Is it possible?

[powderbluetang]

hey guys, after i get my tank setup and everything i have a couple of questions about some fish, is it possible for a blue tang to live in a 55 gallon? im gonna guess that they cant, but i wanna make sure, how bout a copperbanded butterfly? flame angel fish? and what about a snowflake eel? any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[wontonflip]

Welcome to the site!

Tangs need lots of swimming room....they're also prone to ich, which means putting one in a 55g would cause stress, and it could develop ich which will inevitably kill it. 125g is best for one (I have one in qt right now getting ich treatment, awaiting entry into a 125g).

I'd avoid copperbands -- they will starve easily unless you provide it with the proper diet, and some won't even eat frozen sponges. Flame Angels would be great...but if you plan on having a reef tank, it MAY nip your corals. Snowflake eel would be ok in 55, I would think as long as you kept it well fed. We have some eel experts here :)

 

[JBowden]

+1 Wonton

It's best to do your research first. I had a 55 gallon...and after finding all the fish I wanted, they all required 100 gallons or more. So I got a 180 gallon.

Tangs love swimming room. My Scopas Tang swims laps...

 

[OhNoNemo]

Welcome to the site
Good to see your asking before you buy ...
I agree with Wonton also,i would like to add that IMO almost all tangs would be much happier in a 6 foot + tank

 

[ErinCahir]

I also think the eel would be okay in a 55. But Sharkie is the real expert here! :)

 

[Bifferwine]

I agree. The eel and flame angel would be fine. Copperbands are generally a bad idea no matter what tank size you have, due to their picky eating habits.

There are lots of possibilities for cool fish in a 55. Don't just do your shopping at Petco. ;) Petco doesn't specialize in saltwater, and a lot of what they sell for saltwater isn't really for saltwater, but for freshwater. And the people that work there generally don't know much about saltwater equipment or livestock.

Here is a good website to get information about fish that you may be interested in:

Aquarium Fish: Tropical Freshwater Fish and Saltwater Fish for Home Aquariums

 

[dcantucson]

Welcome to the forum, powderbluetang. Since you don't have your set-up yet and since you clearly want to be able to keep tangs, why not just go with the bigger tank to begin with?

 

[wontonflip]

I started w/ a 45g that I inherited from my brother, with my eye on a Yellow Tang (after all, my brother had....2 of them...each of which died shortly....turns out the 45 wasn't big enough-- they both died of ich) Luckily, these folks prevented me from putting money down on expensive fish that would have died from stress. I was going to get a 75g, then realized that it still would be better for me to go even bigger so I could get the fish I wanted.

 

[dcantucson]

Welcome to the forum, powderbluetang. Since you don't have your set-up yet and since you clearly want to be able to keep tangs, why not just go with the bigger tank to begin with?

I see from your other post you got the 55 gallon. Someday maybe they'll be Dwarf Tangs. Now that would be cool.

 

[Toolman]

I agree with Biff (OMG) I don't know how that happened. I love the Flame Angel and other then buying food I see no reason to buy livestock from petco. Look at how their tanks are set up and it will tell you everything, every time I walk into the one near me I point out the over stressed fish to them. as well as being priced $10.00-$20.00 over my LFS (they wanted $68.00 for a flame that I bought for $40.00 at my LFS. They give you the impression everyone gets along in the fish world.....They Don't..... one word research and look for a LFS it will be worth the trip.:Cheers: