Sucess With Achilles Tangs

[Kehaulani]

OK guys, I have loved this fish for a long time. I'm just researching now and trying to get the most information on them as possible before deciding if one would be a good fit for my tank.

I recently bought a 180 gallon tank. The dimensions are 6x2x2. I have a naso tang that I've had for about 8 months now. He is still in the 75 as my 180 is not yet ready. I got this guy when he was about 3 inches or so which is why I put him in my 75. He is fat and healthy. Eats literally everything I put in the tank.

My question is, how many of you have had Achilles tangs and been successful with them. I know they are prone to ich and I do have a QT tank set up that I use.

Questions I have are: if you have one, how big is your tank? Is it possible for one to get along with my Naso? should I introduce them at the same time or one before the other? What are the best ways to keep them happy? And any other info on them is much appreciated. Feel free to post pictures of yours if you'd like.

Thanks guys
~K

 

[TwelveL16]

I had one. Died in copper treatment. Was too weak from something probably ich. I have a 300g. your tank is barely big enough for an Achilles but doable In my opinion. introduce at the same time or the naso first.

 

[Kehaulani]

Thanks for the info. My Naso has never had ich *fingers crossed* but that is what really worries me about the Achilles. I'm assuming they are very similar to PBT with ich

 

[4FordFamily]

Thanks for the info. My Naso has never had ich *fingers crossed* but that is what really worries me about the Achilles. I'm assuming they are very similar to PBT with ich

They are worse than PBT with ich. Very fragile fish.

Red nori is the secret to fattening them up but proper qt and treatment is paramount

 

[Dreadnaught]

All Tangs are highly susceptible to ich and other parasites. With your new tank you have to decide to QT or not QT and stick with it. It's been reported 80% of all marine fish have some sort of disease. 180 is fine for 3-4 well feed tangs with good filtration (they create a lot of waste). I just had an Achilles go through 8 weeks QT including Cu with no problems. My new tank is only 10 weeks (245G). Here is a picture with his bestie M. Foxface.

 

[Dreadnaught]

 

[Kehaulani]

All Tangs are highly susceptible to ich and other parasites. With your new tank you have to decide to QT or not QT and stick with it. It's been reported 80% of all marine fish have some sort of disease. 180 is fine for 3-4 well feed tangs with good filtration (they create a lot of waste). I just had an Achilles go through 8 weeks QT including Cu with no problems. My new tank is only 10 weeks (245G). Here is a picture with his bestie M. Foxface.

That is awesome... I will stick to QT first before dropping in my fish. I have always QT all my fish before adding them to my 75 gal display tank. I like to be safe rather than sorry. The only thing that worries me, is my QT tank is only a 40 breeder. I'm not sure if that is enough room for an achilles tang. Wouldn't wanna stress him out in QT, know what I mean?

If you don't mind, could you explain your whole process to QTing your achilles? Did you do Cu treatment on the first day or? If I do go through with it, I'd like to do it correctly. Thanks for the input. It helps out alot. I appreciate it!

 

[Dreadnaught]

Humblefish has a great write-up on QT: (see link below... Goto page 1)

I make sure any fish is eating well for a few days before any meds. If a fish stops eating for a few days I remove any medication and get them eating again. Then I will start that medication over. I QT'd my Achilles in 20G with a cleaner wrasse and a goby. I do 90% water changes and run carbon between meds. I do ~25-50% water changes 2x/week. (Easier to do with smaller tanks). Also requires less meds being dosed.

https://www.reef2reef.com/index.php?threads/How-to-Quarantine.189815/

 

[Kehaulani]

Humblefish has a great write-up on QT: (see link below... Goto page 1)

I make sure any fish is eating well for a few days before any meds. If a fish stops eating for a few days I remove any medication and get them eating again. Then I will start that medication over. I QT'd my Achilles in 20G with a cleaner wrasse and a goby. I do 90% water changes and run carbon between meds. I do ~25-50% water changes 2x/week. (Easier to do with smaller tanks). Also requires less meds being dosed.

https://www.reef2reef.com/index.php?threads/How-to-Quarantine.189815/

Thanks. I will definitely check it out. How bug was your Achilles when you purchased him?

