Restocking my aquarium tank

[Finwise]

I'm taking over my friend's massive L-shaped fish tank - it's a double-sided beast with a volume of around two tonnes and has been running for 15 years. The tank's been home to some pretty aggressive fish, including an 18-inch puffer that sadly passed away recently. After that, the tank just collapsed, and now there are only four fish left.

I've got some experience with fish tanks, having kept both aggressive and non-aggressive fish in a smaller tank before I had to move abroad. It was sad to see the fish in this tank die off after the puffer's death - I'm guessing it was due to toxins released by the puffer.

The plan is to revamp the tank, starting with replacing the crushed coral at the bottom with white sand. The only fish that's staying is the picasso trigger. Considering the tank's aggressive history, we're thinking of introducing some larger, impressive fish.

The tank's huge - about 1 meter wide, 1.5 meters high, and 6 meters long, including the L-shape. We haven't taken exact measurements yet, but it's massive.

A double-sided reef tank of this size would be expensive and hard to maintain, so we're thinking of going for a few statement fish instead. I was thinking of lionfish - with white sand and nice lighting, 5-6 of these would look amazing. We've also considered a blue spotted ray, although they're better suited to round tanks, and a bamboo shark.

Any ideas or suggestions would be welcome - I'm open to hearing from both beginners and experts.

Also, due to time constraints, we're struggling to keep on top of water quality checks. Is there an electronic device that can automatically take readings for you?

[brixo]

That's a massive tank, I'm curious to see how it looks - are there any pictures available?

I've heard that triggers and lionfish don't usually get along, the triggers might see the lionfish as a threat and attack them. However, considering the size of your tank, it's possible that they could coexist.

I'd like to suggest Panther Groupers, although I'm not familiar with their compatibility or specific needs - they do look impressive. Another option could be a snowflake eel, have you considered either of these options?

[Finwise]

Pictures will be taken this weekend when I visit the tank, and I'll get some research done. It'll be sad without the star puffer, though.

I appreciate the suggestion of snowflake eels, but they've had issues with eels jumping in the past. I did consider a couple, though.

The tank would look amazing with lots of color, and the panther grouper was a great idea. I still need to lay out the ideas, but I'm aiming for a small quantity of impressive fish. We're looking for relatively hardy fish, the hardier the better.

[talonix]

Hi

I've got a bunch of fish ideas that might work for your tank. Naso tangs could be cool - like the blond lipstick tang, blue spot tang, or carabeain blue tang. Some other options could be the blue faced angel, majestic angel, fox face, or longfin bannerfish. Butterflyfish like the copperband butterfly, Falcula Butterfly, or Koran Angelfish might also look great.

You could also consider some angelfish like the Rock Beauty Angelfish, Bird Wrasse, or Blue Throat Triggerfish. Tangs like the Powder Blue Tang, Purple Tang, or Clown Tang might be hardy enough for your tank. Some other ideas are the Goldrim Tang, Pacific Blue Tang, or Indkento4 Ocean Sailfin Tang.

I was also thinking about some moray eels like the Zebra Moray or Snowflake Moray. Decorated rabbit fish or Convict Tang could be cool too. Some other options are the emperor angelfish, queen angelfish, achilles tang, or half moon angelfish. Bat fish or regal angelfish might work as well.

I've got a bunch more ideas - like the unicorn tangs, yellow tang, pakistany butterfly, addidas butterfly, or cleaner wrasse. Some other options are the flame angelfish, coflake beauty angel, bio colour angel, or red stripe angelfish.

I know you asked for hardy fish, and some of these might not fit the bill, but I thought I'd throw out some ideas anyway.

[fleeton]

Forget panther groupers, they're not that exciting. Miniatus Grouper is the way to go - perfect for a massive tank like yours. Having multiple full-sized lion fish would be incredible, but feeding them would be a nightmare, and I sense you're looking for something low-maintenance.

A Naso Tang would be an awesome addition, and it's pretty easy to care for once it's settled in. If you're up for something a bit more high-maintenance, a Sohal Tang would be stunning. Achilles Tang is another gorgeous option.

If you want to go aggressive, you could consider another big pufferfish or a queen trigger. Bigger wrasses from the Thalassoma genus could add some nice color to the tank.

With a tank that size, you could also think about parrotfish or a filtideflow. And lastly, full-sized Angelfish like Queen Angels, Emperor Angels, Blueface Angels, or Swallowtail Angels would be incredible.

[Finwise]

Thanks for all the suggestions, I really appreciate it. I'll definitely look into the ideas you've all thrown out there, hopefully I can find something that's both hardy and impressive.

I'm still considering the blue spotted ray and the bamboo shark, has anyone had any experience with these in a tank of this size? Are they advisable, or should I steer clear?

[copperkit]

Considering the bamboo shark, I'd say one thing to keep in mind is that they don't do well competing for food with aggressive eaters. I've read that target feeding the shark might be necessary in that case. From what I've gathered, it can be kept with most of the fish mentioned above, but I suppose that's something to look into further.

[talonix]

I'm actually planning to get some pictures of the tank this weekend, so I'll make sure to put them up. As for the tank, I've got a few ideas floating around, but I'm still deciding on the final setup. I've considered lionfish, a blue spotted ray, and a bamboo shark, but I'm open to other suggestions.