New Tank Build - Fish Wish List

[Rikki248]

Hey all!
I have officially built my very first soon to be reef tank and am wondering if my wish list for fish is practical, knowing I will be buying a few starters within the month! Any feedback would be greatly appreciated as I would like to keep the fish count to a minimum with more focus on corals eventually once my tank is more stable/established.

First, some tank details to provide context:
54 Gallon Corner Bow Front Tank
Dimensions: 39" x 27.25" x 23"
60lbs CaribSea Life Rock
50lbs CaribSea Fiji Pink Arag-Alive Substrate
Fluval 407 Canister Filter
Eheim Heater (150W)
2 SunSun JVP-131 Wavemakers
Hygger ATO
(Starting fishless cycle with Brightwell’s Microbacter Start XLM & QuikCycle next week!)

I do have a 20 gal QT which I will use for all fish before going into my DT. I am thinking the following for Fish, added in the following order:

1 Orange Storm Clown Fish
1 Picasso Clown Fish
1 Lawnmower Blenny
1 Royal Gramma

I WOULD actually like to also add the following, but am not sure if they are smart additions with the above 4 listed fish, hence my post!

1 Sand Sifting Goby
1 Green Mandarin Dragonet

Please let me know any thoughts or other suggestions you might have! I am very open to them and would love some further expertise! Thank you so much!

 

[polyppal]

That list is fine, I would add the dragonet way down the line when you have a healthy natural pod population to prevent it from starving

 

[Sean Clark]

Looks good to me. No tangs? (jokes)

 

[Jeffcb]

Very doable.

 

[polyppal]

Looks good to me. No tangs? (jokes)

 

[L240]

no mandarins in new tanks. they need a very established system to survive. everything else seems fine though.

 

[Rikki248]

That list is fine, I would add the dragonet way down the line when you have a healthy natural pod population to prevent it from starving

Absolutely plan to add the dragonet last. I definitely read a lot about that before considering as an option! Thank you so much for your post!

 

[Rikki248]

no mandarins in new tanks. they need a very established system to survive. everything else seems fine though.

Definitely plan to add the Dragonet last! One question I do have, the sand sifting goby… with Fiji Pink in the tank… do you know if he will do okay with the grain size?

 

[Sean Clark]

Fiji pink will be fine for the goby.

 

[Rikki248]

Very doable.

Thank you!! I asked this in another response, but are there any concerns I should have with the Fiji Pink grain size for the sand sifting goby?

 

[Rikki248]

Very doable.

Thank you!! I asked this in another response, but are there any concerns I should have with the Fiji Pink grain size for the sand sifting goby?

Looks good to me. No tangs? (jokes)

That’s gonna be a NO from me on the Tangs!

 

[L240]

Definitely plan to add the Dragonet last! One question I do have, the sand sifting goby… with Fiji Pink in the tank… do you know if he will do okay with the grain size?

i have special grade, which is pretty big, and mine is fine.

 

[Rikki248]

i have special grade, which is pretty big, and mine is fine.

Awesome! I was actually pondering both but eventually went with Fiji Pink due to a really great sale I found. Thank you so much

 

[Enkopaaisen]

so good looking wrasse?? dont do 6 lines, they are just to aggressive

 

[CookieRdReef]

54 is big enough for a dwarf angel like a coral beauty if you wanted another herbivore to pick at alage besides the lawnmower blenny.

 

[Rikki248]

54 is big enough for a dwarf angel like a coral beauty if you wanted another herbivore to pick at alage besides the lawnmower blenny.

I have wanted a coral beauty for years but now that I am doing a mostly dominant soft coral tank I am leery because I’ve heard so many stories about them eating corals. Thoughts on this?

 

[Rikki248]

so good looking wrasse?? dont do 6 lines, they are just to aggressive

Wrasses don’t bother me at all, if it won’t overcrowd my tank with the others listed I would definitely consider. (I do have a glass lid to remove jump risk)

 

[CookieRdReef]

I have a CB. They are considered the more safe dwarf angel option. I have seen him nip at LPS sometimes but leaves soft corals alone. You never know what you will get though. A pest eating wrasse like a yellow coris might also be useful. Lawnmower blenny, mandarin, and sand sifter wont swim much so the tank might look empty, especially if your clownfish decide to host a powerhead

 

[Rikki248]

I have a CB. They are considered the more safe dwarf angel option. I have seen him nip at LPS sometimes but leaves soft corals alone. You never know what you will get though. A pest eating wrasse like a yellow coris might also be useful. Lawnmower blenny, mandarin, and sand sifter wont swim much so the tank might look empty, especially if your clownfish decide to host a powerhead

Great info thank you so much! I actually didn’t think about the visibility/swim activity so that’s very helpful to consider. I do think a wrasse or CB could add some nice color to the tank, I just don’t want to overcrowd!

 

[Sleeping Giant]

Yes very good list, like you and others said to add to mandarin last