 

[carolinareefguy]

I still get SO confused... 1st we discuss how a 180 is "barely" big enough. Then we all seem cool with it being in a 20 gal for QT process. It seems so hypocritical. But as long as we QT, then all other rules are null and void.

So here is the real question? You can only do option 1 or option 2 for 3 months.

1. Place the Achilles Tang in a 180 gallon tank directly. Tank has live rock, with CUC, and a few friendly/smaller fish.

2. Place the Achilles Tang in a 20 gallon tank full with pvc and chemicals.

 

[omar jawad]

My Achillies story defies many of the rules. I only bought it because of a great sale on Live Aquaria. I had credits and was able to purchase at 119. He came in fat and healthy as most fish from Live Aquaria do. I've had him since March 2nd 2016. I do not have a QT. My tank is 90 gallons and he lives with a Blue Hippo and a Yellow Eye Kole tang. He is only aggressive when the nori on the algae clip starts to get scarce. When I unpacked him, I did a six hour acclimation. After that, I put him in a social acclimation box for a few more hours. Once the fish ignored him in the social box, I released him. I also treated the tank with Mardel Parashield. This product has helped me get through Ich on a few occasions. It's not a solution but imo, a good preventive measure. He has had Ich on a few occasions but he always eats, swims and acts normal. While my story is probably the exception to the norm, I do think it should be shared. This fish is the most active fish in my tank.

 

[Kehaulani]

My Achillies story defies many of the rules. I only bought it because of a great sale on Live Aquaria. I had credits and was able to purchase at 119. He came in fat and healthy as most fish from Live Aquaria do. I've had him since March 2nd 2016. I do not have a QT. My tank is 90 gallons and he lives with a Blue Hippo and a Yellow Eye Kole tang. He is only aggressive when the nori on the algae clip starts to get scarce. When I unpacked him, I did a six hour acclimation. After that, I put him in a social acclimation box for a few more hours. Once the fish ignored him in the social box, I released him. I also treated the tank with Mardel Parashield. This product has helped me get through Ich on a few occasions. It's not a solution but imo, a good preventive measure. He has had Ich on a few occasions but he always eats, swims and acts normal. While my story is probably the exception to the norm, I do think it should be shared. This fish is the most active fish in my tank.

How big was he when you purached him? I was thinking about buying one from live aquaria but I wanted to get a small one if I did so. Thanks for sharing your experience btw

 

[Kehaulani]

My Achillies story defies many of the rules. I only bought it because of a great sale on Live Aquaria. I had credits and was able to purchase at 119. He came in fat and healthy as most fish from Live Aquaria do. I've had him since March 2nd 2016. I do not have a QT. My tank is 90 gallons and he lives with a Blue Hippo and a Yellow Eye Kole tang. He is only aggressive when the nori on the algae clip starts to get scarce. When I unpacked him, I did a six hour acclimation. After that, I put him in a social acclimation box for a few more hours. Once the fish ignored him in the social box, I released him. I also treated the tank with Mardel Parashield. This product has helped me get through Ich on a few occasions. It's not a solution but imo, a good preventive measure. He has had Ich on a few occasions but he always eats, swims and acts normal. While my story is probably the exception to the norm, I do think it should be shared. This fish is the most active fish in my tank.

How big was he when you purached him? I was thinking about buying one from live aquaria but I wanted to get a small one if I did so. Thanks for sharing your experience btw

 

[Kehaulani]

I still get SO confused... 1st we discuss how a 180 is "barely" big enough. Then we all seem cool with it being in a 20 gal for QT process. It seems so hypocritical. But as long as we QT, then all other rules are null and void.

