30 Gallon - Newbie - Looking to learn

[Jaxie]

Brand new to any type of fish tank. Taking over my teenagers tank in hope of a conversation with him, LOL.
I would like to have lots of corals. Especially the ones that the fish like.

30 Gallon
1 Fire Shrimp
1 Goby? I don't know what brand
2 Oscillaris Clown Fish
3 Chromis
3 hermit crabs (i think)
1 zoanthid (he tells me)

I already failed at my first Torch coral.
My first question, What intensity should I set my Blade Grow lights on? (I copied a recipe from online but intensity isn't set)
2nd question, water parameters seem good. What should I learn/do next if I eventually try another coral?
3rd question, which coral should I try to get 1st so i don't kill it like i did before?

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Hey, welcome to Reef2Reef!!! For coral, I always recommend Zoas. They look nice, and are durable coral that aren't too hard to maintain. As for water Parameters? This Link Right here will give you a guide to what you should strive for. Best of luck with the tank!

 

[Jaxie]

Hey, welcome to Reef2Reef!!! For coral, I always recommend Zoas. They look nice, and are durable coral that aren't too hard to maintain. As for water Parameters? This Link Right here will give you a guide to what you should strive for. Best of luck with the tank!

Perfect. Much appreciated.

 

[WestMI-Reefer]

Nice mandarin!

 

[Jaxie]

Is that my Goby type?

 

[slogan315]

Is that my Goby type?

Yes, looks like a spotted mandarin goby. They predominately eat copepods but can be trained to eat prepared foods. How old is the tank?

 

[Jaxie]

My tank is 4 months old. Can they eat brine shrimp?

 

[slogan315]

They can, but it’s hit or miss. Some take to frozen, and some don’t. If he’s been in there a while, and looks fine, then you may have a large enough copepod population built up. Copepods are like little bugs living in your rock and sand.

mandarins have small stomachs so need to eat frequently to survive. So in theory if he was only eating frozen food like brine shrimp, he would have to be fed a few times a day.