Samhain's 90 Gallon Reef

[Samhain]

Yay, snails! And seriously, you have really, really amazing rockscaping! Lots of great nooks and crannies :) What fish would DARE to be unhappy in your tank??

Thanks so much Sarah! I can think of a few fish that might be unamused, like a full-grown hippo tang......But I'm not planning on pushing the boundaries of the tank size limit debate. I think I'm going to stick with fish that are happy in a 75 or smaller, and stay between 8-10 fish total when the tank is fully mature. For most of the first year, I think I'll stay around 5-6 fish. I don't think I'll be upgrading from here, so I'm going to go slow and let my anticipation build between new additions.

First year's stock list will probably be Firefish in late January, Orange Striped Shrimp Goby in March, Midas Blenny in May, Flame Angel in July, and a Lemonpeel Mimic Tang in September or October if BZ gets one in. If BZ doesn't, I may consider adding a Kole Tang instead, but I'm worried if I add it first that it will harass the Lemonpeel Mimic if I add it later. So I may just hold off until BZ or LA gets a Mimic in, and be satisfied with what I have until then. A Kole is on the list though. The final additions will be a pair of Ocellaris (1 traditional and 1 B&W), but I had issues with them harassing new additions in my 50 gallon, so they're definitely going in last in this tank!

 

[SarahSmile]

Sounds like a great stocking plan, very well thought out and patient....can't wait to see it come along

 

[beeguiles]

That's a lot of snails! Your tank should be sparkling now Haha. Great stock list. I'm a fan of wrasses though so if I had to bigger tank I'd deff throw a wicked cool wrasse in.

 

[monsterfishlove]

wowzers

 

[FishyReef]

Looking awesome!!!

 

[motorcyclereefer]

Cool it is making me almost wish I had my tank back up.

 

[Samhain]

Well, I was at the LFS today, and I just couldn't resist getting the first fish on my list! She had been there for 6 weeks and was doing well there, so I think by the time I bought her she was well recovered from the stress of shipping to the store.

Anyway, may I proudly introduce Lily. She seems to prefer swimming around the Lagoon, so I imagine that will end up being her little territory.

Please wish us luck!

 

[little_fish]

Simply adorable! You should look into getting her a little boyfriend, firefish do better in groups :)

 

[Samhain]

There actually were two at the LFS. They had been together for the last 6 weeks, so I may run back up there tomorrow and get him. I know that LA had said that they can be aggressive to their own kind unless it's a mated pair, so I didn't want to run the risk. But I guess if they've been inhabiting the same 20 gallon sales tank for the last 6 weeks, they probably get along alright by now!

 

[little_fish]

They tend to have a little bit more courage when they are in a group, keeps them from hiding less.

 

[NanoReefer]

great to see a new tank with some fish!!!

 

[FishyReef]

If they'd been together for the last 6 weeks just fine, then I'd go back and get the other!!

 

[Samhain]

Well, I did go back and get the other firefish today. They seem so happy to be back together! I'm also having to modify my plans for the sump, as the 50 gallon tank won't fit without some serious stand mutilation that would probably result in a 90 gallon disaster. So i've got two 10 gallon tanks i'll be hooking together to make the sump instead. One will be devoted to the skimmer, and the other will be divided into fuge and return compartments. I hope it'll work!

 

[FishyReef]

Yay, glad they're happy to be together again!!

 

[beeguiles]

Aw firefishie love!

 

[Samhain]

Now I'm stuck in a serious debate with myself over what to do with my 50 gallon. The possibilities: a snake habitat (questionable since we have a toddler boy that is into everything, but hubby reeeealllllly wants a Ball Python), a freshie tank (waaaay cheaper than a saltie), or a FOWLR (stock list already contemplated and could include a fuzzy dwarf lion, a yellow-striped maroon clown, a papuan toby puffer, and a lemonpeel angel, plus a couple of those cool coral eating starfish). I already have everything for a saltie except I would need new lights and some rock. But it could be dry rock and the lights wouldn't have to be ridiculously expensive either, since it would be FOWLR. I would need to get a bunch of stuff for either a freshie or a snake habitat, but that stuff isn't really all that expensive. Decisions, decisions, decisions.......

 

[FishyReef]

If you go with a saltwater, you could probably find an inexpensive light fixture on CL.... or you could always sell your 50g set-up and invest the money in your 90g :)

 

[motorcyclereefer]

Fuzzy lionfish!!!! or the Python the little boy has to learn sometime that he shouldn't mess around with everything :)

 

[Samhain]

Well, I got my new powerheads and my black sand yesterday! The powerheads were replaced immediately, with excellent results except that I pissed off my duncan. That is one hell of a moody coral.......

And I started sanding my tank last night too! I'm going very slowly with the sand, only about 5-10 pounds/day (total sand weight is 60 lbs) put straight to the bottom using a pvc pipe and funnel. I put in a little less than 10 lbs last night, and I am LOVING the way it looks! It does dirty up the rocks a little as it's settling out, but I'll fan that off eventually. I'm using the pvc pipe and funnel to hopefully avoid the majority of the sandstorm associated with releasing sand in a full tank, and so far it's working. Pics after the lights come on! (Doing that deliberately to build anticipation; hopefully that works too....)

 

[Samhain]

FTS - black sand

The Big Cave

The Lagoon

Firefish Playing Together

Firefish against the black sand