hi everyone im new here

[braelynsNemo]

hello everyone,
im new to the site. i have been researching marine fish for about 8 months now and i have a few questions.

1. i wanted to buy clown fish.... 2 nemos, 2 tomato, 2 gold marroon, and 2 black and white ........should i get them as mated pairs? will they get along together?

2. i am debating on getting a 55 gal or 75 gal . how much LS should i have?

3.i live upstairs in a apartment should i go smaller?

4. what type of light should i get? i want to have live rock but im not gonna attempt to get anemone yet too scared lol.

5. i was gonna keep a 5 gallon bucket with sw in it with a bubbler for water changes but i have a 2 1/2 year old and a 11 month old daughter. do u have a better idea?

thanks hope i didnt ask to much i just want to make sure i know all is needed before i start this. thanks mandy

[tamableanimal]

hello everyone,
im new to the site. i have been researching marine fish for about 8 months now and i have a few questions.
Welcome to the addiction
1. i wanted to buy clown fish.... 2 nemos, 2 tomato, 2 gold marroon, and 2 black and white ........should i get them as mated pairs? will they get along together?
The marroons are highly territorial when they get older, and all of them are touchy when they spawn. I would suggest just picking one type of clown. Most of them can be kept in small groups, as the largest two will become male and female and the others will remain submissive.
2. i am debating on getting a 55 gal or 75 gal . how much LS should i have?
Generally larger tanks are more stable, so easier to take care of.
3.i live upstairs in a apartment should i go smaller?
Most buildings that I have seen should handle 75 gallon tanks easy enough. It helps if you know which way the floor joist run so the tank sets opposite.
4. what type of light should i get? i want to have live rock but im not gonna attempt to get anemone yet too scared lol.
If you are thinking of getting an anemone or you want corals then I would suggest t-5 ho with individual reflectors or metal halide lighting. If you just want a fish only tank then any lighting that you like the looks of will work.
5. i was gonna keep a 5 gallon bucket with sw in it with a bubbler for water changes but i have a 2 1/2 year old and a 11 month old daughter. do u have a better idea?
I use a 15 gallon rubber made tub with a lid. I put in a small powerhead to circulate and put the top on. The cover keeps things out that my 4 year old thinks needs to be in. And it doesn't lock on hard enough to pinch the powerhead cord.
thanks hope i didnt ask to much i just want to make sure i know all is needed before i start this. thanks mandy
I hope that this helps.
Rich

[sharkmatt]

hello everyone,
im new to the site. i have been researching marine fish for about 8 months now and i have a few questions.

1. i wanted to buy clown fish.... 2 nemos, 2 tomato, 2 gold marroon, and 2 black and white ........should i get them as mated pairs? will they get along together?

Generally in a tank the size you're going for (55-75g) you can only have one pair of clowns. They're part of the same family as Damsels and actually quite territorial. You don't have to get them as mated pairs. Get two small clowns (under 1/2"). When they're young they're both males. One of them will become dominant and turn into a female and hopefully they'll mate. Simple as that :)

2. i am debating on getting a 55 gal or 75 gal . how much LS should i have?

Don't bother with live sand, it's expensive and not worth it imho. Get some good quality live rock and any sand will be live in time anyway. If you know someone with a salt water tank you can get a scoop or two of their live sand to seed yours.

3.i live upstairs in a apartment should i go smaller?

No, you should be fine with 55-75g so long as you're floor is in good condition etc. No guarantees given though lol!

4. what type of light should i get? i want to have live rock but im not gonna attempt to get anemone yet too scared lol.

Depends if you want corals or not. Just lr will be fine with any normal light setup. If you want corals you're gonna need a bit more. If you eventually want an anemone you're gonna need metal halides really. Probably 2x150w on a 55g.

5. i was gonna keep a 5 gallon bucket with sw in it with a bubbler for water changes but i have a 2 1/2 year old and a 11 month old daughter. do u have a better idea?

Not really sorry. Someone else might have some ideas.

thanks hope i didnt ask to much i just want to make sure i know all is needed before i start this. thanks mandy

No worries. You're doing the right thing researching first, always nice to see. Patience is the most important skill/attribute to have in this hobby and you're already displaying your mastery of that. Good luck and keep on asking the questions and reading away.

Shark.

[clown-lover]

Looks like your questions have been answered.. So Welcome to AC :D

[salty420]

welcome to AC mandy! as the others have said, pick the type of clown you like and go with a pair of that type of clown only - otherwise you will have BIG problems!!! as far as amnt of sand that will depend if you want a DSB (deep sand bed) or not. minimum you will need 1#/gallon but as you've read it does not need to be live, a good aragonite is fine. as far as LR go with 1-2#/gallon. oh and i had a 55g and a 75g on the 3rd floor of an apt so you should be ok :) as far as WC containers go, i agree that a rubbermaid container that you can put the lid on would probably be the safest way to go. kat

[braelynsNemo]

thank you so much for everything.... as far as the sand , my brother has a sw tank so i can seed it then.....thnks for the info about the clowns... good to know.

[andy1130]

If you go for the goldstripe maroons as your clown of choice I would look for a mated pair, my experience with them has been that they are particularly aggressive and just putting two together typically doesnt work. Maybe some other people can chime in on these guys.

[scootrnerd]

:welcome:

[TomToro]

Welcome to the club. Get your wallet ready:grinyes:

Seriously, this is a great site and lots of knowledgeable folks can and will help you.
Good luck and go slow,
Tom

[Mgamer20o0]

Welcome to AC.

[buzzbombtom]

some appartments will not allow more than 30 gallons upstairs. run the risk its worth it.

[braelynsNemo]

some appartments will not allow more than 30 gallons upstairs. run the risk its worth it


that would be my luck with this complex.im already really considering not renewing my lease. my daughter was in the hospital during christmas and my car stayed parked outside my apartment 2 days .... they fined me $100 and towed my car... they said its management policy that a car cant stay parked more than two days with out being moved...they are like dogs they wait around the corners and watch lol. i already have a 10 gal hex on the bar for my kids with gold fish in it....... so far nothing has been said.....if they know whats best for them they wont say anything lol

[buzzbombtom]

hmm that is odd... i know that if you get like a 50 gallon you can claim that it is only "holding" about 30 gallons of water. my 46 gallon bow front is such an odd shape that i think that they might buy that lol. the dead giveaway that i have a tank is my lighting though i am kinda worried about someone complaining that it is annoying

[Reefscape]

Also remember, by the time you have added equipment, sand, live rock etc etc, a 30 gallon tank will prob only be holding about 20 odd gallons...So, a bigger tank could technically be brought... :)

Niko

[1wizz]

Welcome to AC.
Fantastic people and always a great help.

[schigara]

When I was looking for my GS Maroon clowns, I never could find 2 together so I got a small mis-bar and then a few weeks later found a larger one.

It was war for a couple days and a lot of frayed fins but now have become best buds.


If you go for the goldstripe maroons as your clown of choice I would look for a mated pair, my experience with them has been that they are particularly aggressive and just putting two together typically doesnt work. Maybe some other people can chime in on these guys.