Tang Question

labman · Nov 20, 2006

Ok been dying to know why everybody loves Tangs so much I can't tell you how many threads I read where ich starts up and it starts with a tang or somebody dealing with a aggrsive tang etc. why does everybody love them so much that they have a whole tang tank or nearly full of them. I just wondering if I am missing something I did have a yellow tang I liked until it killed my Morish Idol that was doing good.

stabed him that was the last step to push me to the Antitang! since then they are right there with damsels in my want for them, but am I missing something. that they are worth all the trouble.

waynesreef · Nov 20, 2006

I think I am just lucked out. I have 4 tangs all together for past 4 years. They were initially in the 65g then 110g and now 180g. I never had ich problem. I know ich is in every system but the trick is keep the fish healthy, stress free so the ich will not bother them. I love all kinds tang. If I have space I would not think twice to add another.

electrikredd · Nov 20, 2006

i believe

honestly i believe it just depends on the person. some people like angels and some don't. some people like peas, some don't. its a matter of opinion.
i love my tangs and angels, but i hate peas...hehe
redd

300E · Nov 20, 2006

I will tell you why everyone loves tangs... I have discovered the secret... They are colorful, they have a cool body shape, they are relatively inexpensive & readily available, they are active, and most- if not all of the are reef-safe.

And now the downside... The are prone to ich. Some of them never eat well enough in our tanks to stay healthy. A lot of tang owners do not have the proper tank size or husbandry skills/ habits to properly keep them.

That being said, I am with you Labman. I am going tang free! It just isn't worth it to me.

stronghandsmcgee · Nov 20, 2006

It depends on the person and the tang. For example, I would probably never keep a yellow, regal, or purple tang. Why? Yellows and purples can just be too mean, regals are shy and get ich more easily than anything I've ever seen. On the other hand, if someone were to offer me a desjardinii or tomini, I would take them in a heartbeat if I had enough room.

slapshot · Nov 20, 2006

I like a Kole they keep everything nice and clean. Other than that I have to agree ...no tangs. I do have a Naso also, just could not resist.

zrack4 · Nov 20, 2006

Just Say No

Bought a purple Tang. Had him 2 days got ich then all my fish had it. Angle died . Set up q-tank and didnt go well so I shoved all fish but tang back into Ich infected tank. No ich not on a one of them. He was cool but when your yanking 75 pounds of live rock out to catch him he loses his coolness. I am investing in a U.V Sterlizer. But still no Tangs.

jp4whln12 · Nov 20, 2006

Im not a tang fan either but i will be getting a tomini tang at some point. You don't see them as often in tanks and in my opinion they are still a good looking fish.

DLBerlin · Nov 20, 2006

They are beautiful, active fish with lots of personality. I love them BUT I am down to one, my Powderblue, and he is gone in a heartbeat if he starts eating corals like the Hippo and Yellow I already got rid of. I wont be adding any more tangs.

jblabs · Nov 20, 2006

No ick here with my 2 Tangs, HLLE for one, but no ick

The hippo has been seen nipping lately though so his time left in the display is limited.

cheapfish1 · Nov 20, 2006

I love my yellow tang. He is very active and always comes up to the front glass when im in the room. He is kind of agressivie with my clowns but he is perfectly healthy. Never had any sign of ich on him although i must say all of the fish i have gotten from the aquarium warehouse are healthy. This thing just took right too eating and swimming around.

I love my tang now if only i had a bigger tank.

labman · Nov 21, 2006

intresting thread

I didn't know if people would take offence in it or what been fun to see other feel simular as me and other of course love there tangs at all cost. bottom line of course different fish for different folks lol

Shaun · Nov 21, 2006

I love tangs. They are bright colored, active all the time and are fun to watch. I have a purple, yellow, hippo and naso in the show tank and Jess has a powder blue and tomini in her tank. We had the Ich problem in the very begining, wiped out the whole dang tank. But like waynesreef said, the key is too keep them as stress free as possible by providing lots of swimming room (show tank was designed for tangs), a super healthy varied diet, lots of seaweed and a really good UV sterilizer. And also like Debbie said, I wouldnt think twice about getting rid of them if they started eating coral ( Jess might kill them with her bare hands before I could even get them out if any of them ate her coral-devil ) We havent had a problem with ich in a long time.

lightngsvt · Nov 21, 2006

I just lost my yellow who I had for about 3 years. I personally love the fish, as said already they are birght, colorful, active, reef safe and almost always out in the open. My yellow never had ich or HLLE, he always ate VERY well and he was even buddies with my larger maroon clown and chromis. But he was aggressive to any new fish I tried to put in the tank. I've had a couple tangs over the years and Ill have another, they are just so pretty to watch.

