Hi From Albuquerque!

[rodney]

Welcome to R2R!

 

[revhtree]

Welcome to the fam!

 

[Gree23849]

I'm starting up a 90. I have a loose plan. I had some tanks in the 1980's but not since. I'd really like some help in deciding how to go forward.
I basically blew the budget on the startup, figuring I'll wait to really stock it once it's running and stable. I see most people have reef tanks - meaning, live corals as well as fish. It makes for a beautiful display, but I'm leaning towards fish only, for a number of reasons. One is cost, and the other is specialization.
As I said I'm new to the hobby, at least for the first time in decades. Some things have changed and some haven't.
One change is the availability of live coral.It was almost unheard of way back. And combining fish with invertebrates was considered very rash. And part of that is the specialization factor. Sure fish and invertebrates can thrive together - I mean, look at all the beautiful displays of the forum membership. But they do have slightly different requirements in terms of specific gravity, light, and water chemistry. That tells me that the ideal environment is slightly different for invertebrates and fish. Also the cost of a tiny splotch of color on a tile, that will someday grow into a beautiful, thriving coral head, gives me a taste for fish. not that they are cheap - but I think you get more for the dollar in a fish that has eyes, fins, a brain, and swims around the tank.
What I am asking is, if I'm going for fish only, at least for the foreseeable future, would you prefer a larger number of smaller fish, or several sizable fish. In a 90 I should be able to fit - I don't know, someone tell me. It's 48" x 18" x 24". It has an overflow and sump, wave-maker, but no skimmer yet.
Does anyone else do fish only? I'd like to see either a school or a busy community of small fry, or else several more stately, and big ones. 4 hand size fish, in a 90 gallon aquarium, cruising around? Is that asking too much?
Ideally, I would like to start with 4-8 smaller - inch size fish, of the kind that can live together happily and grow to a larger size, still not challenging the biolimit of the system.
That's my vision. At the moment I only have a sparse setup - 3 pieces of cast coral, and a plastic plant. And 3 bags of sand. That's it. I'll get some more rock, but I don't even have the tank here yet.
So, I'm looking for suggestions on starting up a fish only (for now) tank. I have the LED light for fish, test kit for fish, and a glass canopy.
Thanks.

Welcome from Carlsbad!!! I do agree that although the larger fish (Tangs, Butterflies, large angels, etc) would not be suitable, I love the school idea, which could be mixed with maybe a wrasse (if you don't go the invert/coral direction) or a really beautiful dwarf angelfish!

As far as how many fish - I've seen 90 gallon tanks with crazy amounts of fish... That are surprisingly successful, and i would say it comes down to equipment and attention to detail. If your skimmer and sump, etc is rated for more than 90 gallons, and can push and treat water through pretty quickly, you can house more fish with a little bit less stress, assuming you check parameters and do water changes.
Good luck !!! And I really do hope you post pictures!

 

[BayouReefer]