Chlidhood dream Realized: Angels in the water!

[Tim the Stick]

Well, I just "did it" yesterday. After a year of reefing and going from the old 36 bowfront to the 75 w/ "homemade superstand", I got my angels.

A juvenile Queen Angel and juvenile Imperator Angel. Both pretty small, both from my favorite LFS Tropicornium (yes, they deserve a plug).

I traded in my 2 refugee ocelloris clowns my neighbor gave to me and got the 2 prettiest fish in the ocean. Put them in about 10am yesterday, and at noon feeding time, both were eating well. Since I didn't add anymore live rock everyone has a LOT more room to swim around in. The Hippo and the Yellow tang love me now, the 2 new Angels are loving it, the coral beauty even pokes his head out more than he hides, and I havn't had a single rock slide today because Gozer the Crab wanted more room.

Pics tonight!

Stay tuned!

[LOTUS50GOD]

Congrats on the purchase... but I can tell you that:

a yellow tang, 2 angels, and a blue tang in a 75 is a reciepe for disaster. Start saving for a larger tank.

[Dubbin1]

Congrats on the queen. One of these days it may just grow up like mine (about 1')

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v465/dubbin1/100_0873.jpg

She started to get to big for the 110g tank that I had her in so she went to a much bigger home.

[skeeter-doc]

yes all those fish you have are gonna be way too big for a 75 gal! yikes. I wouldnt even put the 2 angels together, because when they start to figure things out, they may fight to the death!

[Amy83820]

Wow! Do you have any upgrading plans? I'm glad that it's your dream come true, but those fish are suffering. I can't even imaging having all of those fish crammed in there like that.

[maddyfish]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7796724#post7796724 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Amy83820
Wow! Do you have any upgrading plans? I'm glad that it's your dream come true, but those fish are suffering. I can't even imaging having all of those fish crammed in there like that.
I don't know if I'd call it "suffering" at this point. HIs fish could all be 2" long. Obviously he'll need a SIGNIFICANTLY bigger tank in the near future, but if they are small, they certainly aren't "suffering" at this point.

Tim the stick- how big are your fish?

[The Reefer91]

also, i don't think the yellow tang will ever be "Way too big for that tank!" JMO

[Amy83820]

Well, like someone else said, it's also a problem of aggression and stress. I'd be curious to see if the blue tang got ick any time soon.
How big of a tank do you think he'll need to upgrade to?

[LargeAngels]

Just plan on upgrading or returning the fish eventually. Queens and emperors are both very aggressive fish and both grow extremely large.

[deansreef]

awesome, i love the blue face also as much as the queen

[Dubbin1]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7796984#post7796984 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by LargeAngels
Queens and emperors are both very aggressive fish and both grow extremely large.

You should change that to can be aggresive. Mine was a perfect angel :)

[Tim the Stick]

Ohh, well aware of the size requirements everyone! I started with minows in a 36, so upgrades have always a part of the picture. On that same note, difficulty has also always been a part of the picture. If it was easy, everyone would do it.

Currently, there's a 200 gallon in my brother's basement on a metal stand waiting for a big'ol wet dry and a monster protein skimmer. Integrated plumbing and remote filtration a must as well. I have 2 spare Fluval's for polishing in hand, but what good are those alone. Untill I have a nice oak stand and the lighting and reliable filtration etc. needed, I'm not going bother setting it up. Additioanaly, my living room has enough floor weight requirement to handle the 75, but not the 200. So, the big dog will end up having to go in the family room that sits on the same concrete slab the garage is poured on. (Yes, I even took a look at the building requirements and structural integrity designs before placing the added weight of the 75... Ok, so I AM an engineer, that proves everyone who says I overdesign everything right one more time)

That room will be getting hardwood floors this winter, and the tank will be nestled into the floor with the custom stand directly on the slab with the harwood butting right up to it, the entire stand and wall unit all matching the floor. Plumbing and R/O unit as well as pumps skimmers etc. all remote mounted.

For the time being, I don't think a 3 1/2 inch Hippo, a 2 inch Yellow, a 2 inch Queen, and a 1 3/4 inch Emperor are going to complain, espectialy with the amount of swim room I have for them. I set my live rock up with 4 distince zones for everyone to swim in and not "see" anyone else. My use of power heads gives a pretty good right to left current on the back side of the rock ledge for them to "treadmill" on (and the Hippo LOVES this... It's his favorite thing to do), on the front die I've got lots of open rock work and caves so everyone can get shelter as neccessary. As of this morning, no one has been the agressor. I assume someone will eventualy take charge and start getting mean, and if that becomes an issue, my LFS gladly takes trade ins, as they stock all the local "SHOW" tanks in restraunts and night clubs, as well as the rich Dr.s etc... So yes, every possible back-up plan has been well thought out, and construction has already begun. About 1/2 to 1 year in the future, but for now, I'm plenty sufficient.

The other way I see it....

It's all a small price to pay for the prettiest fish in the ocean and for the honor to husband thier lives. Knowing how fast their growth cycles are will allow me the time I need to gather all the neccessary equipment, build the neccessary fixtures, redecorate and redesign the layout of the house to compensate, and if wanted, even custom make a tank bigger than the one in my possession and fit it as needed. I would not have even CONSIDERED getting them without a backup tank of appropriate size already in hand and ready to go in case of an emergency. The 32 is currently the "quarantine", but if I have a tank issue (ie, seam leak, crack, etc...) everyone can't live in a 35. The only logical route is a backup. Once the Big Dog is in, the 75 can be the "back-up" in case of emergency. Again, engineers have a plan. Always have a plan.

[marinelife]

Glad my Emperor only hit 8" after 6 months growing from 1"