrasse (flasher? Lubbocks?)
Tang - Bristletooth (Two spot? Kole? Tomini?)
Some fish that perches (flame hawkfish?)
Sandsifter - (Goby of some sort? Diamond?)

I'm more looking for fish with unique personalities and utility fish.

 

[Gribbles]

Some concerns/questions I have:

Assuming I get all of the "want to haves", I obviously want to make sure the fish will get along.

Tang - I think a bristletooth would be best in this sense given the tank size. I will also love the added algae control. Which species do you think is the prettiest adult?

Wrasse - Concern here would be aggression and dominance. Also what order to add them to the tank. I do have a 3 or so inch sandbed with mostly oolite, so burying would be fine. Another big concern would be my CUC. I've read that flasher wrasses are more compatible for inverts.

Perching fish - Completely wide open on this one. I think seeing fish perch on rocks is really cool, plus a flame hawkfish is red and my little son loves red fish.

Sandsifter - A diamond watchman goby would be cool - doesn't have to be a goby though. I'm concerned about longevity with gobies. I'd also like to keep towards species that are less-known to be a huge excavator. I'll have plenty of flow, but would rather keep the turkey basting to a minimum.

Thanks for reading!

 

[squidleydidleydoo]

I'm still an aspiring reefer so I can't give much advice, but I will say that The Wrasse Guy has really detailed info on wrasses (what else lol), including things like aggression levels and mixing species. The site's been an amazing resource for me as I research for my own tank.

 

[Gribbles]

I'm still an aspiring reefer so I can't give much advice, but I will say that The Wrasse Guy has really detailed info on wrasses (what else lol), including things like aggression levels and mixing species. The site's been an amazing resource for me as I research for my own tank.

Yep! I've gone over that chart quite a bit I think I've read that the fairy wrasses are supposed to be more peaceful with snails and other cuc

The Wrasse Guy - Mixing Cirrhilabrus

Cirrhilabrus, the “Fairy Wrasses”, are one of the most elegant, active, and colorful reef fish. Their appeal in a reef tank is common to many, but not all have a well-rounded understanding of the compatibility amongst them. Enter the notion of “complexes”: groupings of very closely related species

www.thewrasseguy.com

 

[Gribbles]

Is there an order in which I would introduce the new fish? Smallest and timid first?

 

[Reeflix]

well, if you want a hawkfish, they might pick on other fish, they do best in semi aggressive inviroments, also i think you should only have 8-9 fish in this tank. i also have a 75 so i think if you want a tang that should be your last fish. if you are set on having a tang, you should get a convict tang, amazing personality! for the wrasse, i love the fairy wrasse, especially the exquisite wrasse! for sand sifters, if you dont want to turkey baster everwhere, the diamond goby is not for you. you could do a yellow watchmen and pistol shrimp, those are fun, also i love the tiger goby as well, but you could do a jester goby, they only sift about 5 grains of sand at a time though. a blenny would be a nice CUC fish as well. what i would do for your setup is, one fairy wrasse, one jester goby (they are really small though) and then a blenny. Or you could do a fairy wrasse and a watchman goby. i would and the jester goby in first if you get one, then the rest it doesnt matter. Just watch out for the gramma when you add in fish, and add the new ones in at night. Sorry for the long post!

 

[Gribbles]

well, if you want a hawkfish, they might pick on other fish, they do best in semi aggressive inviroments, also i think you should only have 8-9 fish in this tank. i also have a 75 so i think if you want a tang that should be your last fish. if you are set on having a tang, you should get a convict tang, amazing personality! for the wrasse, i love the fairy wrasse, especially the exquisite wrasse! for sand sifters, if you dont want to turkey baster everwhere, the diamond goby is not for you. you could do a yellow watchmen and pistol shrimp, those are fun, also i love the tiger goby as well, but you could do a jester goby, they only sift about 5 grains of sand at a time though. a blenny would be a nice CUC fish as well. what i would do for your setup is, one fairy wrasse, one jester goby (they are really small though) and then a blenny. Or you could do a fairy wrasse and a watchman goby. i would and the jester goby in first if you get one, then the rest it doesnt matter. Just watch out for the gramma when you add in fish, and add the new ones in at night. Sorry for the long post!

I've had the pistol shrimp and goby pair. It was super adorable the first couple of days

I'll take my chances with a goby of some sort, just thought maybe I could hedge my bet a little bit and find a species that's less prone to scattering large volumes

 

[Reeflix]

the tiger goby has a smaller mouth so not as crazy with the sand

 

[DirectCherry]

I've hear The Wrasse Guy mention that flashers have a fairly short lifespan in captivity, so he avoids them. He often expresses how great fairy wrasses are, so I'd say they are a good choice.

As far as sifters that don't scatter, Court Jester and Hector's Gobies are known to sift sand without scattering too much. I've also read that the Court Jester eats hair algae and cyano. Hector's may be the same. Keep in mind, they are smaller than a diamond goby. They may need fine sand, although, I'm not quite sure on the sand requirements. You may be able to get a pair of either and maybe some Nassarius snails for sand turnover.

My favorite, smaller Tang species is the Flame Fin Tang.

Regarding hawkfish, keep in mind they are known to eat inverts so you'll have to replace your CUC more frequently. I've read many stories of them eating Peppermint shrimp and hermit crabs. Some people have even had them eat their Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp, though others have had no issue keeping them together.

