Stocking list check

[w98789]

I am building a stocking list for my first saltwater tank, feedback is appreciated!

Planted tanks have been my main hobby for 8 years. Saltwater is a total different ball game, but I know from my freshwater experience I will do the research and prioritize inhabitants' health. I just want to know I dont have any red flags in my stocking list. I will also be able to monitor fish health daily since Im wfh.

What I've got going on..
25 gallon cube QT tank
4 foot 90 gallon tank, with lid
Planning for Soft corals only
Automatic water changes will make sure I dont fall behind or miss any
S-130 Protein skimmer that I plan to change often

[4"-8" and mid/upper swimmers]
six line wrasse (2nd pref.) OR melanurus wrasse (1st pref.)
yellow long nose butteryflyfish (1st pref.) OR yellow tang (2nd pref.)
flame angel (1st pref.) OR coral beauty (2nd pref.) OR rusty angel (3rd pref.)
magnificent fox face (1st pref.) OR one spot foxface rabbitfish


[2-4" and mid/upper swimmers]
1 royal gramma basslet OR dottyback (want something purple)
3 blue/green chromis

[bottom dwelling fish]
1 clownfish or exisitng pair
1 engineer goby

[Invertebrates]
1 Blood red fire shrimp
1 skunk cleaner shrimp
1 pin cushion urchin
1 brittle sea star OR 1 serpent sea star
1 clam
mix of hermits, mix of snails

 

[Benjammin]

Welcome aboard.
I haven’t had good experiences with shrimp, but my tank is 30g. Prob a different story in a tank that’s 3x bigger. Also, a lot of people, including myself regret getting a sixline. They are territorial but again, 90g is different than 30g. Mine has taken over the tank and I’m thinking he will have to be returned to the store. Sorry for the negative comments, I’m sure other members will chime in with some better news. I’m not familiar with all your choices.

 

[adittam]

I don't have personal experience to speak from (new reefer here also), just reading through a ton of similar threads to this for my own education and asking similar questions myself at my LFS.

A melanurus wrasse will be a much better community tank member than a six-line wrasse, is just as awesome at pest control, and is also a very active swimmer. The six-line will get very aggressive as it matures and establishes the tank as its home territory.

The chromis are very hit and miss with whether they do well in a small school. I have read that they will often bully the weakest members of their own species until they dwindle in number and have an established hierarchy. Since they are relatively inexpensive, you might want to start with a group of 5 instead of 3, with the goal of still having a few left after they sort things out amongst themselves.

The royal gramma is a much better tank mate to the other fish in the tank than the dottyback. Dottybacks are jerks, just like the six-line wrasse.

If you're going to keep an urchin, make sure you glue your rock-scape together, because they are known for knocking lose rocks and frags over all the time.

Make sure you add the most aggressive species last, so the others have a chance to establish their territories before the bullies are introduced.

 

[M Stein]

Get the
yellow tang over the butterfly if you can (get a small one). They're great for algae control.
I had one in my 15 gal (tank was too small, and the market was good, so I sold it) I'm already seeing hair algae, and what may be bryopsis popping up.

 

[hds4216]

I would recommend that tang over the yellow long nose butteryflyfish. They're hardier and better at algae control.

 

[w98789]

Thank you everyone for your helpful feedback.
The tank was only filled just today. I will be researching and looking at more species. This is by no means a finished list.
Looking forward to hearing your advice on my stocking lists to come.

 

[FullSend]

What I've got going on..
25 gallon cube QT tank -Good Idea! I find it helps to know exactly what you are going to treat with before you buy a fish. Check out the guides that humblefish has created.

4 foot 90 gallon tank, with lid -4ft tanks are somewhat complicated. 90 Gallons of water could support a large fish, but with only 4ft of swimming space your options become more limited

Planning for Soft corals only -Good news! They are easy to keep. Bad news, some fish think they are food

Automatic water changes will make sure I dont fall behind or miss any
S-130 Protein skimmer that I plan to change often
-All good things

[4"-8" and mid/upper swimmers]
six line wrasse (2nd pref.) OR melanurus wrasse (1st pref.) -Six lines are notorious for becoming very aggressive. Melanurus wrasse should be model citizen, it may eat small shrimp though. Word of caution, make sure you get a melanurus. The lunar wrasse has similar colors and is not safe with invertebrates.

yellow long nose butteryflyfish (1st pref.) OR yellow tang (2nd pref.) -The Yellow tang is a much easier to care for. Yellow tangs have been worth thier weight in gold recently. Consider substituting a tang from the Ctenochaetus group instead, Kohl and tomini are the most common.
flame angel (1st pref.) OR coral beauty (2nd pref.) OR rusty angel (3rd pref.) - Could possibly eat coral. No one can tell you for sure one way or the other. You have to weight the pros and cons and make a decision. Otherwise they are *easier* to pair and I like to pair my fish.
magnificent fox face (1st pref.) OR one spot foxface rabbitfish -Other than personal reservations about the aquarium size, generally considered a good choice. They do have venomous spines.

[2-4" and mid/upper swimmers]
1 royal gramma basslet OR dottyback (want something purple) -Go with royal gramma, black cap basslet, or Orchid dottyback. Other dottybacks can be *very* aggressive. Again generaly considered easy to pair and I like pairing fish
3 blue/green chromis -Almost certain you will end up with one possibly two after 1 year. If you want a group of fish I'd direct you to small anthias, 90 gallons is pushing it, or fang blennies. Both need to eat plenty to maintain body weight. Fang blennies are venomous, but rarely bite.

[bottom dwelling fish]
1 clownfish or exisitng pair -Not a "bottom" dwelling fish, but always a good choice. Also very easy to pair. Stick with either ocellaris or percula.
1 engineer goby -Get very large and are seldom seen. I'd substitute with a shrimp goby and a piston shrimp.

[Invertebrates]
1 Blood red fire shrimp -Not sure about mixing cleaner shrimp
1 skunk cleaner shrimp -Not sure about mixing cleaner shrimp, Also any two skunk cleaners can immediately create a pair
1 pin cushion urchin -Could easily run out of algae to eat
1 brittle sea star OR 1 serpent sea star -Be sure about the requirements of the exact starfish you wish to buy
1 clam -Another Item the angel could nip/eat
mix of hermits, mix of snails -Be careful about buying coldwater species of snails, although marketed to survive in aquariums they are not ideal