How many fish can I keep in a 65g

[lilj104]

I am planning for my 65g Deep blue reef ready tank. 36x18x24 ( i think). It will be reef aquarium. I would like to know how many fish can I put inside this tank. And also what kind of fish should I avoid, and which fish would you recommend for a tank this size? Now I won't just throw them all in at once, but to have an idea of what I will be looking for and paying attention too.

 

[BLADEYAMAHA]

Not many, what kind of fish do you like?

 

[kmaintl]

the fewer the better since your focus is reef

 

[lilj104]

Not many, what kind of fish do you like?

I like clowns, gobies, and other colorful fish. I wanted to put a Tang in there but I read it is recommended to not have tang in a tank unless it is atleast 6ft long

 

[lilj104]

the fewer the better since your focus is reef

Would you say 5 - 7 is fine?

 

[reefer gladness]

It all depends on how big the fish are but 5-7 sounds pretty good. Measuring by inches can be deceptive too as some fish are fatter by nature than others and produce more waste.

Stock slowly to give your tank time to adjust to the bio-load and add shy fish like firefish gobies first. Wrasse are my favorite fish, very active swimmers at all levels of the tank. Take a look at a McCoskers or Carpenter flasher wrasse for examples of colorful wrasse that would do well in a tank that size.

 

[PSU4ME]

Sticking to gobies and wrasses you could do 5-7 but as others have said it really all depends on size. Lots of fish waste lead to less than favorable water parameters.......and if a reef is your end goal, water paramteres and stability is key.

Most fish online are labeled as "reef safe" or no......check out live aquaria......good research site.

 

[whippetguy]

I have 5 in my RSM 250 which is 65g. Might want to take a look at the RSM 250 threads and get a good idea.

 

[kmaintl]

Would you say 5 - 7 is fine?

yep, but don't get anything too big with the biggest fish around 2"

 

[lilj104]

It all depends on how big the fish are but 5-7 sounds pretty good. Measuring by inches can be deceptive too as some fish are fatter by nature than others and produce more waste.

Stock slowly to give your tank time to adjust to the bio-load and add shy fish like firefish gobies first. Wrasse are my favorite fish, very active swimmers at all levels of the tank. Take a look at a McCoskers or Carpenter flasher wrasse for examples of colorful wrasse that would do well in a tank that size.

Now there will be gobies, as far as wrasse go, i'll have to be careful because I do plan on having a few shrimp in there as well and I know wrasses can cause trouble for some inverts. As happy as I can get, i will have to control my urges to fill my tank too quickly, so I know it will take me close to a year to fully get all the fish into the tank I would like. But if I were to go for a wrasse, it would be a sixline. But I would like to get a clown pair, a pistol shrimp with a goby (which one, I am unsure at the moment). Just have to get over the jumping issue.

This is my first experience with a sump, I just built one last week and I hope all goes as well.

 

[ddelozier]

learning to keep a marine tank requires dabbling in several trades. Electrician(lights), plumber(plumbing/sump/return) Marine Biologis(lets face it, we all wish we were), and Chemist(water chemistry is tricky). You are well on your way. How much you can keep depends on how much filtration you have. Having a 20-30g sump raises the total volume of the system allowing you to keep more. Lots of live rock(amonia/nitrite processing), skimmer(waste and nitrate/phosphate processing), microalgae refugium(optional nitrate/phosphate processing - used in tandem with skimmer, not as replacement), and sometimes carbon/gfo reactors(chemical/phosphate/nitrate removal), all add up to what you can keep. Amonia is your enemy. When you add a fish or coral, a small spike in amonia will happen. It usually takes only a few days to disapear, and the levels usually arent high enough to be toxic. When i add fish, i see small detectable amonia in my 65 for about 6 days, then its gone. Add fish/corals slowly(1 every other week), and monitor amonia levels. When amonia spike takes 2wks or longer to go away, your at max stocking. which means adding no more, or adding more filtration. Water change frequency and size make alot of difference. You could keep a shark in a small swimming pool, if you were willing to change the water 2-4 times per day.

 

[lilj104]

learning to keep a marine tank requires dabbling in several trades. Electrician(lights), plumber(plumbing/sump/return) Marine Biologis(lets face it, we all wish we were), and Chemist(water chemistry is tricky). You are well on your way. How much you can keep depends on how much filtration you have. Having a 20-30g sump raises the total volume of the system allowing you to keep more. Lots of live rock(amonia/nitrite processing), skimmer(waste and nitrate/phosphate processing), microalgae refugium(optional nitrate/phosphate processing - used in tandem with skimmer, not as replacement), and sometimes carbon/gfo reactors(chemical/phosphate/nitrate removal), all add up to what you can keep. Amonia is your enemy. When you add a fish or coral, a small spike in amonia will happen. It usually takes only a few days to disapear, and the levels usually arent high enough to be toxic. When i add fish, i see small detectable amonia in my 65 for about 6 days, then its gone. Add fish/corals slowly(1 every other week), and monitor amonia levels. When amonia spike takes 2wks or longer to go away, your at max stocking. which means adding no more, or adding more filtration. Water change frequency and size make alot of difference. You could keep a shark in a small swimming pool, if you were willing to change the water 2-4 times per day.

Good points, now this isn't my first tank, but with each Tank I have had in the past I try to take a different angle and learn from my previous mistakes. I try to avoid the HOB filters because my first tank had a lot of issues with backspace on walls. Now I also currently have a nano reef aquarium 12g. And to be honest I have definitely going beyond my max with it, but I do all I can to keep it up and on top of things. But with this 65g I want to get, I want it to be different, so I'm pretty much going all out, I'm looking to get a BFS GFO/Carbon filter and Reef Octopus NWB 110. I think that will be good for now, is there anything else that could help keep my tank on top?

I take it, I can't put a Tang in there huh?

 

[ddelozier]

if you left lots of swimming room up front, and kept a 20+ gal sump, you might could keep a yellow tang, though i wouldnt advise it. With tangs, its more about swimming room than gallon requirement. they recommend 75gal for a tang because its 4feet long, so the tang can have lots of swimming room. tangs can get big, putting out lots of waste, so total system volume of at least 75g is recommended, though i personally wont get one till i get my 125 up and going. If you wish to attempt a tang, the yellow is the one to start with. its cheap, its fairly common, and fairly hardy. be prepared to offere a diet high in algae, and or clipped up strips of sea weed for him to eat.

 

[tommyboynj]

Personally I think some of the smaller reef fish are the most interesting. Right now in my 75 mixed reef I have a Maroon Clown, Hoevens wrasse, 2 Chromis, 1 Lyretail Anthias and a Lawnmower Blenny. I made the mistake a while back of adding a copper banded butterfly and still kick myself that she died because of my poor selection. It's been a while since I added a fish and am starting to think about it again. I'll probably get a small fairy wrasse or a pair of cardinals. It think with careful selection and good husbandry you can stock a little more but I would take your time getting there.