planning a happy community tank...

[valierran]

I'm in the planning stages, and trying to determine which fish will get along in a fairly small tank... I definitely want soft corals someday, so that's a factor as well.

So far, this is what I've come up with. Can anyone offer opinions or advice? I'm trying to avoid problems before they get started (if possible!).

2 oc clownfish
2 firefish
1 goby (green clown OR yellow clown OR watchman goby + pistol shrimp?)
1 blenny (midas or lawnmower/starry blenny?)
1 dwarf angel (coral beauty or flame angel?)
misc critters; crabs, snails, shrimp

The goby and the blenny combination are what I'm really struggling with. The tank is 55 gallon, HOB filter and protein skimmer, koralia powerhead, sandbed, about 30-40 lbs live rock.

I really appreciate any advice or experience. Thank you!!

Valorie

 

[bobz]

Valorie,
That sounds like a good combination, very similar to the mix of fish I started with also. My only advice it to add them slowly over a period of 3-4 months and resist the urge to add them all at the same time. You might be successful adding them together but my experience is that more can go wrong in that situation and you end up losing everything.
Good luck!

 

[kilo32]

If you go to LiveAquaria they have a compatability chart which can help you in your selection.

 

[valierran]

I was trying to figure out where in the tank Green clown gobies live. I've read a number of profiles and articles, and it seems such a simple thing... but I can't find it. My ideal combination would be a Midas blenny and a Green clown goby. With two firefish in the tank already (presumably, by that point anyway), I'm not sure if it would work out okay or not.

I was hoping to avoid open warfare in the tank by asking ahead of time. A 55 isn't exactly a "nano" tank, but its pretty confined quarters, which might make them more aggressive with each other.

 

[valierran]

Okay... maybe a Wheeler's Watchman goby and pistol shrimp, and a Midas blenny. That way they'll both have their own areas of the tank.

I'm reading a lot about firefish not getting along with each other, and thinking maybe that should be a single addition instead of a pair. A pair would be adorable, but I sure don't want them to fight and stress each other into sickness.

I haven't read about how pistol shrimp get along with cleaners or peppermint shrimp, I'll have to research that next. Anyone out there have any experience with any of these combinations?

 

[rjrgroup]

Green clown gobies can be difficult from research I did. I put a yellow clown in my mom's tank and it's doing well on cyclopeze(sp?) A wheelers is a beautiful fish but look into a tangora, yasha and aurora as well. Also a potters angel is a good choice IMO. Great job on the research, it's awesome to see proper research and questions!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[thanh386]

I think you should school dottybacks

 

[valierran]

Well, I looked up the Potter's Angel, but they can get to be 5" long... that's a pretty big fish, for a 50 gallon with so many other fish, isn't it? Well I don't know that from experience, but I was trying to limit the fish size to 4" and under... the Midas Blenny at 6" is also a concern. They're not solid/wide fish though, they're slender, so it

What a lovely fish, though. But its also yellow/orange, and for some reason all of my choices seem to be in the warm color spectrum. For variety's sake, I like the deep blue on the Coral Beauty.

Thanks for the suggestions though, its been a lot of fun to look things up and make notes and such. :thanks:

 

[rjrgroup]

No way...4" maybe. I understand about the color though. Coral Beauties are, well, beauty-ful.

 

[valierran]

does anyone else ever wish they could put a webcam on their tank and check on it throughout the day, or is that neurotic? :-

 

[darcurr]

Barbara;667959 wrote: This is going to be hit or miss. Sometimes you'll get an aggressive pistol that will hunt and kill the peps and/or cleaners, but sometimes the pistol will be a model citizen.

+1
I have one that behaves, but be prepared for digging until it finds a place it likes

 

[dr_molecular]

I would love to get a webcam set up to watch my tank.

 

[valierran]

The LFS tested my water, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, tiny nitrates. I added a bit of a cleaning crew, a zoanthid frag, and a Midas blenny. We'll see how they do for the next few weeks.

Its been a few hours, and he's been venturing out of his cave to swim into the middle of the tank. :yay: He comes out, checks out the clowns, who are staring, and then darts back.

I've kept freshwater tanks for quite a while, but the last time I had a saltwater tank was at least 8 years ago. It was fish-only, no live rock or inverts of any kind, so its pretty amazing to see the hermits crawling around on the sand and rock. The basics are pretty familiar, but the creatures themselves are vastly different and even more fun.