Our Progress - 46 bowfront

make sure to take it slow, you already have a fair amount of livestock for a tank that size and for one that has only been up for about 4 weeks. Your biological filter needs time to catch up.

 

Yep this is it for a while. We're going on vacation this coming week to visit my Gma in florida. My friend Will (has a 29g reef, and his dad used to have a 55 back in the old days where keeping them was WORK) will be watching the system for us, and we may add another Goby for the Pistol shrimp after the break. Then top it all off with a coral beauty after we let it sit for a while. Then, it's done with fish stocking completely.

Oh, and the tank is essentially going to be a FOWLR with some softies, hence the high stocking amount we're shooting for. I still tried to guestimate it, taking adult sizes into account, and trying to keep it at "20 inches" of fish for a 46. With sump. And overkill skimmer.

 

We found the hi fin goby today...or what was left of him. I wasn't too attached to the little guy, my mom didn't really like it though. The CUC sure did it's job. I hope they're happy after their $30 dinner. Hoping to pick up a yellow watchman in about 2 weeks ish after Christmas and vacation to visit grandma and all of that happens.

Does this fish least seem a bit overstocked for a final result, in a 46 gallon bowfront (with sump)?

-2 ocellaris clowns
-1 6 line wrasse
-1 yellow watchman goby
-1 royal gramma (optional)
-1 Coral Beauty

And that's it. The royal gramma will be the deciding factor. If it sounds too overstock like that, we won't get him.

And do inverts count with "stocking" the tank? pistol shrimp and cleaner shrimp, as well as CUC. And serpent star.

This setup is an intentional FOWLR with softies setup BTW

 

those inverts take up very little biload, i would not be too concerned about those inverts taking up bioload

 

You should be ok, depending on who you ask. The sump will definitely help. I think you will be ok.

 

I think our setup is going to be a great FOWLR w/ softies. I was wondering what others will think. A Berlin X2 on a 46 gallon tank...super skimming power. The other fish are going to have to have a tustle with this wrasse though...he's become king of the rocks. Absolute king.

And those inverts take in more than they poop out in my mind. So I wasn't worried about them. Just making sure I'm not being stupid

 

New additions!

-2 heads of frogspawn coral
-Hawaiian feather duster
-Pinkbar Goby

May I just point out that phytoplankton smells really...really...bad. The 2 heads of froggy were fragged right from a colony in the store and glued to a rock, and feather dusters are a pain in the butt to get them in place. The pinkbar goby is also known as the Shrimp goby, so I'm hoping he'll pair up with our tiger pistol sometime in the future.

Looks like a FOWLR w/ softies to me!

 

Congrats. Got pics?

 

Day 3 and we woke up to find the goby and tiger pistol paired up