Saltwater salinity question

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fishfanatic80

fishfanatic80

Piranha
MFK Member
Feb 7, 2011
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Long island
I currently have a Singapore angel, golden foxface, hippo tang, sailfin tang, and a powder blue tang in a fish only 125. I keep my salinity around 1.016 because i heard that it helps prevent outbreaks of ick. I want to know if keeping the salinity that low is harmful for the fish and if its proven to help aid in protecting fish from an ick outbreak? I dont have a quarantine tank so i was hoping to use the lower salinity as a preventative measure. I was also curious if i would be able to add more fish? I was hoping i could add another tang but it might not be enough space for them when they are fully mature. The tangs have been getting along thus far but are still young. If i cant add another tang is there any other possible tank mates, perhaps a niger trigger or another dwarf angel? After fully stocking my tank i plan to raise the salinity to about 1.023 and add a little bit live rock but not too much to ensure they have ample swimming room. Any help is greatly appreciated thank you.
 
I dont know much about salt water or the fish requirements. but i can tell you that i have a lmb and a gar at 1.010 sg. so for a full marine fish to me anyway that seems pretty low.
 
fishfanatic80 said:
I currently have a Singapore angel, golden foxface, hippo tang, sailfin tang, and a powder blue tang in a fish only 125. I keep my salinity around 1.016 because i heard that it helps prevent outbreaks of ick. I want to know if keeping the salinity that low is harmful for the fish and if its proven to help aid in protecting fish from an ick outbreak? I dont have a quarantine tank so i was hoping to use the lower salinity as a preventative measure. I was also curious if i would be able to add more fish? I was hoping i could add another tang but it might not be enough space for them when they are fully mature. The tangs have been getting along thus far but are still young. If i cant add another tang is there any other possible tank mates, perhaps a niger trigger or another dwarf angel? After fully stocking my tank i plan to raise the salinity to about 1.023 and add a little bit live rock but not too much to ensure they have ample swimming room. Any help is greatly appreciated thank you.
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You are basically running your tank at hyposalinity all the time. That's not a good thing. Not all species of fish can handle that low of a salinity. You are half right when you say it prevents ich. It doesn't prevent ick, but it is a treatment for ick in a QT tank. I recommend raising your salinity slowly to 1.024-1.025. That's what it should be at.

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fishfanatic80 said:
Would I be able to keep it there for another two weeks to fully stock my tank?

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You don't need to wait to fully stock. Your salinity should be higher. Why do you want to wait? It doesn't matter how many fish are in your tank

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Because I dont have a quarantine tank and I don't want to add fish that might bring ich into the tank. My lfs keep their tanks at 1.018.

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fishfanatic80 said:
Because I dont have a quarantine tank and I don't want to add fish that might bring ich into the tank. My lfs keep their tanks at 1.018.

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I understand your concern being that tango are so succeptable to ick, but you shouldn't run your tank that low. Buy a QT tank. They don't take a lot of space and you don't need to keep it full all the time. All you need is a 15 to 20 gallon at the most and all you need is a powerhead and small filter

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fishfanatic80 said:
Any ideas on how I could further stock it as well?

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You could put maybe 2 more angels in. I've always like lemonpeels or Koran angels. I would stay away from more tangs though. Marine Bettas look really cool too

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Raise the salintity!! Remeber though you need to do it SLOWLY. Fish and inverts in my experience transfer better from a lower salinity to a higher not the other way around. So you are putting tons more stress on any new fish when you acclimate them to a hyposalintity tank. Most naturally occuring reef enviroments are at 35ppt or 1.025 for specific gravity.

As for ich, be selective at the LFS. VERY SELECTIVE!!!!! Shop at stores with great reputations, and ask to see the fish eat. Inspect all potential new additions very closely and resist the urge to buy "the one that needs a little extra attention". If you keep your tank clean and well maintained ich is usually not an issue. I have had several fish develop white spots after adding them to my tank, and after they settle in and they aren't stressed, they seem to clear up without any issues. Also don't underestimate the value of a couple cleaner shrimp, some people argue their effectiveness but I've had lots of luck with them.

And finally, my 2 cents on new tankmates. I would reccomend a Goby (yellow watchman or such), Royal gramma, a few chromis, a melanurus wrasse (need 2-3" sandbed), pair of bangaii or pajama cardinals, or maybe even a hawkfish. The are all hardy and easy to keep and the gobies and hawkfish provide life on the rockwork and sandbed. I would however reccomend about 100 pounds of live rock. Fish need hiding places to feel secure and keep from stressing out, which causes illnesses. So before adding any new fish add rock and get the salinity up!!! It should take a day or 2 to raise it to 1.024-1.025. If you are staying away from inverts then a 1.021 or 1.022 is fine.
 
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