Taylor_made · Nov 21, 2006

zrack4 said:
I am investing in a U.V Sterlizer.

Do you know that UV Sterilizer's do not kill ich? They are also questionable on whether or not they are good for a reef tank. I do not mean to say they are bad, just that they may or may not be good for reef tanks.

Labman, I love Tangs, most all are beautiful, but until (which won't happen) get a 180 or bigger tank, tangs are taboo! Like all here have said, no stress, good fish, stress, bad things happen.

shermlock · Nov 21, 2006

Taylor Made is correct. Once the ich parasite is on the fish, it will not kill the parasite. Once the parasite/protozoan leaves the host and becomes free swimming, also called a tomont, it will then enter the U.V. sterilizer and be killed. It limits the generational process of ich.

Scott

Kaptain · Nov 21, 2006

I LOVE my tangs. Right now I have A yellow eye(Kole), large Sailfin, A yellow and a large purple. I would like to add a nice Powder Blue, and then a Sohal. I always quarantine for one month, medicate QT tank, ensure they are eating a variety of foods (once a week food is soaked in Garlic Guard) and provide lots of room in the main tank (220 gallons with only about 150 pounds of LR. Have not had any ich problems with the tangs. DOn't run a UV either. I believe the quarantine is your best preventitve step. My tank has only soft corals in it, so far nobody has touched one.

labman · Nov 21, 2006

Taylor

Taylor_made said:
Do you know that UV Sterilizer's do not kill ich? They are also questionable on whether or not they are good for a reef tank. I do not mean to say they are bad, just that they may or may not be good for reef tanks.

Labman, I love Tangs, most all are beautiful, but until (which won't happen) get a 180 or bigger tank, tangs are taboo! Like all here have said, no stress, good fish, stress, bad things happen.

I agree 100% maybe A LARGE TANK! even my 194 I don't feel comforable with them after having the yellow and a blue for a brief period I realized that the tank
sizes are very underated. I noteced this very well in my 130 setup deffently need a good 6' of running room and agree on uv as well as ozone and skimming debate is open on all these subjects.

labman · Nov 21, 2006

quarateen

Kaptain said:
I LOVE my tangs. Right now I have A yellow eye(Kole), large Sailfin, A yellow and a large purple. I would like to add a nice Powder Blue, and then a Sohal. I always quarantine for one month, medicate QT tank, ensure they are eating a variety of foods (once a week food is soaked in Garlic Guard) and provide lots of room in the main tank (220 gallons with only about 150 pounds of LR. Have not had any ich problems with the tangs. DOn't run a UV either. I believe the quarantine is your best preventitve step. My tank has only soft corals in it, so far nobody has touched one.

deffently a good idea but a does not remove the stress of a fish of moving them from one tank to another and I know of people having fish for years before having a ick outbreak and Garlic well very debated some people swear by the stuff some say it's a placebo but then again allot of things in this hobby are who realt know what works lol..

I think the key is a large tank. or be tang free

lunker · Nov 25, 2006

it's a personality thing I think, I have a powder brown, a naso, a sailfin, a yellow, and now a unicorn. I have a mixed fish and reef, love pure reefs, but dont understand a 150 or 180 gallon with 2 chromis and a psudochromis, to me there isn't enough life to watch. Tangs do pose some problems, but like anything we add to our tanks, it is the challenge that you accept, and I have had some ich problems, but after taking appropriate actions, everyone now looks absolutly beutiful and happy, which gives me an great feeling of accomplishment, and after all, thats what we are after!

Tang Question

labman

waynesreef

electrikredd

300E

stronghandsmcgee

slapshot

zrack4

jp4whln12

DLBerlin

jblabs

cheapfish1

labman

Shaun

lightngsvt

Taylor_made

shermlock

Kaptain

labman

labman

lunker

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