So here is the real question? You can only do option 1 or option 2 for 3 months.

1. Place the Achilles Tang in a 180 gallon tank directly. Tank has live rock, with CUC, and a few friendly/smaller fish.

2. Place the Achilles Tang in a 20 gallon tank full with pvc and chemicals.

I guess it depends on the size of the fish. I have a 40B QT tank that I'd use. I'm assuming it's OK to be in a small tank because it's only temporary and not many people have 180+ tanks set up to QT their fish. My local fish store QT all their fish in 10 and 29 gallon tanks for 8 weeks. This includes all their big fish too.

 

[carolinareefguy]

I dont think I consider a few months a short period. It only takes a few days to stress a fish which could lead to the fish to stop eating, which spells the end of your journey with that fish.

 

[omar jawad]

How big was he when you purached him? I was thinking about buying one from live aquaria but I wanted to get a small one if I did so. Thanks for sharing your experience btw

About 4".

 

[Kehaulani]

Oh ok. That's not bad in size

 

[Dreadnaught]

A juvenile fish doesn't require large tank much like an infant doesn't need a king size bed. I'll leave tank size alone because there is no "right" answers and only opinions. I like small tank for QT because you can watch them close. A little stress also helps bring some of the problems to the surface so they can be treated. My M. Foxface had a bacterial infection that I was able to easily diagnose and treat while in Q.

I also purchased mine at Live Aquaria... ~4". From what I have read about them they are fairly slow growers as well.

 

[4FordFamily]

I still get SO confused... 1st we discuss how a 180 is "barely" big enough. Then we all seem cool with it being in a 20 gal for QT process. It seems so hypocritical. But as long as we QT, then all other rules are null and void.

So here is the real question? You can only do option 1 or option 2 for 3 months.

1. Place the Achilles Tang in a 180 gallon tank directly. Tank has live rock, with CUC, and a few friendly/smaller fish.

2. Place the Achilles Tang in a 20 gallon tank full with pvc and chemicals.

Just a question - how many Achilles tangs do you currently have?

Second, small temporary quarters in exchange for 10-15 years of healthy life is not ideal but certainly better than being one of the 99/100 to die in the display tank because someone else tried to get them to live in "ich management" conditions. It won't work, not with Achilles, powder blue, powder brown, or goldrim tangs.

Those who know me know I did "ich management" for ten years and fully understand it can work for many common fish species. I also killed dozens of these fish thinking "why should they be any different than the others" over that timeframe. They were. Since proper quarantine and preventative measures, far fewer problems. I currently have two Achilles, a powder blue, and a powder brown.

Further dangerous is the fact that velvet is now every bit as common as ich, and that's a recipe for disaster for all fish in the DT, except perhaps some wrasse species.

 

[4FordFamily]

My Achillies story defies many of the rules. I only bought it because of a great sale on Live Aquaria. I had credits and was able to purchase at 119. He came in fat and healthy as most fish from Live Aquaria do. I've had him since March 2nd 2016. I do not have a QT. My tank is 90 gallons and he lives with a Blue Hippo and a Yellow Eye Kole tang. He is only aggressive when the nori on the algae clip starts to get scarce. When I unpacked him, I did a six hour acclimation. After that, I put him in a social acclimation box for a few more hours. Once the fish ignored him in the social box, I released him. I also treated the tank with Mardel Parashield. This product has helped me get through Ich on a few occasions. It's not a solution but imo, a good preventive measure. He has had Ich on a few occasions but he always eats, swims and acts normal. While my story is probably the exception to the norm, I do think it should be shared. This fish is the most active fish in my tank.

One out of about 15 Achilles I have had did this, it died after a year as it slowly worsened and the fish was slowly starved of all nutrients and quit eating.

The rest didn't make it to 3-4 months. My tangs were fat as whales with nori as I gave them more then they could ever want and replenished it daily.