Advise on stocking a 32g fluval flex tank

[marcwjj]

I’m cycling a new reef tank (fluval flex 32) and look for advises on stocking it with (beginner friendly) fish.

the fish on the wish list are:
- pair of Nemo
- royal grammar
- watchman goby + pistol shrimp
- azul demsel
- 2 or 3 banggai cardinal

Question 1: I read that 5 fish is the recommended number for a 30g , is this overstocking the tank? This is a AIO tank, no sump, Will be running a nano skimmer in the back chamber, with chemipure/ purigen/biomax

question 2: once the tank cycles, is there a particular order I should be adding the fishes? Can I introduce some groups of them All together?

Thanks in advance!

 

[ichthyogeek]

Can't comment on stocking, but I'm sure somebody else will come along to talk about it!

Regarding order, here's what I'd do. It's based off of aggression and anecdotes for fish:

1. Banggai Cardinalfish
2. Watchman Goby + Pistol Shrimp
3. Royal Gramma*
4. Clownfish* (either Amphiprion ocellaris or A. percula for the "Nemo" clowns)
5. Azure* Damselfish*

The Banggai Cardinalfish will only coexist in a pair unless you get a massive tank (which you don't). So you can't have three.

 

[KingTideCorals]

I like the stock list you are going for! Also good call on mapping it out before getting things in the tank!

 

[ReQuackulous]

Clownfish are so iconic, they can however host corals which can unfortunately really bother them. If I were to do it again I would forego clownfish in my tank, maybe look into twinspot gobys or purple/red fire fish?

 

[marcwjj]

Can't comment on stocking, but I'm sure somebody else will come along to talk about it!

Regarding order, here's what I'd do. It's based off of aggression and anecdotes for fish:

1. Banggai Cardinalfish
2. Watchman Goby + Pistol Shrimp
3. Royal Gramma*
4. Clownfish* (either Amphiprion ocellaris or A. percula for the "Nemo" clowns)
5. Azure* Damselfish*

The Banggai Cardinalfish will only coexist in a pair unless you get a massive tank (which you don't). So you can't have three.

Thanks ichthyogeek! This is very informative and appreciate the feedback on names too.

 

[marcwjj]

Clownfish are so iconic, they can however host corals which can unfortunately really bother them. If I were to do it again I would forego clownfish in my tank, maybe look into twinspot gobys or purple/red fire fish?

The clownfishes are non negotiable items on the wishlist, per other stakeholders’ demand , lol. Any advices on the type of corals that would cause problem?

I haven’t gotten time to research about the plan for coral / anemone yet, but heard Duncan coral is beginner friendly?

 

[wonroc]

If your getting a "watchman", check out the yellow watchman. Coolest dude ever. I'm gonna get him and a pistol shrimp to hang together

 

[marcwjj]

If your getting a "watchman", check out the yellow watchman. Coolest dude ever. I'm gonna get him and a pistol shrimp to hang together

Yeah, that’s exactly what I’m planning on getting!

 

[marcwjj]

An update:

the tank has cycled well thanks to the live rocks, I’ve since added the following fish and they all seem to be doing great, in this order:
- Royal gramma: first inhabitant, QTed for 2 weeks
- 2 Banggai Cardinal: one of them had rotten fins or nipped fins upon arrival (I didn’t check carefully at the LFS, my bad), treated with copper and maracyn 2 in QT and now they are both healthy
- 2 clownfish, one common and one Darwin black, very small and cute
- a yellow watchman goby + red banded pistol shrimp : they have not paired yet, living in 2 separate caves..
- Mandarin green goby: I will be honest, this was an impulse purchase, I knew they are hard to feed and risk of starving in small tank, but they are beautiful to watch. I’m feeding baby brine shrimps, freezedried cyclops and will add live copepods soon.

 

[PicassoClown04]

An update:

the tank has cycled well thanks to the live rocks, I’ve since added the following fish and they all seem to be doing great, in this order:
- Royal gramma: first inhabitant, QTed for 2 weeks
- 2 Banggai Cardinal: one of them had rotten fins or nipped fins upon arrival (I didn’t check carefully at the LFS, my bad), treated with copper and maracyn 2 in QT and now they are both healthy
- 2 clownfish, one common and one Darwin black, very small and cute
- a yellow watchman goby + red banded pistol shrimp : they have not paired yet, living in 2 separate caves..
- Mandarin green goby: I will be honest, this was an impulse purchase, I knew they are hard to feed and risk of starving in small tank, but they are beautiful to watch. I’m feeding baby brine shrimps, freezedried cyclops and will add live copepods soon.