Keep in mind, I'm still an aspiring reefer. Don't have my own tank yet!

 

[Gribbles]

I've hear The Wrasse Guy mention that flashers have a fairly short lifespan in captivity, so he avoids them. He often expresses how great fairy wrasses are, so I'd say they are a good choice.

As far as sifters that don't scatter, Court Jester and Hector's Gobies are known to sift sand without scattering too much. I've also read that the Court Jester eats hair algae and cyano. Hector's may be the same. Keep in mind, they are smaller than a diamond goby. They may need fine sand, although, I'm not quite sure on the sand requirements. You may be able to get a pair of either and maybe some Nassarius snails for sand turnover.

My favorite, smaller Tang species is the Flame Fin Tang.

Regarding hawkfish, keep in mind they are known to eat inverts so you'll have to replace your CUC more frequently. I've read many stories of them eating Peppermint shrimp and hermit crabs. Some people have even had them eat their Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp, though others have had no issue keeping them together.

Keep in mind, I'm still an aspiring reefer. Don't have my own tank yet!

Ah, the flame fin is also the tomini tang? I do like their color, but I never know if the images I'm looking at are of juveniles or adults.

Do they still look really pretty as adults? I don't want it to have that plain brown form

 

[DirectCherry]

Ah, the flame fin is also the tomini tang? I do like their color, but I never know if the images I'm looking at are of juveniles or adults.

Do they still look really pretty as adults? I don't want it to have that plain brown form

I believe there are Tomini Tangs without the flame fins, but I think the Flame Fins retain that orangish coloration on their fins even as adults. However, it would be good to hear from someone with experience keeping Flame Fins as adults.

LiveAquaria says, "The Bristletooth Tomini Tang, also known as the Tomini Surgeonfish is tan combined with yellow, blue, and white highlights as a juvenile. When mature, the body color solidifies, the tail becomes blue, and the dorsal and anal fins are tipped with a golden-yellow hue."

I think the tail coloration is probably closer to white than blue as an adult, but that quote seems to suggest they keep the "flame fins" as adults.

 

[Gribbles]

Yea, I'm curious what they mean exactly as "the body color solidifies". Is that referring to the tan/brown? I'm gonna hunt down some pictures of adult tominis

 

[DirectCherry]

Yea, I'm curious what they mean exactly as "the body color solidifies". Is that referring to the tan/brown? I'm gonna hunt down some pictures of adult tominis

If you look at the Live Aquaria photo for Tomini tang, its not an adult. You can see a little more color variation in the main body and some blue striping in the dorsal and anal fins that disappear as an adult.

 

[Reeflix]

Ah, the flame fin is also the tomini tang? I do like their color, but I never know if the images I'm looking at are of juveniles or adults.

Do they still look really pretty as adults? I don't want it to have that plain brown form

When they say adult coloring the tangs start off with white bellies and as they age that disappears. They keep the white tail and orange fins.

 

[Reeflix]

Yea, I'm curious what they mean exactly as "the body color solidifies". Is that referring to the tan/brown? I'm gonna hunt down some pictures of adult tominis

just losing the tummy color and other little patches

 

[Reeflix]

I think the tail coloration is probably closer to white than blue as an adult, but that quote seems to suggest they keep the "flame fins" as adults.

they are just upselling. they are def a lot more white, but maybe some are more blue

 

[Reeflix]

I've hear The Wrasse Guy mention that flashers have a fairly short lifespan in captivity, so he avoids them. He often expresses how great fairy wrasses are, so I'd say they are a good choice.

As far as sifters that don't scatter, Court Jester and Hector's Gobies are known to sift sand without scattering too much. I've also read that the Court Jester eats hair algae and cyano. Hector's may be the same. Keep in mind, they are smaller than a diamond goby. They may need fine sand, although, I'm not quite sure on the sand requirements. You may be able to get a pair of either and maybe some Nassarius snails for sand turnover.

My favorite, smaller Tang species is the Flame Fin Tang.

Regarding hawkfish, keep in mind they are known to eat inverts so you'll have to replace your CUC more frequently. I've read many stories of them eating Peppermint shrimp and hermit crabs. Some people have even had them eat their Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp, though others have had no issue keeping them together.

Keep in mind, I'm still an aspiring reefer. Don't have my own tank yet!

hawkfish love inverts, mainly the longnose, but others will go after them. my Arc Eye ate my large shrimp! also i dont know if you set up the 75 yet, but just make sure to let it cycle before adding in the fish from the existing tank. it will help make sure the fish dont die.

 

[Gribbles]

hawkfish love inverts, mainly the longnose, but others will go after them. my Arc Eye ate my large shrimp! also i dont know if you set up the 75 yet, but just make sure to let it cycle before adding in the fish from the existing tank. it will help make sure the fish dont die.

Indeed, I put a bunch of rock in a brute can for about 6 weeks. Started with bottle bacteria (several different brands) and put food in the water every other day. Then used more bottled bacteria when I moved them to the 75. I'm still dosing MB7

 

[Reeflix]

you should start a build thread!

 

[Idech]

Is there an order in which I would introduce the new fish? Smallest and timid first?

Yes, you add the most timid first, and the most aggressive ones last. The tang should be last, they are often the tank jerk. They will harass other fish when added, especially herbivores like them.