Does anyone think having A LOT of fish aids in having a successful SPS dominant/only reef? Weigh in...

[mayday0237]

Flying tang turds are a stick's best friend (I said for the hundredth time).

Every fish I have thinks that poo is a bonus feeding... Nomnomnom

 

[mayday0237]

Ok, I poured me a scotch and dropped a whole cube in there. Fish going buck wild now.

Cherry Bomb tipped it’s hat to me.

Mmm scotch where is that balvennie.....

 

[SeaDweller]

Mmm scotch where is that balvennie.....

I think you meant Lagavulin...

 

[mayday0237]

I think you meant Lagavulin...

That one could be too dry for me...I am really pretty happy with the Sherry cask 15yo Balvennie...

 

[mayday0237]

I run a 400G tank connected to a basement setup with 4 more tanks and a total volume of 800G.
A key factor in tanks with heavy fish load, heavy sps load and colourful sps is the total water volume compared to the tank volume for example David saxbys tank which has a total system volume of 16000 litres for a 4000litres tank with around 400 fish. That allows u to feed heavy but then the nutrient levels gets diluted before its removed. Also this allows some more stability in how fast many elements other than the nig 3 get depleted.
I have around 70 fish most of which are in the 400 G display tank up home. I feed 4-5 times a day with smaller amounts but sometimes I only do couple heavy feedings which allow slower fish to feed before food is consumed.
My colors are usually nice except during and after issues where unfortunately my system has frequent different issues that affect colors for some time, luckily no.major crashes ever happened.
Also major coral farms do have excessive number of fish in their systems and feed fish and corals heavily. It is a fact that corals feed on nutrients and heavy coral load helps with low nutrients issues.
Finally I get my nicest colors at a phosphate of 0.06-0.1 and a nitrate level of 10.

Redirect Notice

images.app.goo.gl

Me "Honey why can't we get a bigger sump?"
"We're gonna need a bigger sump to feed my babies..."

 

[HB AL]

To answer the op’s original question, I don’t really plan things out that much so with that said I have a lot of rock thrown into my 92g, along with a lot of different kinds of corals and because I really like fish I have 14, that get fed 10 to 12 Hikari cubes a day. So in my case the fish definitely aren’t detrimental to the corals and must be helping the cause especially since I haven’t done a water change in over 2.5 years. I call it “ controlled chaos “

 

[BudgetReefer007]

Ok, to play off of @ycnibrc 's bacteria thread, I've seen the most successful, thriving reef tanks having a few common factors between them. Successful to me means great coloration and growth, not just one or the other.
1) The obvious common factor is super clean source water: filters changed regularly and ahead of schedule, making sure nothing gets into the tank but pure H2O (salt mix doesn't matter as I've seen regular IO to IORC to RSCP to TMP).
2) The second common factor is regular husbandry, whether it be every 2 to 4 weeks, there is some form of WCs put in place, but I've seen the other end of the spectrum where some don't do regular maintenance at all, often times waiting months between WCs, but there's either dosing in place or a CaRx implemented.
3) They all have a lot of light, whether it be MH, T5, LEDs, combo of, they don't skimp here; there's plenty to cover front to back, side to side.
4) Lastly, the most colorful, healthy reefs I've seen local to me, and some buddies across the nation, all have this one last common thing going on: they all have a lot of fish that are fed regularly throughout the day. I'm in that camp. I have 9 tangs, 22 anthias, 2 clowns, 1 angel, 1 leopard wrasse, and 1 stupid sand goby that get fed 'round the clock. I'm gonna assume most of us have conditions 1-3 in common and covered.

My feeding schedule:
AM: they get fed a lot of flakes 3 times within an hour before I go to work
Brunch: NLS pellets on auto feeder 3 times: 11AM, 130PM, 430PM
Happy Hour: Flakes again when I'm home
Dinner: Mysis and plankton, roughly 5+ cubes worth; I go thru Hikari flat packs quickly.
Night cap: some more flakes.

That's at least 6-7 times that they get fed. Obviously they're active fish, so I feed them accordingly, they're all far from being skinny. I DO NOT have algae issues: I run heavy export as well (skimmer, Rowaphos 24/7, monthly WC, chaeto, sulfur denitrator). I've seen "healthy" reefs with a lot of fish and no color to their SPS: they don't feed enough and export too much, and they've turned around once they fed more and cut export back. It's true, I've dosed bacteria too, but it was to perhaps help with my bad situation after my reboot earlier this year, but I've also stopped for the past month. I don't put that much weight and credit on the MB7 or the EcoBalance additives in helping my tank (in fact I think it sparked my cyano issue).

