New and researching for a cube tank

[Fish Fan]

Clownfish are not as happy-go-lucky as Disney would like us to believe :)

Does the species matter in that case?

Beyond Disney, the general marketing material list then mostly as beginner friendly. Either in illustration or for example here: https://www.fishkeepingworld.com/clownfish/ or here https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/content/post/how-to-care-for-clownfish .

Would getting the pair as juvenile reduce the animosity (in comparison with introducing two stranger adults)?

They are very hardy fish and certainly easy to keep, which is why you see those articles. But they rarely talk about how aggressive Clownfish can be. I’d suggest if you want two that you get a small one and a noticeably larger one, don’t get two of the same size. I’d also suggest that if you want any other fish in the tank that you get those fish first, and add the Clownfish last. That way less timid fish can find their secure hiding spots before you add the Clowns.

 

[Anna K]

Welcome back to the saltwater community!

 

[Gman83]

Welcome!

 

[PharmrJohn]

Hi all!

I’m new to the hobby and still researching. I’m envisioning a 40g tank with a sump and lightly stocked.

I used to have as a teen a 48 L and a 120 L tanks for fresh water. I have some clue on what a fresh water tank maintenance is. Not much about salt water though.

The 40G is to have enough inertia not to overthink water quality (more than necessary).

I’d also want the tank to be somewhat geographically aligned (ie clownfish, anemone, coral and invertebrates to come from the same original bio dome.)

Another think that’s on the requirement list is “should come from aquaculture or more generally not being collected from wild ecosystems”, that including sand and rocks.

Lastly, back in these pre-internet days there were great books about these types of hobbies with diagrams, species descriptions, etc.

Is there anything today that’s relatively up to date with the current knowledge, techniques and hardware that I could read? Ideally it should give a good base on hardscaping, flow, filtration, and basic critter list? Internet can supplement all of this but it’s nice to have something where you can go back and forth between two sections, take the time to study a page, …

I may not even set up anything but let me know your thoughts:)

Well, you're definitely correct concerning the differences between FW and SW. Much more to be aware of with a SW tank. In terms of information, BRS has some good videos on the subject. Just be careful with the inevitable product placement that is inherent with these sorts of videos. Now, not all of the vids are about selling a product. And those are easily identified. But still.....Good information is to be had.

Start up with taking notes. I have an App called Tasks on my phone. Been adding to it for more than a year. It's all but impossible to remember all you read so I'd highly suggest you get something going along these lines. My App is FULL of information now!!!!

So good luck and good reefing! You're gonna have a lot of fun!

 

[Fish Styx]

Greetings and welcome to the reef!

 

[TacticalBacon]

Good call. I went with a 43g cube from Hydra, their Beluga series. It was predrilled for a sump

I wish I had went with a more popular model as the lid support sucks but the tank is pretty awesome.

Depends on where you want to end up. I’d go with a bigger sump. I for a 15g cube sump.

Also get a gate valve for the overflow. A ball valve sucks.

 

[Brisk]

Welcome!

 

[RockRash]

 

[ShakeyGizzard]

Welcome to Reef2Reef !

 

[1112-425XL]

 

[jabberwock]

Does the species matter in that case?

Beyond Disney, the general marketing material list then mostly as beginner friendly. Either in illustration or for example here: https://www.fishkeepingworld.com/clownfish/ or here https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/content/post/how-to-care-for-clownfish .

Would getting the pair as juvenile reduce the animosity (in comparison with introducing two stranger adults)?

Beginner friendly because they are very hardy. Yes, juveniles will get a long better but when they reach breeding size, that's when the shenanigans start. In my mind the best bet would be to get a pair where one is noticeable larger than the other. Still a crap shoot as to if they pair up and both survive.

 

[jabberwock]

Beginner friendly because they are very hardy. Yes, juveniles will get a long better but when they reach breeding size, that's when the shenanigans start. In my mind the best bet would be to get a pair where one is noticeable larger than the other. Still a crap shoot as to if they pair up and both survive.

Also, add the smaller one first. Give it a chance to explore and learn where to hide... Add the bigger one after a week or so. All that, and I admit that I will never own another clownfish. Your milage may vary.

 

[TacticalBacon]

I had done the larger and smaller. When with 2 Clarkii. Little man jumped out of the tank.

Fast forward. I paired her with a smaller but not too small maroon lightning. And Mr Lightening doesn’t take any mess off of her. He’s submitted and what not but he stood his ground.

I think maroons are generally a bit more aggressive than the Clarkii so it’s worked out so far.

But a crap shoot has been the best description I’ve seen.

Winning the lotto would be a bit overkill crap shoot works well.

 

[rob john]

Thank you @jabberwock and @TacticalBacon! It puts a damper on my plans.

How are people successfully breeding them? Are they using much larger tanks? My plan is not to breed but rather to understand the success criteria to keep them.

 

[TacticalBacon]

Thank you @jabberwock and @TacticalBacon! It puts a damper on my plans.

How are people successfully breeding them? Are they using much larger tanks? My plan is not to breed but rather to understand the success criteria to keep them.

I wouldn't let it discourage you, just be aware of the risks.

I see people selling breeding pairs, and I think those are created by trial and error.

They have (or so I've seen) special breeding tanks and then a whole process to go from eggs to fries to little fish (I think I said that correctly).

There is someone on the Marketplace looking to sell his breeding set up.

I read a lot of posts and even marketplace threads to see what people are saying and selling, see what moves quickly and what doesn't move.

My Clarkii and Maroon are getting along great, I am not sure if they will breed or not, but they aren't killing each other, so I am happy with that for the time being.

I am still learning how to do pictures, this one I messed with the settings but this them hanging out most of the day.