New to the hobby and looking for stocking input.

[mboulette]

Hello everyone, I'm new to the hobby (very new) after years of wanting to try. I have a standard 120 (48 x 24 x 24) cycled and ready to be stocked. The clean up crew went in a week ago, and I'm likely to add my first fish this weekend.

I've been using Reef 2 Reef to guide me through the process, but I'm now trying to make a stocking plan and want to run my thoughts by everyone here.

So here it goes:

Ultimately, I'd like to have the following in the tank:

2 clowns
1 one-spot fox face
1 kole or bristletooth tang
1 mandarin (probably 9-12 mo. out)

I'm trying to decide if that's an acceptable stocking list, or if I could reasonably add any more fish to that. My plan for now is to add the clowns shortly, the fox face in May, the tang in June, and then start introducing corals until the pod population stabilizes enough for a mandarin.

In terms of the system, I've got a 120 gallon display with a 35 gallon sump. I've followed the guidelines of a protein skimmer rated for twice the display volume (Skimz) and started running carbon and GFO in a BRS reactor after the cycle finished. I've got the standard 120 lbs of rock, along with two large marine pure blocks. I don't have a UV system, biopellets, or other filtration, and am coming up against space limitations under the tank (no fish room yet).

I'd also like to introduce a variety of soft corals, and maybe an anemone eventually, so that's a consideration as well.

So here's the question: any suggestions or advice on stocking? Anything you'd change or suggest? Of course I'd love more fish if I could, but I'd rather take good care of a few than overstock and stress them. Thanks in advance.

 

[eatbreakfast]

Hello everyone, I'm new to the hobby (very new) after years of wanting to try. I have a standard 120 (48 x 24 x 24) cycled and ready to be stocked. The clean up crew went in a week ago, and I'm likely to add my first fish this weekend.

I've been using Reef 2 Reef to guide me through the process, but I'm now trying to make a stocking plan and want to run my thoughts by everyone here.

So here it goes:

Ultimately, I'd like to have the following in the tank:

2 clowns
1 one-spot fox face
1 kole or bristletooth tang
1 mandarin (probably 9-12 mo. out)

I'm trying to decide if that's an acceptable stocking list, or if I could reasonably add any more fish to that. My plan for now is to add the clowns shortly, the fox face in May, the tang in June, and then start introducing corals until the pod population stabilizes enough for a mandarin.

In terms of the system, I've got a 120 gallon display with a 35 gallon sump. I've followed the guidelines of a protein skimmer rated for twice the display volume (Skimz) and started running carbon and GFO in a BRS reactor after the cycle finished. I've got the standard 120 lbs of rock, along with two large marine pure blocks. I don't have a UV system, biopellets, or other filtration, and am coming up against space limitations under the tank (no fish room yet).

I'd also like to introduce a variety of soft corals, and maybe an anemone eventually, so that's a consideration as well.

So here's the question: any suggestions or advice on stocking? Anything you'd change or suggest? Of course I'd love more fish if I could, but I'd rather take good care of a few than overstock and stress them. Thanks in advance.

That stocking plan is fine, and you have plenty of room to add more, but you don't need to add if you don't want to.

 

[Bluecbs]

I have a 4 ft too and my stocks are as follows :

One spot foxface
2 schooling bannerfish
Pakistani butterfly
Latticed butterfly
Yellowfin flasher wrasse
Yellow wrasse
Female fairy wrasse
Pyjama cardinal
Ocellaris clown
Springeri damsel
Azure damsel
Yellowtail damsel
Flametail blenny
....some inverts

 

[Bluecbs]

Ohh, btw my tank is fowlr

 

[Bradley Crocker]

I think that's a good start. You can start adding corals now too if you don't want to wait. In the beginning at least, don't add too much too fast or your system won't be able to process the ammonia fast enough.

You could definitely add more fish, but if that mandarin is a must have, then I'd keep it to a minimum. At very least stay away from fish with the same food source for a while (like wrasses, dwarf angels, butterflies, etc.) just to see how the pod population holds up. These fish will easily out compete it for food.

 

[Salty1962]

Looks like a good starting point. Just make sure to have ami & Copepods established for your Mandarin until it eats prepared food and make sure you have algae for the FoxFace and Tang to start off Good luck and keep us posted!