I feel @Big E said it best in the other thread:
"Corals take in ammonium and urea directly from fish...........if anyone wants a healthier system just have enough fish and feed them well. There will also be plenty of nitrogen available. The poop has plenty of PO4 that passes through the fish and promotes bacterial growth. There will be plenty of bacteria for every living organism in your system." What's enough fish? I don't know, but most guys I know have tanks that are 120-300 gallons and aim to have at least 20+ fish in there, obviously bigger tanks like a 225+ has 25-30+ fish. I have a 240 with the above listed fish, and I'm about to add 3 more yellow tangs if I'm being honest. I'm not saying that this is the answer, but I don't think it can be argued it doesn't help. Some of the guys I know start off how a noob would: 100% fresh water, dry dead rock, and some used bottled bacteria to help a cycle. Some have cycled the rock and ran business as usual. But something differs here and there's a deviation that allows them to thrive and keep sailing smooth while noobs struggle and crash. I feel it's because they fed their fish heavily and didn't worry about the "uglies" that may come with a new or rebooted tank.

Does anyone here have a super colorful, healthy SPS tank that has minimal fish and minimal feedings (like once/day or less)? Maybe this can help others who are struggling too, and they can re-evaluate their tanks in terms of stocking and feeding (I think most people are scared to feed their fish for fear of algae), and perhaps add more fish or just feed a couple more times during the day? Does anyone have to dose to overcome a light stocking and feeding regiment? Let's see if we can start seeing some more success threads vs. dead/dying/paling/bleaching threads. No one posts up my acros are browning threads, it's always dead threads.

I have a 55 gallon, sps dominant, still fairly young at just over a year as a sps. I believe I have decent coloration but not sure I have a "lot" of fish? and I only use a basic 3 stage filter so there are a few tds left... I kinda put the kart before the horse and have been working to correct it slowly as I'm on a budget There have been a couple items that didnt come out as planned on color but I attribute that to my high PAR, I also corrected... I personally think its knowledge, stability, light, and tank awareness (you need to know if anything changes). Setting a routine, checking parameters, understanding tolerances, processes, effects.. and yes def good husbandry! So here is my tank and here is my fish list, you tell me: lot of fish? feed? good color?

bangi
yellow tang
4 green chromis
yellow choris wrasse

feed: 1 cube a day (some skips)
(roids 3 times a week)

 

[SeaDweller]

I have a 55 gallon, sps dominant, still fairly young at just over a year as a sps. I believe I have decent coloration but not sure I have a "lot" of fish? and I only use a basic 3 stage filter so there are a few tds left... I kinda put the kart before the horse and have been working to correct it slowly as I'm on a budget There have been a couple items that didnt come out as planned on color but I attribute that to my high PAR, I also corrected... I personally think its knowledge, stability, light, and tank awareness (you need to know if anything changes). Setting a routine, checking parameters, understanding tolerances, processes, effects.. and yes def good husbandry! So here is my tank and here is my fish list, you tell me: lot of fish? feed? good color?

bangi
yellow tang
4 green chromis
yellow choris wrasse

feed: 1 cube a day (some skips)
(roids 3 times a week)

Looks like you’re doing ok. Are you happy with your tank ATM?

 

[BudgetReefer007]

Very! I was just posting because I believe I have success and dont meet a lot of his criteria.... not sure I have a lot of fish or feed heavy nor is my water perfectly filtered.. I didn't want to assume though cuz I do have a few fish and a smaller tank.. Would you consider this a lot for a 55?

I think success comes from the knowledge and awareness.. and the commitment..

 

[ScottB]

Very! I was just posting because I believe I have success and dont meet a lot of his criteria.... not sure I have a lot of fish or feed heavy nor is my water perfectly filtered.. I didn't want to assume though cuz I do have a few fish and a smaller tank.. Would you consider this a lot for a 55?

I think success comes from the knowledge and awareness.. and the commitment..

No, that is a fairly light bioload unless the tang is large and has some algae to graze upon. It is a good fish list, but not a large one imo.

 

[SeaDweller]

Very! I was just posting because I believe I have success and dont meet a lot of his criteria.... not sure I have a lot of fish or feed heavy nor is my water perfectly filtered.. I didn't want to assume though cuz I do have a few fish and a smaller tank.. Would you consider this a lot for a 55?

I think success comes from the knowledge and awareness.. and the commitment..

There's no criteria to be met tbh, just observation for the most successful tanks I've come across and witnessed; yes I'd be wary of the unknown TDS that's getting past your RODI- might not be an issue if you don't have alot of sensitive acros, etc (do you?) or may be just time before it starts to affect your tank. You don't have many fish and don't feed much, but perhaps that's all your tank needs, which is why I created the thread. There will be outliers among the community, and yours is what the "Average" hobbyist probably does: stocks lightly, feeds little, but still can have happy corals. Good to know and for you to add to the thread!

