Tang police question?

[ApoIsland]

Get a yellow and a blue tang. Beautiful fish, great algae eaters, can do fine in a 4' tank for many years if you don't overfeed. I have a yellow and a blue that have been together for more than 8 years now and they have never seen a tank bigger than 4'. Spent 2 years together in a 55 with no problem. They grow quickly from 1.5 to 3.5 inches but you can slow them significantly after that. There is not a 4 to 5" tang in the world that can't do well in a 48" tank with the right aquascape, water quality, and food control.

 

[ApoIsland]

If you are concerned about getting a tang you can look into rabbitfish. Some gorgeous fish there and a lot of people consider them even better algae eaters.

 

[GrandmaRaff]

I have found that the best tang for a small aquarium is the Hippo Tang. Mine is about 4" long now and when I got it, it was barely an inch. That was more than 3 years ago. It is very happy in a 29g Biocube and only swims around during feeding time. It spends most of its time laying sideways under a rock. If you should get one or any other tang for that matter, keep Nori attached to a rock at all times as a baby tang is a voracious eater. I have found that since using Nori, it seems that their immune systems get really strong, preventing ich and other diseases. Should my Hippo get too big I have a 100g just waiting for him. Good luck in your quest to find the perfect tang.

 

[Greg P]

I have a 75 gallon standard tank.
I used to have a Yellow Eye Kole tang but it always picked on my Starry Blenny.
I replaced the Kole with a Yellow Tang and all is good.
I bought it over five years ago at 2 inches and now is still only 3.5 inches
It loves swimming around and through my rock work. Look at my build thread you will see there is lots of swimming space

 

[Ike]

My thoughts are based on 35+ years of keeping tangs and seeing how they act in various size tanks, both mine and fellow hobbyists. I've never had a large system that doesn't have multiple tangs.

Zebrasoma seem to be generally better at adapting to smaller aquariums, they will outgrow your tank eventually and they can become aggressive, but they seem to be less outwardly stressed by having less swimming space. Ctenochaetus would be my second suggestion and I think the suggestions for Tomini is a good one, keep in mind that they're known the be detritivores in addition to herbivores and seem to do a little better in tanks that don't have extensive mechanical filtration. Anything in the Acanthurus genus are best avoided in all but large 6'+ tanks as they seem to often act almost claustrophobic or stressed in smaller systems.

 

[ca1ore]

Zebrasoma seem to be generally better at adapting to smaller aquariums, they will outgrow your tank eventually and they can become aggressive, but they seem to be less outwardly stressed by having less swimming space. Ctenochaetus would be my second suggestion and I think the suggestions for Tomini is a good one, keep in mind that they're known the be detritivores in addition to herbivores and seem to do a little better in tanks that don't have extensive mechanical filtration. Anything in the Acanthurus genus are best avoided in all but large 6'+ tanks as they seem to often act almost claustrophobic or stressed in smaller systems.

Agree 100% ! I would add that the hippo (paracanthurus) is really not well suited to a small tank. Maybe you can get away with it when they are tiny, but as they grow they are prone to idiosyncratic behavior that just gets worse if cramped. I'd say 6' minimum. Naso genus obviously need much larger tanks …. i had a vlamingi outgrow even my 450.

 

[saltyhog]

Agree with @Ike and @ca1ore . A friend of mine had a Hippo in a 6' 125 gallon tank. The tank was full of very large coral colonies and had limited swimming space because of that. He was ok for a while but as he grew he got terribly stressed and ended up with a very bad case of HLLE. Fortunately a club member with a larger, more open tank took him and he's doing well now.

 

[Fishbird]

I have found that the best tang for a small aquarium is the Hippo Tang. Mine is about 4" long now and when I got it, it was barely an inch. That was more than 3 years ago. It is very happy in a 29g Biocube and only swims around during feeding time. It spends most of its time laying sideways under a rock.

That absolutely does not sound like a "happy" tang to me. Aren't they supposed to be active swimmers? Don't they only hide if they're super stressed?

 

[Reesj]

Most tangs should be fine till they grow to adult size in that tank. Check out BRS TV , they mention and always use tangs specially yellow tangs even in their 40 gallon tanks.

 

[jaxteller007]

That absolutely does not sound like a "happy" tang to me. Aren't they supposed to be active swimmers? Don't they only hide if they're super stressed?

Yea I've never heard of a happy tang that isn't actively swimming. Hippo tangs can grow to 1' can't they? A 29 gallon biocube seems like torture.

 

[OrionN]

Duck everybody. Incoming!!!!!!!

 

[ApoIsland]

Yea I've never heard of a happy tang that isn't actively swimming. Hippo tangs can grow to 1' can't they? A 29 gallon biocube seems like torture.

I'm pretty sure he is just being extremely sarcastic in relation to the posts who say go for it.

 

[jaxteller007]

I'm pretty sure he is just being extremely sarcastic in relation to the posts who say go for it.

Man I hope so lol

 

[Birddog61]

Can’t go bigger so I will most likely skip it what’s a viable option as an algae eater for a fish besides a tang in a 75 then

Pigmy angels. Cb beeing the most reef safe

 

[Flame2hawk]

Based on my experience if you want to keep a tang for the long haul and have it thrive, you need at least a 6’ tank. Anything less will eventually mean re=homing.....

 

[Lonelyreef]

Pigmy angels. Cb beeing the most reef safe

Do Pigmy angels eat algae really

 

[Flame2hawk]

Over the long run, which IMO we should always think of, you need at least 1 6’ tank for a tang to thrive. Good luck.

 

[Moscar]

Do Pigmy angels eat algae really

IF you are willing to rehome or upgrade IF your fish shows stress as it grows out - then I would buy a small captive bred yellow tang and enjoy it. It's your tank.

 

[Birddog61]

Do Pigmy angels eat algae really

Flame and cb definitely pick at it. How much is an individual thing. As mentioned above rabbit fish

 

[uhgster1]

If algae control is the issue gat a tuxedo urchin. Just make sure your frags are well glued. My experience with algae eating fish is that they eventually figure out that you’re going to feed them and just get lazy.