Tangs + Tank sizes

[mujtba]

I had my blue hippo tang for 2 yrs since it was like 1 inch. its now 5 inches. I also have a yellow tang 5 inches. i have 2 clowns and 1 damsel. i have a 75g tank 4ft wide.

so my question is this. i heard fish grow REAL slow in captivity.. the other thing i heard is that they were in my tank since babies, and they do not know what the WILD is like.. they are used to just the space I provide and they will be fine.

so will my 75g tank be enough for my tangs? ofcourse if i get a 10ft tank it will be better, i know.. but has anyone kept LARGE tangs in their 75g?

i was contemplating on upgrading to a 5ft 100g tank.. i didnt want to do a 120g 6ft tank because it will be huge changes, and im afraid i wont know how to care for it like i know how to my 75g.

so plz post ur thoughts or comments and ideas.. :smokin:

[tkeracer619]

I would upgrade to a larger tank if you want to keep the hippo.

I would go with a 6ft tank, they are just as easy to maintain. I would get a 180 though since I don't like the front to back room of a 120 or 150.

The water changes arent that big on a 6ft tank,esp a 120.

[seagirl]

i agree, a 6ft tank would be best. i had a 7.5" blue throat trigger in my 75 gal for a couple days and i felt horrible about it. it seemed like he could hardly move.

[purebullet417]

my uncle has a 125 and realy it isnt alot more work then more 45 maby an extra hour a week

[MusMusculus]

Medium/large tangs like to have some length and open water areas and need at least 6ft IMHO. Its just the way they are built and has nothing at all to do with knowing what is in the "wild" (reminds me of "He's just pinin' for the fjords!" for some reason :) ). Also, growth rate in captivity is slowed only if they are not getting correct nutrition, so I think your 2-year growth rate is right on track.

Get yourself a nice 6ft long tank. It really isn't that much more work. Looks a whole lot better than a 75g too, I think.

[mattsilvester]

I've kept a coupl of hippo tangs, in 6' and 7' tanks respectively - and I really feel that 6' length is realy the min for them. It is not just their size, but their behaviour - they are really active fish, and relative to say a zebrasoma tang, they really need a lot more space to swim freely and be happy. So in short, if you could, I would go for the 6' tank. But either way, the 5' is going to be a lot better than the 4' tank....... but in my view you really should go for the 6' if you can. I wouldn't go as far as to say the 5' is a waste of time, but if you are going to go to the expense and hassle of upgrading, you may as well go for what you need, rather than for a compromise.


HTH

Matt

[mujtba]

1. well i do 8g weekly water changes on my 75g... if i did a 120, how many gallons would i need to change weekly?

2. also, i have 2 x 250 w DE MH lights.. if I did a 120 6ft tank, would I need 3 lights or would mines be enough?? I know there will be some shaded places in tank, but would it overall light it up well?

3. with the 5ft tank, i was gona reuse my lights... with a 6ft, im wondering if i can reuse my equipment.??

[mattsilvester]

well I have 2 no. 250W MH on my 240 and it looks ok - yes there is some shading, but its ok in general.

water changes are a function of bioload and filteration - your current 8 gal equates to aout 10% ........ so on a 120 10% is 12 gals....... but to be honest, I would say you change more water than most people do as it stands, and to be honest I would think weekly 8 gal water changes on a 120 is more than enough, assuming we are talknig a standard "berlin" type system, maybe with ir without fuge and or DSB.

Matt

[mujtba]

yes im just setting up a fuge for my system... so it should help reduce my water changes, rite?

[Jutta]

With regards to water changes - I have got a 180g and change about 25% every 4-6 weeks which is appr the same amount of water you are currently replacing. I have 2 tangs (Naso and Purple) and would not recommend anything shorter than 6ft. They just love to swim and swim and swim without hitting their nose against a tank wall... Lighting - I have 2 MH and everything grows nicely
just my 2 cents worth