 

[HB AL]

To answer the op’s original question, I don’t really plan things out that much so with that said I have a lot of rock thrown into my 92g, along with a lot of different kinds of corals and because I really like fish I have 14, that get fed 10 to 12 Hikari cubes a day. So in my case the fish definitely aren’t detrimental to the corals and must be helping the cause especially since I haven’t done a water change in over 2.5 years. I call it “ controlled chaos “

Here’s a pic to give you an idea of what controlled chaos looks like. Unfortunately I couldn’t get all the fish to pose for the camera.

 

[SeaDweller]

Here’s a pic to give you an idea of what controlled chaos looks like. Unfortunately I couldn’t get all the fish to pose for the camera.

Am I the only one who doesn't prune regularly? I let things grow into each other, I could have fragged and made my money back LONG ago, but there's no fun in that... I enjoy growing them and watching them fight it out (sort of).

are you not pruning too? haha

 

[HB AL]

Am I the only one who doesn't prune regularly? I let things grow into each other, I could have fragged and made my money back LONG ago, but there's no fun in that... I enjoy growing them and watching them fight it out (sort of).

are you not pruning too? haha

Not really, maybe once a year just a little to make some cash and give some people a good deal on acquiring some sps then use the cash to buy more corals. I do have some up for sale on the selling board now.

 

[biecacka]

10 cubes a day for 14 fish?
man I am under feeding.

corey

 

[HB AL]

10 cubes a day for 14 fish?
man I am under feeding.

corey

Yup there not all small,
Bicolor blenny
Yellow, hippo, and purple tang
Ugly damsel
Squirrel fish
Green coris wrasse
Banghi cardinal
Gold stripe maroon clown
Tomato clown
Clown, Assasi, Blueline and Sargassum trigger

 

[biecacka]

Man that’s awesome. I have 25 fish or so in my 240. So I should maybe look into a pack of frozen food a day? As well as more fish! You have half my bioload in a 92 gallon tank. I have been wanting to add more fish, just debating which ones to add. In addition to my pellets or cancel them all together.
here I thought I fed a decent amount. Haha

corey

 

[LARedstickreefer]

That one could be too dry for me...I am really pretty happy with the Sherry cask 15yo Balvennie...

Can you dose scotch?

Try the Bunnahabhain 12 year.

 

[LARedstickreefer]

Am I the only one who doesn't prune regularly? I let things grow into each other, I could have fragged and made my money back LONG ago, but there's no fun in that... I enjoy growing them and watching them fight it out (sort of).

are you not pruning too? haha

Dude! Frag and share.

 

[HB AL]

Man that’s awesome. I have 25 fish or so in my 240. So I should maybe look into a pack of frozen food a day? As well as more fish! You have half my bioload in a 92 gallon tank. I have been wanting to add more fish, just debating which ones to add. In addition to my pellets or cancel them all together.
here I thought I fed a decent amount. Haha

corey

I have a really simple system that makes it all work with the key being alot of live rock. My tank is in my bedroom and I have no basement or fish room(although if one of my daughter's move out eventually I will turn that into a fish room) so all I have is a 30g sump with a vertex skimmer, lots of marine pure spheres, a couple bags of carbon, a couple bags of phosgaurd and a couple bags of purigen. I dose 10 to 20ml a day of red sea no3/po4x. This is how I keep my nitrates and phosphates low. This current tank has been setup 4 years this month, I haven't done a water change in over 2.5 years. I manually dose everything dont have any controllers other than the inkbird my heater is plugged into. As far as feeding goes I've noticed over the last 30+ years that frozen food produces healthier fish which is important for a number of reasons especially for me since I dont quarantine fish. I also dont rinse the 10 to 12 cubes so the micro pieces feed the corals, pods etc.. some. One other thing that I have noticed between frozen and pellets is and I'm not bashing pellets here as they have a function for certain people and there systems, but along with being less nutritious they definetly produce more nutrients in the water like higher nitrates and phosphates that I verified by feeding pellets only for 2 months around 8 years ago and noticed the increased levels along with having to clean the glass more often, from say once a week with frozen to daily with pellets. I do plan on putting a 180 or a little bigger tank where this one is in the next year or 2, mostly for the fish and to have more of them and also more corals but right now I'm really in tune (practically autopilot) with this tank and dont want to deal with what comes with a big change over that would be required, my wife even asked the other day when are we gonna move the dresser and mount the tv on the wall so you can get the bigger tank in here!