A Beginner To Sw--75 Gallons

I just got my 75 gallon the other day, and have had it cycling since then.
I feel as though I need to decide on what fish I want sooner rather than later, because it will dictate my supplies that I get and how I scape.
I eventually want to put in corals. I also like angels and blennies and triggers. I feel this should be done with caution.
Here's a list I tried putting together, of the fish I want to get. Maybe someone could critique it, give advice on compatibility, choose ones I should start with and ones I shouldn't ever get.

Cleaner shrimp
Clownfish
Blenny (Midas, tail spot, harptail)
Royal Grammla Basslet
Flasher Wrasse
Redstripe angelfish (Dwarf)
Yellowhead Jawfish
Cardinalfish
Azure Damsel
Chromis (Blue reef)
Dartfish (Zebra, Scissortail, Firefish, Gudgeon)
ValentinI & spotted puffer
Striped squirrelfish
Humu Rectangle Triggerfish
Dottyback
Flame angelfish (Dwarf)
Six line wrasse
Foxface
Curious Wormfish
Swallowtail angelfish
Lawnmower blenny
Niger trigger
Powder blue tang
Emperor angel

Thanks in advance!

 

First off, welcome to the salty side:

Second, I hate to burst your bubble but you are going to have to seriously revise your list there.

1) Saltwater isn't like freshwater where you can pack a 75 gallon with fish and be good. 8-10 fish that are good sized will max out your tank
2) Triggerfish all get way too big for your tank and are notoriously aggressive and not reef safe
3) The following fish are too big for your tank: The Tang, Any full size angel, Triggerfish, The Squirrelfish
4) Your tank is too small to mix dwarf angels. Only one will do and keep in mind that dwarf angels can nip at corals. Flame Angels tend to be on the more aggressive side and the Red Stripe is more prone to nip at corals. If you are going to attempt a pygmy or dwarf angel then I would recommend either the Cherubfish or the Coral Beauty
5) Dottybacks, Damsels and 6 line wrasses are terrible tank mates. The only exception to that is the captive bred orchid dottyback
6) Puffers will eat inverts and some can poison your tank when stressed so be sure to research them completely
7) Firefish, Small Gobies and Small Blennies are arguably the most easily targeted and bullied fish in the saltwater trade and many fish on your list will cause problems for them
8) You need to spend some time researching for these fish. They are pretty accurate in terms of minimum tank size required for a given fish, general temperament of fish, whether or not they are reef safe (ie won't eat inverts and corals) and the difficulty of care.

I'm not trying to rain on your parade but it sounds like you did a ton of research into what looks cool and zero research in terms of what will fit your tank, reef compatibility, temperament and care level. I would say about 30-40% of those fish are NOT newbie friendly.

 

Congrats on getting a nice size salty tank! We would love to help you get set up. Sorry to say it, neither of us really want to burst your bubble, but Jesterrace is right. You did mention blennies and angels first though, and you could have a blenny and a dwarf angel. I LOVE a tailspot blenny... they are definitely good looking and cool to watch. I also love jawfish, but it's important to offer them the correct environment via your substrate. Here's a thread where I brought that up and got some great advice from KinsKicks , one of our top salty advisers, and also a salty stocking guru. Perhaps she will be able to offer you better stocking advice than I can.
Jawfish / Deep Sand Bed

 

Thanks for the advice!
While I did search for all of these fish through liveaquaria, I only really looked at tank sizes, reef compatibility, and temperament. I also took a good look that the big, overall compatibility chart of all the different species of fish and narrowed it a little down from there. Of course, at the very beginning I made a longer list of all the fish I thought I liked, but then after doing some research I narrowed it down to what I posted. So yeah, I am kind of treading in unknown waters here; and for angelfish and triggerfish, I saw a lot of people who did keep them and liked them in their reef tanks, even in a 75 g so I figured I'd try and keep them on my list.
Also, that list was just kind of like what I was hoping to be my catalog, rather than my shopping cart, if you know what I mean. So I wasn't planning on cramming 40 fish in all at once!

Now, should I assume that any fish you did not mention in your reply will be safe, good choices?

Thanks so much!

 

Now, should I assume that any fish you did not mention in your reply will be safe, good choices?

Sorry to say it, but no, not at all. Remember that we've mentioned dwarf angels, and not angels. I would also say that just because some are able to maintain similar sized tanks with large fish like emperor angels and triggers, does not mean it's a good idea, nor should a beginner attempt it.

I'm not great with stocking, as I maintain nano tanks. It's difficult to say all that you could have, because you certainly don't want to overstock a reef tank. Remember that corals need very steady parameters, and very low nitrates and phosphates. This can be very difficult to achieve in highly stocked tanks. I'm just not exactly sure how many of which fish would provide a healthy bioload for a 75 gallon reef. Wish I could be more help...

 

Sorry to say it, but no, not at all. Remember that we've mentioned dwarf angels, and not angels. I would also say that just because some are able to maintain similar sized tanks with large fish like emperor angels and triggers, does not mean it's a good idea, nor should a beginner attempt it.

