Are lids essential for our reef tanks?

[Gumbies R Us]

I had a lid for my reef tank. It was a DIY mesh lid I made using a DIY screen door kit from the hardware store. I got it because I was afraid of my fish jumping out of my tank. Well, good thing I had it, because my firefish (a few times) and my YWG tried to jump out of my tank a few times.

I see a lot of reefers who don't run lids and never have issues. That is why I am asking the question I am asking. Are lids essential for every reef tank? Are they more of an annoyance than a benefit? Does it cause more problems to have a tank lid vice versa?

 

[fishface NJ]

I want my wrasses in the tank. Twice I heard one of the wrasse jump and hit the mesh screen

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Depends on what you keep, IMO. With jumpers, yes, but it can be a vented or unvented canopy, not necessarily a tight lid, which is a problem for aeration.

 

[Michael Hughes]

Yes, I think they are a necessity for any tank with fish. With all the effort and cost we put into keeping fish, feeding them a proper diet, quarantining (or not), it seems like such a small step to include a lid given how often fish jump out.

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

YES I think so, otherwise you are just gambling.

I saw a video of a clown fish trying to strike another fish from the bottom towards the top of the tank. The other fish moved and the clown jumped clear out of the tank.

 

[DaJMasta]

Yes, essential. There enough fish that are jumpers and enough instances of aggression that encourage it that it should be considered essential and that you WILL lose livestock if you start a tank without a lid unless you plan your stocking list entirely in advance and carefully introduce them. Even then, it's reasonably likely.

Wrasses
Dragonets
Several ornamental shrimp (even big cleaners if there are territory squabbles)
Many smaller gobies
Cardinals if there's aggression
Many blennies
The list goes on

Use a lid. It doesn't look as bad as you think.

 

[Gsponi]

Oh yes i lost a Clownfish an my beautiful Mandarin Male. Now i have a DD-Jumpguard and i think the tank look better with, than without. But the Jumpguard mesh can absorb up to 10 % PAR i heard.

 

[Privateye]

Add jawfish to the list of jumpers!

It's really best to have one. I'll bet that a lot of people that think they never had a jumper just haven't found one yet ("it just disappeared"). When I did aquarium maintenance for a company people would hire us to move their tanks (movers moved the rest of their stuff) and you'd often find some crispy fish in the process. Often firefish, but sometimes wrasses and jawfish.

 

[get-salty]

Just put a LID on it.

 

[exnisstech]

I suppose it depends on your risk tolerance but if you want to be sure you don't loose fish from jumping 100% needed. And don't forget to put the lids back on as well as putting the feed covers back on as soon as feeding is done or working on the tank is finished.
Any fish can jump but many are almost guaranteed to jump. That said I run 4 tanks with no lids. I don't keep fish that are known jumpers but I did loose a clownfish that jumped once. My issue is I'm to cheap to spend the money to buy 4 custom lids especially since one tank is 7ft long and I find myself in the tanks too often so it's a hassle removing lids to work in the there. My tanks are in our living areas and I don't care for the looks of the diy lids.

 

[Waters]

Absolutely. As much as I would rather not use a lid, I have lost way too many fish over the years....everything from wrasses to lionfish to clowns.

 

[mook1178]

Yes, all fish will jump given the right circumstances, ie disputes, chases, whatever.

 

[56longroof]

Essential? Probably not but they do save money lost on jumping fish.

 

[landlubber]

I started my display with a mesh top and in the first week of owning it had a firefish manage to launch halfway through one of the squares and crisp up.
The lighting was projecting a grid on my backwall that I never liked and i'm sure Karma will get me for mentioning this but I removed my screen in 2018 and never looked back.
In the past 8 years nothing has jumped.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I currently have 4 lidless tanks, I've always gone lidless, I have maybe 5-6 fish jump on me in the last 20 years. I have the old fashion rock wall with lots of rock piled up, and my tanks are understocked. In those times when I forgot the pot on the stove and I run across the living room, 17 fish all bolt to their home in the rocks, I've never seen a fish bolt straight up.

IMO if a fish has a home and no bullies, then it has no reason to jump.

 

[commod0re]

If a fish has a home and no bullies, then it has no reason to jump.

There are other reasonably common reasons for fish to jump though

A couple weeks ago my scooter dragonet jumped out because I startled her while I was doing some in-tank maintenance. Fortunately I saw it happen and we got her back in the tank immediately and she was fine

A bit before that I read a thread on here where someone lost a fish because it jumped out after getting startled by their cat

You are very lucky to have never seen it, but it does happen even without bullies

 

[fish_collector]

Without a lid it’s just a matter of when, not if, a fish will jump. I have a few filefish that hang out near the surface and almost daily make a splash up onto the net on the lid. I’ve lost wrasses and damsels as well. Fish cost too much just to let them jump to their death.

 

[ChrisfromBrick]

of course not. But after losing 4 fish to jumping, they are to me.

FYI- I dont care what brand it is, whether it is the finest mesh in the world etc etc. Lids suck. My PAR levels dropped about 50 points and the light reflects into the room. Tank looks so much nicer without a lid but im sick of losing fish. That said, the top lid I have is easy to take on and off.

 

[billyocean]

Nope

 

[BriDroid]

I HATE having a lid, but mainly because it’s a pain to remove them to get inside when needed. I run a DIY lid because I keep a wrasse, firefish, goby and blenny and I don’t want to lose them. I just wish I didn’t have to.