[jbicb3]

I have a 75 gal fowlr tank with 1 yellow tang, 1 percula clown, 1 pink & blue spotted goby, 1 peppermint shrimp, 1 lg lightning whelk, 2 brittle stars (the spiny ones) and a dozen nasarius snails.

My wife wants some more fish in the tank, and I want more inverts. What would work with what I have, but not overcrowd the tank?

Jerry

[The R/C Man]

Hi Jerry!

Well for the different critters you will need to do research for each in order to find out their compatiblity with the other inhabitants. I am sure you can get away with a couple more fish without a problem. As for how many you can keep will depend filtration (skimmer), on your water volume and whether you have a refugium or not. For inverts you will need specific lighting based on their needs..... Polyps and some soft corals will do well under VHO's but SPS's and clams will need MH... You may also need to add power heads for additional water flow.... I know that answer was very generalized but I need to know more about your system and what critters you would like to keep on order to assist you further. I hope that helped some.....

[jbicb3]

I wasn't really clear enough, by inverts, I meant shrimp, crabs, stars, and the like. I don't have the lights to support corals, and don't plan on it any time in the near future.
What I do have, is the 75 gal tank, about 80-100 lbs LR, 2.5-3" sand bed, hang o skimmer, 1 medium power head, and a Fluval 404 canister filter with a surface skimmer attachment.
Lighting is 2 4' floursent units, each w/ 1 40 watt standard bulb, and one 10k and one "blue" bulb, one in each unit. Totaling 4 bulbs, 2 of which are standard "house" bulbs.
For the fish, I was thinking a few (3-4) chromis, or maybe some damsels. Something that wouldn't be agressive, or expensive, and would not grow very large. Right now, my goby is about 5.5" long, I believe he won't get any bigger. The yellow tang still has room to grow, but he won't get huge either.
I think clams are beautiful, but I think the require intense lighting, plus they're not cheap.
Also, I forgot to mention in my first post that I also have 2 large Hawian feather duster worms. They make me think twice about getting any crabs. I also have hundreds of "pineapple sponges" and a bunch of other "sponges" in the tank.

All that being said, any more suggestions?

Thanks, Jerry

[The R/C Man]

Hey Jerry!

Well I would recommend a "good" skimmer and the addition of a sump/refugium. Oh, and I would loose the Fluval... They tend to be nitrate traps unless the are cleaned out everyfew days. You could use it for carbon though that would keep your water crystal clear. The reason for the refugium is that the macro algae grown there actually reduces the nitrates in your tank. If you don't want or have the room for a sump/refugium you can always add a hang on refugium. Another great thing about refugiums is that they allow a safe haven for pods to grow which are a natural food source for your tank. Also running the light over the fuge opposite the main lights help to maintain the PH level over night..... As for the extra fish you should be ok. But the above additions will improve the quality of your water.... Most people who use this method have 0 nitrates and 0 nitrites. Basically it is eliminating mechanical filtration (fluval) in favor of natural filtration. (macro algae) Nature is better...

[bigdog54]

What about a Scotts Fairy Wrasse. Their reef safe, peaceful, and easy to care for. Plus their really colorful. Here's a link

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/p...fm?pCatId=1397

[Reefland]

But they do jump so make sure to have yout tank completely covered.