I'm not great with stocking, as I maintain nano tanks. It's difficult to say all that you could have, because you certainly don't want to overstock a reef tank. Remember that corals need very steady parameters, and very low nitrates and phosphates. This can be very difficult to achieve in highly stocked tanks. I'm just not exactly sure how many of which fish would provide a healthy bioload for a 75 gallon reef. Wish I could be more help...

Thank you anyways. I will definitely think twice about angels and triggers now. Puffers, I won't get either, I already have two green spotted ones in my brackish tank.

At this point, although it is weeks away, I believe I'll start with clown, cardinal, blenny, and dartfish. I will also maybe try just one coral to start those a few months later.

 

Your current start list is a much more realistic expectation for your tank. The good news is that there are plenty of wrasses that will fit well in your tank and other than munching on the occasional snail or crab should be reef safe. I am a big fan of the Melanurus Wrasse. I have a young juvie in my 90 and it has been a wonderful fish. They are a rather dull and drab fish as a juvie but become stunning once they mature. Here is a vid of a male Melanurus Wrasse with my juvie.

 

Yes, I forgot to mention that you could have a wrasse or two as well. They are such beautiful fish, and there are so many to choose from. Just be sure to research each individual fish before buying.

 

After much more research and having taken in all this wonderful advice, I thought I'd check in one more time.
I decided I should start with a Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp, a Clown or two, a Cardinal, a Midas Blenny, and a Flasher wrasse (or Hoeven's Wrasse?)

I also think that later, I may be able to add a Kole Yellow Eye Tang, and either a captive bred Orchid Dottyback OR a Royal Gramma Basslet. And if I decide to take a risk, possibly either a Redstripe or Flame Dwarf Angel.

How does this sound? In some places I have about 4" of sand, lots of big conch shells, and I am getting more rock and caves soon. Then I'll add some plants, and finally turn to corals once I feel all my fish are doing well and that the tank is ready.

Have I chosen a good order to put fish in? Some of them say to put certain ones in first, but others don't specify so I'm assuming it doesn't matter--but I always greatly appreciate the opinions of experienced aquarists.

Thanks!

 

The stocking sounds pretty good, though I am a little unsure about the tang. Many will say that tangs should not be housed in anything less than 100 gallons, but I do not have any personal experience with them.

In my experience, it is important to stock carefully and in a specific order. You want to start with your most timid fish and slowly lead up to the most aggressive. This is so the timid fish has time to establish their territory and know their safe spots before an aggressor is added. You don't have anything very timid on your list there, but I would still stock in this order, and give each addition 2-3 weeks before adding the next.

Cardinal, Blenny, Clowns, Dotty OR Gramma, Angel (maybe), Tang (maybe) - Again, not real sure on the tang, and also not sure if it should be added before or after the angel. Either way, be sure you stock your little guys first. I know how tempting it is to go with the clowns early... they are our mascot on the salty side after all. They are territorial little guys though and can be quite mean. You'll be doing yourself and your fish a favor to let the Card and Blenny get nice an established before adding Nemos.

 

A Kole tang is compatible with this size tank, but something that’s very important that has not been mentioned yet is your experience with saltwater fish. A Kole is a moderate care fish and is very susceptible to ICH as most Tangs are. Do you have a QT available to quarantine a fish for 4 weeks before he goes into your display tank?

I would suggest you start out with easy care fish and work your way up from there.

 

The stocking sounds pretty good, though I am a little unsure about the tang. Many will say that tangs should not be housed in anything less than 100 gallons, but I do not have any personal experience with them.

In my experience, it is important to stock carefully and in a specific order. You want to start with your most timid fish and slowly lead up to the most aggressive. This is so the timid fish has time to establish their territory and know their safe spots before an aggressor is added. You don't have anything very timid on your list there, but I would still stock in this order, and give each addition 2-3 weeks before adding the next.

Cardinal, Blenny, Clowns, Dotty OR Gramma, Angel (maybe), Tang (maybe) - Again, not real sure on the tang, and also not sure if it should be added before or after the angel. Either way, be sure you stock your little guys first. I know how tempting it is to go with the clowns early... they are our mascot on the salty side after all. They are territorial little guys though and can be quite mean. You'll be doing yourself and your fish a favor to let the Card and Blenny get nice an established before adding Nemos.

While most tangs are not suited for tanks under 100 gallons, there are a few that will do well in them. The smaller bristletooth variety Tangs (ie Kole Tang, Two Spot Bristletooth Tang, TominI Tang, Squaretail Tang and the super expensive White Tail Bristletooth Tang) will work in a tank of 75 gallons or larger. It would really be pushing it but some have also had good success with the Yellow Tang in 75-90 gallon tanks. I have been tempted to try a Yellow Tang in my tank but the combo of ich propensity and the fact that many Yellow Tangs are aggressive jerks has kept me from doing so. Wild Bill is correct though that Tangs are ich magnets so you really have to follow proper screening procedures. My recommendation would be to pick one up from an LFS that has been in their tanks for a couple of weeks, so you at least have some idea to it's durability.