need some ideas for my 10 gallon

jennywenn

jennywenn

New Member
I have a 10 gallon tank with 2 clownfish and a cleaner shrimp. All of my décor is currently artificial. I went to a fish store today to discuss my options with a worker and he told me that the paired clownfish would be aggressive towards any incoming fish and that if I want another fish I should get rid of my dominant clown. (which I don't want to do) I also asked if I could possibly put an anemone or some corals in the tank if I bought an LED bulb instead of the standard fluorescent that I have now and he told me that everything would probably die because any light that would fit into my hood wouldn't be enough for them to survive off of. If anyone disagrees with his advice or has any ideas or success of their own please let me know, I really want my tank to start looking natural.
 
Luukosian

Luukosian

Well-Known Member
Going from fish only with live rock to a reef tank with corals is a natural progression most of us make down the line. It's more than just throwing a light on the tank and now you can keep coral though. I'd say probably hold off on the anemone because they can be pretty demanding as far as water quality and lighting for begginers and can also "walk" around the tank potentially into filters/powerheads if not comfortable in the spot you put them. Pretty big scope of a question without a lot of other questions(parameters, light fixture, water change schedule, etc) but I'd say you're probably safe keeping some mushroom and other soft corals to start out. More light = more potential for algae growth too so just something to keep in mind. I'm sure some people on the forum can direct you to some articles to get you started. Good luck with your tank!

Plenty of people have awesome small tanks full of colorful coral, it just comes down to what kind of time/money/research you want to put in to it.
 
reefer gladness

reefer gladness

Well-Known Member
Can you tell us a little more about your tank? What type, how old, type of filtration etc?

You're LFS gave you some good advice to stay clear of an anemone at this stage. They're beautiful creatures but when things go wrong it can foul up the water in your tank very quickly. Tell us a little more about your tank and how you take care of it (water changes, feeding, etc.) and I'm sure we can give you some good advice of real corals that you can keep successfully.

PS - get 5 posts up and you can post pics of your tank. Use a hosting service like photobucket or similar.
 
D

DaveK

Well-Known Member
A 10 gal tank with two clowns is already past it's max as far as stocking goes.

If you want more fish or an anemone your best choice is to get a much larger tank and set that up from scratch.

While we are on the subject of anemones, they require excellent water conditions, excelent lighting and a well established tank. You typically should wait about one year after setting up the tank before you consider adding an anemone. They also get large so you need a tank big enough so that it will stay out of pump intakes and overflows.
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
Best advice is go slow and learn as you go. Work on a new lighting system ( they gave you great advice at your LFS so reward them with your business) and then start with easy coral and slowly work your way up the coral ladder as your experience and knowledge grow.

10g is pretty maxed out with your 2 fish already. Also some clowns will "host" in things other than an Anemone so don't stay focused on that one goal.

Happy Reefing :)


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BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
reif119 said:
Da da da fish police strike again


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Click to expand...

reif119 what a nice and welcoming comment to offer to a person asking for advice (insert sarcastic smiley here). Maybe instead of dropping by to leave snide remarks you could hang around and add something worth while to the conversation???? If I were just starting out and asked for advice I would appreciate someone giving me qualified and helpful answers to possibly help me to not make mistakes that cost money, heart ache and even the lives of the animals we're dealing with.


KUDOS to jennywenn for having the courage and insight to ask this question. Even though you knew the answer may not be exactly what you wanted to do you still took the time and effort to ask it. Good for you :thumber:
 
J

joy613

New Member
There is silicon anemones you can get for your clown fish if you think it needs a host which would better for a 10 gallon tank.
 
R

reif119

New Member
BigAl07 said:
reif119 what a nice and welcoming comment to offer to a person asking for advice (insert sarcastic smiley here). Maybe instead of dropping by to leave snide remarks you could hang around and add something worth while to the conversation???? If I were just starting out and asked for advice I would appreciate someone giving me qualified and helpful answers to possibly help me to not make mistakes that cost money, heart ache and even the lives of the animals we're dealing with.


KUDOS to jennywenn for having the courage and insight to ask this question. Even though you knew the answer may not be exactly what you wanted to do you still took the time and effort to ask it. Good for you :thumber:
Click to expand...

I am very sorry I upset you I was just making a joke. If you want me to add to the conversation about his tank then in my opinion it is best not to add any corals until you have a quality light. Two clowns Is fine in a ten g as long as you feed minimal amounts of food and are up to date with water changes. A coral feeds and grows from energy (in the form of glucose) produced by the zootanthelle which Is a type of algae living inside the coral. This is where the coral gets its energy and also it's colour from. As many of us know large amounts of nitrates and phosphates are the cause of algae blooms. However as the main source of food in corals the zootanthelle also bloom with higher levels of these trace elemenrs. This can improve the health of corals up to a certain point until the levels become to high that they make the water toxic. Having at least measurable amounts of nitrates means that bacteria that break these down will have a constant supply of food and there population will be stable. This in turn means no spikes in water parameters. To sum it up
If you do enough maintenance and add enough light over the tank you should be successful in the keeping of several corals. Beginner corals I'd reccomend are.
-zoanthids
Mushrooms
Frogspawns
Green star polyps
That's about it
BUT REMEMBER
- you small tank will need lots of Maintenance
- your stocking levels are about max
- any evaporated salt water needs to be topped up with rodi or distilled water not saltwater
-no matter how much the clownfish give you their puppy dog faces do not overfeed
-happy reefing man
GOOD LUCK WITH THE HOBBY


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R

reif119

New Member
joy613 said:
There is silicon anemones you can get for your clown fish if you think it needs a host which would better for a 10 gallon tank.
Click to expand...

Although anemones may be hosted by clownfish in the wild the main reason is for protection from predators. In the captive environment there is no need for protection and they can still live happily in captivity. I don't really think clowns would host a silicon anemone but you can try if you want (just make sure the ornament doesn't contain toxic chemicals) good luck man


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Reddog170

Reddog170

Active Member
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/reef-chronicles/24280-bigals-10g.html
Check out this thread. It is the thread that got my going in the beginning, even before I joined RS. Simple things make BIG changes in little tanks. Do NOT ever dose anything that you cannot test for. For a small tank you can get away without a skimmer, just do larger water changes. Also A DIY LED light is not expensive or hard to build. What do you have for filtration? I would think if you got a large HOB filter and ran some basic media with weekly water changes of 2.5 gallon with a LED light you should be able to keep some basic corals. Best of luck and looking forward to the pics. Shaun
 
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