FOWLR questions.....

[lodidodi]

I'm wondering if I could tap into the intelligence of the masses out there. I've got a 50 gallon breeder tank (36x18x18) with a 20g sump/refugium. Probably around 70-80 lbs of live rock. Currently in the tank I've got an orchid dottyback, a six-line wrasse, a false percula clown, a midas blenny, a yellow tail damsel, and an auriga butterfly. Don't yell at me about the butterfly it was an impulse buy, I had an aiptasia problem (that it cleaned up beautifully), and the guy at the store said that a 50 gallon tank is perfect for that fish. I've since read that it's not and I may have to sell it when it gets bigger unfortunately. Anyways, that being said am I crazy to think that I could possibly add another fish?

[kien]

How long has this tank been running? I'm sure there are people with 50g tanks that have more fish in it than you do. Does not mean that that's a good idea though. I'm sure you'll get other opinions but mine would be that you have plenty of fish in your 50g. With that much live rock in there it doesn't seem like there is a lot of swimming room left. Are you doing anything special for nutrient control? Running a refugium with macro algae, mangroves, bio pellets, zeovit, etc? If you employed a somewhat aggressive nutrient reduction method then maybe you could get away with another small fish that doesn't really swim much. Or you could get some inverts like shrimp, crabs, etc.

[lodidodi]

Thanks for the reply. I kind of figured im close to the max. I've got a good bit of the live rock in the sump and what's in the display is off the back so they can swim on both sides quite easily. In the sump I've got chaeto and live rock.

[Brightwhite]

i dont believe your close to your limit at all. I am sure that you can add at least a 2-5 more fish depending on what they are. no tangs or angels or anything big, but a firefish, another clown, gobies, cardinals, or even a scooter blenny. but 5 or 6 fish is not your limit for your tank at all

[Myka]

What type/size of skimmer are you using? What is are your current nitrate and phosphate readings?

How long has this tank been running? I'm sure there are people with 50g tanks that have more fish in it than you do. Does not mean that that's a good idea though. I'm sure you'll get other opinions but mine would be that you have plenty of fish in your 50g. With that much live rock in there it doesn't seem like there is a lot of swimming room left. Are you doing anything special for nutrient control? Running a refugium with macro algae, mangroves, bio pellets, zeovit, etc? If you employed a somewhat aggressive nutrient reduction method then maybe you could get away with another small fish that doesn't really swim much. Or you could get some inverts like shrimp, crabs, etc.

Agreed, although I think with a good skimmer and some nutrient reduction methods as Kien mentioned I think you could add another 1-2 fish, but not necessarily sedentary fish. Unless you decide to re-home the Angelfish, that would really open some doors for you. Taking out some live rock may be another good idea for you. Having that much live rock in the tank takes up free swimming room, as well as impeding water flow which will likely increase detritus settling eventually causing nutrient buildup. You don't need a lot of live rock for the biological filtering processes, but it does have to be good quality. It's tough to say how much rock is in your tank since the weight:size ratio hugely differs depending on quality (porosity) of rock. If you could post a full tank photo of your tank I'm sure we could get together and suggest some fish and rock changes to help you out better.

i dont believe your close to your limit at all. I am sure that you can add at least a 2-5 more fish depending on what they are. no tangs or angels or anything big, but a firefish, another clown, gobies, cardinals, or even a scooter blenny. but 5 or 6 fish is not your limit for your tank at all

I disagree with this, unless you enjoy fighting nutrient buildup, fish aggression, and algae issues.

[lodidodi]

I'm using a vertex in-100 for my skimmer and also running a small refugium with a dsb (added the dsb about 4 weeks ago) and chaeto in the sump. Nitrates have been 5-10 for the last 5-6 weeks. I'll post some pics so you guys can see the set up. I don't think I'd want to get a firefish cause I think the wrasse and the orchid dottyback will harass it to no end. Whatever the fish, if I add a fish, I'd want to keep it small. I've considered adding another clown to keep the other one company but am concerned the one I've got wouldn't get along with the new one as it was the first fish in the tank. I don't know, definitely open to suggestions.....

[lodidodi]

Here are a couple pics of the tank. What I've tried to do is stack the rocks on quite in the middle of the tank but still allow space for the fish to swim on both sides and in between the rocks. I've got a pump circulating water around the back to the front and another pump circulating the front along with my return from the sump.

[burgerchow]

Buddy, besides the butterfly, all your fish are relatively small fish. I've seen guys with nanos with more fish than you. I think you could easily add a couple of small gobies or dragonets. Maybe even one small flame angel. Your system looks pretty good and should support it no problem. Just don't feed everyday and you'll have no problem with excess nutrients. Even if your nitrates get a little on the high side, you don't have any corals to worry about.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Yup, if you stick with small fish, you could add more without overloading the tank's bioload.

[lodidodi]

would a bicolor dwarf angel be out of the question?

[burgerchow]

should be o.k. Try a flame angel, much hardier and less aggressive

[naesco]

would a bicolor dwarf angel be out of the question?

The bicolour angels are almost impossible to keep and I don't know if your tank is large enough to accommodate even the dwarfs.
Here is a list of the good marine angels.
http://wetwebmedia.com/marine/fishes/angels/bestmarangs.htm

[lodidodi]

read the last post too late and got a bicolor dwarf angel. seems to be doing well and is constantly eating. i haven't fed the fish more than what i was feeding before except for putting a bit of dried seaweed on a veggie clip the angel to nibble on throughout the day.

now i've noticed my nitrate levels have shot up from the 5-10 ppm range to 20-40ppm range. will this correct itself with time? will my live rock/filters develop more bacteria to handle the increased bio-load or do i have to change something as far as my filtration is concerned?