Advise with stocking 40 gal.

[jwilkey2468]

Hey guys, I got a general idea of what I want to put into my 40 gal reef tank, let me know what you guys think!
- 2x Ocellaris Clownfish
- 1-3x Green/Blue Chromis (undecided as to how many)
- 1x Yellow Watchman/Wheeler Goby (undecided and plan to pair with pistol shrimp)
- 1x Kaudern Cardinal
- 1x Royal Gramma Basslet

Please advise as to how many Chromis I should keep. Or if I should swap any fish out or even take them out of the equation in general. Any help is appreciated

 

[thedudebob]

Typically you want to keep an odd number of Chromis. Three would be fine.

Looks like a nice little tank. Good luck!

 

[jwilkey2468]

Typically you want to keep an odd number of Chromis. Three would be fine.

Looks like a nice little tank. Good luck!

Do you think if I had 3 Chromis along with all of those fish mentioned above I would be overstocking the tank?

 

[Dkmoo]

IMO, I would always want to add some "utility" fish even for that size. Long term you will be glad you did bc it will save you a lot of headaches and gives you more options for solutions:

A 6 line wrasse will take care of a lot of pesty worms. Some worms, if allowed to take hold, will be very hard to treat. For ex, I got some monti eating nudis egg that came with a frag that survived dipping. Although I acted quickly after I saw the nudys hatch, I also saw my 6line actively eating them, which for sure bought me time to treat the problem before the infestation took hold.

An algae eating gobie, like rainfords, will add diversity to your algae control CUC. Gwnerally, more diversity = more effective.

 

[nereefpat]

Looks pretty reasonable to me. I would just get 1 chromis.

 

[dvgyfresh]

IMO, I would always want to add some "utility" fish even for that size. Long term you will be glad you did bc it will save you a lot of headaches and gives you more options for solutions:

A 6 line wrasse will take care of a lot of pesty worms. Some worms, if allowed to take hold, will be very hard to treat. For ex, I got some monti eating nudis egg that came with a frag that survived dipping. Although I acted quickly after I saw the nudys hatch, I also saw my 6line actively eating them, which for sure bought me time to treat the problem before the infestation took hold.

An algae eating gobie, like rainfords, will add diversity to your algae control CUC. Gwnerally, more diversity = more effective.

+1 to utility fish!! I have a 40b and keep a six line / lawn mower blenny in stocking and I couldn’t be happier with them. There’s almost no algae in my tank / no flatworms ect… I do have a colony of bristle worms that I can’t get rid of tho lol

 

[jwilkey2468]

IMO, I would always want to add some "utility" fish even for that size. Long term you will be glad you did bc it will save you a lot of headaches and gives you more options for solutions:

A 6 line wrasse will take care of a lot of pesty worms. Some worms, if allowed to take hold, will be very hard to treat. For ex, I got some monti eating nudis egg that came with a frag that survived dipping. Although I acted quickly after I saw the nudys hatch, I also saw my 6line actively eating them, which for sure bought me time to treat the problem before the infestation took hold.

An algae eating gobie, like rainfords, will add diversity to your algae control CUC. Gwnerally, more diversity = more effective.

Thanks for the advice! Have you ever had issues with your 6-line wrasse? I heard they can be mean. I also want to get a shrimp pairing goby, do you know of any algae eating shrimp goby’s?

 

[Dkmoo]

Thanks for the advice! Have you ever had issues with your 6-line wrasse? I heard they can be mean. I also want to get a shrimp pairing goby, do you know of any algae eating shrimp goby’s?

Better chance of a well-behaved 6line if you add him last and get one thats smaller than your current fish. If you add him first and he's the biggest in the tank then he will more likely claim the whole turf and be a jerk to new arrivals.

 

[jwilkey2468]

Better chance of a well-behaved 6line if you add him last and get one thats smaller than your current fish. If you add him first and he's the biggest in the tank then he will more likely claim the whole turf and be a jerk to new arrivals.

Ok cool, that’s what I will be doing. Would it help if I have fish that are bigger than him in there too to reduce aggression?