which is better

[Skimmerking]

ok here it goes please answer honesty. :exclaim:
I was going to have a DSB with some home made live rock for my tank 280 gallons :exclaim:
is this enough for the fish at the bottom of my signture.

The reason i'm asking this that you need 1gal of bio balls will do 20 gallons, I have 10 gallons and can get more. Ok what I'm asking is that can i have say 20 gallons of bio balls and a slighty bare bottom tank, will this equal the DSB and will this give me more of a biological load for the tank in stead of having lots of rock and a DSB

[Aquattro]

ok here it goes please answer honesty. :exclaim:
I was going to have a DSB with some home made live rock for my tank 280 gallons :exclaim:
is this enough for the fish at the bottom of my signture.



Is what enough?? Some rock? How many pounds is "some"? Are you seeding it with any real rock? How much sand? Is it live?

[Skimmerking]

sorry about that .
the rock will be around
30-40 home made
50 base
maybe 30 lbs live of fiji
live sand 4" with aragonite and GEO MARINE CC

[Aquattro]

"Eventually" it will provide enough filtration, however, it will not support feeding 2 mandarins and 2 six lines. You may want to consider an external pod factory, or refugium.
I would skip the bioballs altogether

[Aquattro]

Also, I wouldn't add the pod eaters until the tank has matured enough(like a year). And 4 tangs is pushing it, IMO. The tank is only 6 feet long. I think the tangs will be crowded.

[Skimmerking]

thanks brad. But you look at these people that have 4 tangs in a 90 -150 gal tank and they are doing fine or a tank that is 200 -240
i dont understand not trying to get in a uproar but, people are alweays saying that a tank 24" is never wide enough ,so i get 30 " people say a tank 24 is never high enough so i get 30 ,i though that 72 " is plenty.

Sorry not trying to sound like a jack a@# here it's just funny hearingthat i dont have enough space in my tank...

But thanks for the tip on the goby's and the wrasse. :redface:

[Aquattro]

Mike, you have lots of water and you'll be able to maintain water quality really well. But the additional 6 inches here and there isn't going to cut it for 4 tangs. I have 2 tangs in a 150g. That gives 10sq. ft. for 2 tangs. You only have 15 sq. ft., not double the 150g area. Maybe three tangs would do OK, I just think 4 is pushing it. Will they die and your tank burst into flames?? Probably not. They will probably not be best friends though. I think your tank would make 2 tangs really happy. In the end, it is your tank to do with as you wish.

[Skimmerking]

thanks for the advice Brad ,I'm not trying to sound like a ass ,But that is all i ever heard thanks for making it sound proper. may be i will give it a shot and have 2 tangs. Now which ones to pick.

whatabout 2 hippo's :mrgreen:

[Aquattro]

I think any combination except powder brown with purple. I think they would fight a lot. Hippo and purple would look nice and get along well. Scopas is a zebrasoma, just like the purple, so that might not work well.

[Skimmerking]

welll i see you are not working today like me i'm at the office and doing nothing. Hows the mouth doing ... :frown:

Any way i really like the Powder brown and a hippo. be ok

[Doug]

Ok, here ya go Mike.

I would not use bio balls either. All though they are an efficient bio filter, they create lots of nitrates. If you wish to do large water changes to remove the nitrates or run some king of a sand/algae sump to remove them, then the bio balls will work.

If you are going to keep a pair of manderins, which the six lines may eventually kill, you will need lots of live rock for them to hide and eat in. Also if you wish to keep 3 pygmy angels, for sure you need lots of live rock and hidey holes, as thats where they live. All the above mentioned do not like the open type tanks and will be uncomfortable in there. Thats why I think live rock is best.

As you know, I also think 4 tangs is pushing it. Remember powder browns & hippo,s are more prone to ick. The idea of a tank raised hippo is good though, as Jayson gets nice ones in, but small.

My suggestion if you wish to go the route you mentioned, is to forgo the smaller fish all together and perhaps go with a larger species that would appreciate the wide open crusing space of your tank. Perhaps "one" of the more durable and healthy types of larger angels and a tank raised hippo. Or if only keeping mushrooms type corals, etc. maybe a trigger, {finger muncher}.

The angel and hippo would have lots of room to swim and could be biologically filtered by bio balls, with some sand and algae growing in a sump to help remove nitrates. Also removes ammonia, phosphates and nitrites. The small amount of live rock, perhaps along with some limestone slab caves, would give them a hiding place and a surface on which to grow algae for them to nibble on.

For smaller fish, you could add some ignorant damsels. :lol: Ones like the velvet and blues are stunning, but pig headed. They would do fine with large bossy fish though. :lol:

Of course if you kept a trigger, shrimp, starfish, etc. are food. :eek:

Another possible senario to save on power and equipment, would be to go as above, with the bio balls, put some sand in the sump to help with nitrates, but no sump lights and grow lots of calerpa in the main tank. The fish I mention would love that and I have seen some very nice tanks like that.

[Skimmerking]

WEll there you have it. quick questions and answers, and apprecaite all that is said. And i will talk to you tonight there DAD. :lol: And i guess i'm getting closerto startingthe 280 gal tank and just a bit nerous in getting it going again..

thanks for all the help... :mrgreen: