I'm looking at a 29 gal BioCube at the lfs. I'm having a lot of fun with my 20 gal setup with sps, clams, end a few softies. But I'm just awed every time I see a Flame Angel or a Coral Beauty and I'm tempted to setup a FOWLR tank. Maybe add a few mushrooms, zoas, and stuff but basically focus on the fish. The 29 gal fits in my available space and I know I can manage that many gallons of water change every week.

I'm thinking of leaving it pretty open, sand and some branching rock, but basically a lot of swimming room. I doubt I can get a dsb in that tank, has anybody tried?

1 Flame Angel, either 1 or 3 tank-raised neon gobies (I love the one in my 20 gal), a geometric hawkfish (I think that's what he called them, very tiny and colorful, tons of personality). 1 Bangaii Cardinal, 1 Chalk Bass... Maybe, eventually, a Mandarin when the tank is going _really_ well and the lfs gets one that eats frozen food. 1 Royal Gramma, 1 Yellowtail Blue Damsel...

The only fish I have my heart set on is the Angel and probably at least one neon goby. For the others, I'm looking for small, peaceful, and very colorful, with a wide range of shapes and behaviors. I'd love to hear some suggested stocking plans, with numbers and timing. Presumably the angel goes in last?

well with what you want to stock look more into the 75-100g range. That is an amazingly large bioload for such a small tank. The mandrin will also need lots of pods, more than a 29g will ever grow, so if you get one make sure it eats frozen. Stay away from the yellow tail damsel, from my experience they become large and aggressive. I also think putting an angel in a 29g may be asking for trouble...research the needs of each fish and keep in mind that for a reef aquarium a 29g is still small.

Yeah, I wouldn't put them all in, I should have been more clear. :blush: I'm looking for an idea of how many/what would get along with the angel.

The books I've read say a Flame Angel should be OK in a 30 gallon. The mandarin is a maybe, in the future, depending on how everything goes and whether I can find one who takes frozen. I'm not holding my breath! :) I know the neon gobies are very small, I had one in a 10 gallon for months with an ocellaris and a shrimp goby.

I had 3 happy fish in the 10, I'm quarantining a Pajama Cardinal to add to the 20, which will make for 4 very small fish.

The angel is a bit bigger, so what can I add to a 29? Peaceful, colorful, friendly...?

what about a watchman goby? yellow watchman, randals goby and many more fun fish. The coral gobys are also very interesting. 6 lines are also great, however I have head since they eat the same things "pods" as a mandarin you can only have one or the other.

Have you thought about adding a fuge? You could place it above the tank (pumping water up to it via a power head) and use gravity to pull the water back into your 29. It would help lower nitrates and give pods a place to live and reproduce increasing your chances of having a happy mandarin. A small acryllic tank would be easiest, if you decide to get a fuge keep the turnover through it slow. You may also want to look into a tube fuge TR EP88, a great idea, I just built one.

A watchman would be nice, and the yellow color would look great next to the orange and blues! And a 6-line would be fun. In fact, the 6-line has been on my shortlist, don't know why I forgot to list him. :) And I loved my tiny red cap goby, I was heartbroken when brooklynella wiped out all my fish in the beginning. :(

I need to look at the tube-fuge again, it's definitely a great idea. Although, being married to a plumber can make it even _harder_ to get certain projects done! :tongue2: But is there a decent way to feed an exterior fuge without trashing the stock lid? I've thought about just buying a standard tank and adding extras like a HOB fuge, but I like the looks of the BioCube and it does seem cheaper overall. I definitely like the tight lid since several of the fish I like are jumpers.

So, how many fish of this small, peaceful size can I keep happy in approx 30 gallons?

I would say 4 or perhaps 5 at most, espically if you are going to have corals.

you can keep the hood almost "stock" with a tube fuge. The out and in lines can be put in the back of the hood, just drill some small holes to run the pipe/tube through.

If you want a normal tank you can buy a reef ready tank. This is a normal style tank that is drilled with intank overflows. I personally believe that reef ready tank is a better environment for livestock because you can have a fuge full of macros. However this can be accomplished with a cube tank as well. With jbj tanks the filter area can be used to grow macros with little work. Check out nanotuners (http://www.nanotuners.com/) I have never tuned up my cube but I have heard it is a great sight.

I like the looks of the 28 gallon JBJ, but ironically, I'd rather have compact fluorescent lighting. :) I've got a Solaris Galileo on the 20 gallon and I'm not planning on keeping serious corals in the angel tank. Maybe some mushrooms & zoos for color, is all. The whole idea is to get fish that aren't necessarily reef safe. ;)

Well, I'm still thinking. The BioCube is in town and he may be willing to make me a deal on it. I don't really have room for a drilled tank. And I really don't want to have to do more than 5 gallons/week water change on the salt tanks. Its pretty easy to do a wc on the planted tanks, but I buy salt water in 5 gallon containers from the lfs and it's a bit more complicated handling the water. I may just get a glass tank and add my own HOB fuge and skimmer...I've got about 32" of wall space to play with...

Well, he offered me 20% off an already low price for the BioCube ank/stand, so I took him up on it. :)

I haven't picked it up yet, it won't fit in my tiny car. I figure later this week, I need to move the 10 gal Betta tank first anyway.

He's really really pessimistic about Flame Angels, says they all die quickly. He suggests a Coral Beauty instead. Anybody got any thoughts or strong opinions? I like the looks of both fish, just want one that will do well and thrive for me.

I had a Coral beauty in my BC29 for a week before it bullied my clowns and was nipping at corals. Went back to the LFS.

I definitely don't want a bully, but I figure this tank will center around the fish, not the corals. The angel will be the showpiece and I'll work around it. I'll put any cool corals I can't live without in the 20. :)

Geez, I just about had a heart attack! :eek: I walked in this morning and look at the tanks, and something new is sitting under a snail shell up front. In the light, it had long, very thin, kinda brown arms waving around. I thought sure it was another dratted aiptasia! I stared at it, thinking horrible thoughts, and finally spotted a tiny white mouth. We fragged the biggest bunch of gsps last weekend, I think this is one that got washed away somehow. Or it got annoyed and went walkabout. My yellow frags do that sometimes. :rolleyes: Whew!

Sue,

I'll look forward to seeing your tank.

I'll post a picture when I get a chance. Right now it's cycling, with just the sand, rock and some rubble tossed in the middle chamber instead of the biocubes. I need more rubble, and I may toss some macro algae in, just for something to look at. :)

Jay found some really GOOD rock for me,lots and lots of caves and swimming room, and all sorts of colorful corraline. Should be really nice!