Upgrading Tank-Stocking suggestions??

[DevWin]

I’m upgrading from my IM fusion 10 to red seam ax 130d (34 gals). I’m hoping to do a mix reef tank and bring my clown over with it. I am looking for feedback and suggestions on my stocking list, trying to keep them on the peaceful/cheaper/hardier side but plenty of color and personality.

 

Also any suggestions for stocking order would be appreciated?

 

Tank is 34 gal 

light is 2 current IC orbit LED

everything else is stock other than an additional power head and heater.

I have Bimini pink live sand (concerned about grain size for gobys?)

 

2 clowns (already have one in current tank)

1 Fire fish 

1 diamond Goby or watchmen goby (and shrimp?)

1 Royal gramma 

1-2 (3?)Green chromis

some alternatives I’ve considered are:

 

midas blenny?

Yellow coris wrasse?

bengali cardinal?

peaceful damsel (oxymoron?)?

 

 

Coral:

 

GSP

 Multiple Monti cap

Zoas 

Candy cane

Lepto

Bubble tip anemone?

Plating blue sponge?

Green polyp Toadstool?

maybe a torch or some sort of LPS one day?

 

I appreciate any insight, suggestions, or feedback!

[Jakesaw]

Rock Anemones have some amazing colors.  Your small rocks in front on the sand could host one

 

Peaceful Damsel - I've got a Talbot's damsel that's peaceful with Clown in 10 gal.  Avid swimmer, and has his rock for territory.  Only negative I've seen is he likes to re-arrange the sand around rock work at night.  Occasionally have to blow some sand off a coral with turkey baster.  Really like it's personality and it'll swim all over the tank. 

 

Seems to like adding coral / rock to swim through too.

 

 

 

 

 

[DevWin]

Awesome thanks for the suggestions, I will def check those out and have added them to my potential stocking list! Talbots look pretty cool, don’t think I’ve seen one before

[Jakesaw]

I saw my first damselfish on a Post from this website.  It was swimming in a nano-reef member's tank and caught my eye.  Then saw one in LFS display tank as a lone Talbot in a 40 g ish cube heavily stocked with corals and 4 or 5 Green Chromis.

 

 

 

.  

[Murphs_Reef]

As an owner of 6 blue/green chromis, you don't want a group of them UNLESS you have larger aggressive fish, they will infight eventually killing each other off and even pick on other fish if they are not kept in check.

 

I have some large wrasse and a tang that don't tolerate the adolescent behaviour so the chromis stick closely together and out of the way of other fish. Prior to adding the wrasse' it was a bit of a nightmare. 

[DevWin]

Thanks for the info! That’s kind of why my numbers for those are all over lol. I love that fish and would love to have one but wasn’t sure if it would be “cruel” to put one in solo or if it would be fine?

As much as a group would be awesome with the size of my tank 1 would free up some space for sure!

[Murphs_Reef]

I think one would be fine.. they only stick together for safety in numbers. They are quite happy as a single fish. 

[Xj reefing]

I have a single chromis and he is going great. For your fish list you could look into a flasher wrasse or one of the smaller fairy wrasse. Coral wise you will need to experiment a bit with what you can keep. I for example I can’t keep torches even if my tank is as healthy and stable as it could be. They just die over a few months. 

[mcarroll]

On 12/21/2021 at 10:16 PM, DevWin said:

2 clowns (already have one in current tank)

1 Fire fish 

1 diamond Goby or watchmen goby (and shrimp?)

1 Royal gramma 

1-2 (3?)Green chromis

some alternatives I’ve considered are:

 

midas blenny?

Yellow coris wrasse?

bengali cardinal?

peaceful damsel (oxymoron?)?

Fire fish and the Gramma are the best options on the list.  👍

 

On 12/21/2021 at 10:16 PM, DevWin said:

Coral:

 

GSP

 Multiple Monti cap

Zoas 

Candy cane

Lepto

Bubble tip anemone?

Plating blue sponge?

Green polyp Toadstool?

maybe a torch or some sort of LPS one day?

All good as long as  you can fit em in there!

 

On 12/23/2021 at 4:42 PM, Xj reefing said:

I for example I can’t keep torches even if my tank is as healthy and stable as it could be. They just die over a few months. 

Whoa!  Way too soon to be throwing in the towel!   You'll get there....just be patient and try again later.  🙂 👍

[Crusher895]

My thoughts on what you could get:

2 clowns (Because you have to have clowns like who doesn't like clowns)

1 Tanaka's wrasse, yellow banded possum wrasse, pink streaked wrasse, or yellow wrasse (this would be to add movement to the tank but the color options are your choice)

1 goby/pistol shrimp duo, for goby I would do either the wheelers goby, yasha goby, or orange stripe prawn goby and for shrimp I would do the tiger snapping shrimp (to add a bottom feeder who will also sift sand/bulldoze and add color. I have a wheelers goby and tiger snapping shrimp right now and they are the best to watch.)

Then I would only add 2 more fish max and those would be 

1 either tailspot blenny, linear blenny, or panamic barnacle blenny

Last fish is really your choice but my options would be a firefish preferably the helfrichi, royal gramma, or a damsel. 

 

Tbh I would only add up to 5 fish in your tank since its 34 gallons but you could get away with maybe 7 at most. But I strongly recommend you consider doing a goby shrimp duo, they are very fun to watch and will rescape your tank in some really cool and interesting ways. As well as for the movement part I also strongly recommend you consider the fish I mentioned, they are all very peaceful fish but really and I mean REALLY hard to get for me. Also IMO benggai are some of the most boring fish you could get, unless you like to watch it just float around all day then go ahead but for me they do nothing.