Hi everyone! =)

A couple of months ago I unexpectedly purchased a 50 gallon tank. Since then I've added a fluval 305 filter, 4x65w pc lighting (2 antic, 2 10k- Must of been tired- I thought they were t-5's =/ )50 lbs of live sand, 40 lbs of rock, cycled it and added a clean up crew (Random snails, crabs, sand sifting and serpent starfish) and now I'm ready to start adding fish and need some ideas. The different things I've been considering are a Blue Tang Hippo, a Spotted Garden Eel and a Valentini Toby Pufferfish. Not necessarily together, but in general. I'm under the impression that if I added the Valentini Toby Pufferfish that it will eat the snails, crabs and starfish. Is that correct or am I mistaken? It seems like the tank is (once again) too small for everything I really like so if anyone has any ideas of something I might have overlooked it would be appreciated. Should of held out for a 100 gallon. lol.

Oops. Posted it 2x somehow. Sorry. =)

Your tank is too small for any Tang or the garden eels. As far as the puffer is concerned even the Valentina can be aggressive. I'd recommend that you take some time and do some research before you proceed with any fish. Your tank really needs about 20 more lbs of live or base rock.

You haven't mentioned skimmer and honestly, that is nearly a must have item. Most folks (myself included) recommend a good one capable of handling twice your system volume. If you are considering moving up to a 100 gallon, that would be the direction that I would recommend. The tank that you have now is capable of housing about 4 fish that don't grow any larger than 3" - 4". Some of the types you may wish to consider for a 50 gallon tank are clownfish, small wrasses, gobys, blennys, cardinalfish, and possibly a dwarf angelfish. Of course, you need to be selective and proceed slowly. These types of fishes are more suitably size for your tank.

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Doc

Dr Hank's 200 gallon Reef Tank
http://www.aquariumforum.com/f46/drhanks-tank-3440.html

Yeah, I'm not in a hurry. I'm just thinking right now. I did just notice that the tang required a 75 gallon i'm not sure why I thought different. It gets confusing when you've looked at 12 million different fish I guess. lol. I was looking at a Banggai Cardinalfish and a bicolor angelfish. Maybe I'll look in that direction a little more closely.

Ok. How about something like a Lemonpeel Angel, a couple Blue Reef Chromis and a Flame Hawkfish?

Btw, I ordered an aqua c remora pro w/ a mag3, but I don't have it yet.

Sounds like a much better choice to me. You should know that the lemonpeel has a reputation for being one of the nastiest of the dwarf angels. If you decide to go that way, I'd add it last. I'd start with the chromis.

Make sure that you check compatability before you buy anything. There use to be a good chart on Aquarium Fish: Tropical Freshwater Fish and Saltwater Fish for Home Aquariums. Also take their diet into consideration so that you are able to feed what they require.

Many folks are very happy with the Aqua C Remora skimmer. I would think that it should work well on your tank.

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Doc

Dr Hank's 200 gallon Reef Tank
http://www.aquariumforum.com/f46/drhanks-tank-3440.html