Please get copepods ASAP for that mandarin!!! Also look at the mandarin feeder by Paul B. They are super super difficult to maintain in a tank this small not to mention that you just finished cycling! Watch your ammonia, just in case you added too many fish too fast and there’s a spike. Glad you have a qt ready in case anything happens

 

[wonroc]

Lol...and i was worried about having my 2 clowns so early. Lots of fish bud. That mandarin is absolutely beautiful though. Following along.

 

[marcwjj]

Please get copepods ASAP for that mandarin!!! Also look at the mandarin feeder by Paul B. They are super super difficult to maintain in a tank this small not to mention that you just finished cycling! Watch your ammonia, just in case you added too many fish too fast and there’s a spike. Glad you have a qt ready in case anything happens

Thanks for the advice! I've ordered some live pods from Algaebarn and added to both the back chamber and DT. I've also been feeding dried cyclops and baby brines. It's actually hard to see whether the mandarin goby are eating or not because he keeps nibbling on the rocks and ignore anything floating in the water... But he seems happy. Any tips on how to tell if the mandarin goby is starving or not?

I've been checking ammonia, nitrate constantly, they are always at zero, maybe the chaeto in the back chamber helped.

 

[marcwjj]

Lol...and i was worried about having my 2 clowns so early. Lots of fish bud. That mandarin is absolutely beautiful though. Following along.

Yeah, beginner's impulse purchases led to an accelerated stocking plan. I was looking at Ammonia and Nitrate regularly and they've remained at zero. I've added some chaeto at the back with a LED light at night, some filter flosses and chemipure / purigen, and a tanze 9001 skimmer, but my guess is that these aquacultured live rocks made the cycling faster.

 

[Zionas]

Bangaiis need to be in a confirmed pair or else they’ll kill each other most likely.

With the Bangaiis:

-x2 Ocellaris Clownfish (Captive Bred)
-x1 Azure Damselfish
-x1 Royal Gramma
-x1 Yellow Watchman Goby + Tiger Pistol Shrimp
-x2 Bangaii Cardinals


Without the Bangaiis:
-x2 Ocellaris Clownfish (Captive Bred)
-x1 Azure Damselfish
-x1 Royal Gramma
-x1 Yellow Watchman Goby + Tiger Pistol Shrimp
-x1 Possum / Pink Streak Wrasse
-x1 Tail Spot / Bicolor Blenny

Though I’d even consider one Bangaii and a pair of Azures.

 

[marcwjj]

Bangaiis need to be in a confirmed pair or else they’ll kill each other most likely.

With the Bangaiis:

-x2 Ocellaris Clownfish (Captive Bred)
-x1 Azure Damselfish
-x1 Royal Gramma
-x1 Yellow Watchman Goby + Tiger Pistol Shrimp
-x2 Bangaii Cardinals


Without the Bangaiis:
-x2 Ocellaris Clownfish (Captive Bred)
-x1 Azure Damselfish
-x1 Royal Gramma
-x1 Yellow Watchman Goby + Tiger Pistol Shrimp
-x1 Possum / Pink Streak Wrasse
-x1 Tail Spot / Bicolor Blenny

Though I’d even consider one Bangaii and a pair of Azures.

My LFS had 3 Banggai Cardinalfishes so I picked up 2 of them, LFS said they don't know how to identify the sex of the banggais so it was more like a luck draw. Upon arriving home after 1 hour drive, I noticed the smaller of the two had a shorter tail fins, and a day later the dorsal fins became much shorter. The 2 banggais do swim together most of the time but my concern was that both were males and one was bullying the other when I didn't pay attention.

So I moved the injured one to QT, observed for a few days and notices some rotten areas around the fin. treated it with Maracyn two for a few days and guess what? the molds on the fin disappeared and in a week the dorsal and tail fins started to grow back!!

So I moved the banggai back to the DT and the 2 banggai have became inseparable since and both are very healthy. I must have got lucky and had a male and female.