Thinking of my first tank!

[justinl]

clowns can host just about anything, powerheads, coral (of all kinds), etc etc. there was some talk that wild caught ones would more readily host stuff, but it wasnt proven. something you can do that might help is find a picture of a clown hosting whatever you want your clown to host (example: if you wanted the nem, youd find a pic with a clown hostign a nem) and leave it by the tank.

i would discourage an anemone... there are plenty of other better options. a toadstool leather for example makes a great clown host.

as for the rock, it is virtually impossible to say how much is needed in weight. it is much more dependent on the volume the rock takes up and how you stack it. in fact the only really reliable tool for that purpose is your own two eyeballs. you'll just have to wing it. look at some other reef tanks and decide roughly how full youd want your tank to be and just go by that. i agree with digital that the best way to go about it is to get a bunch of nice rocks of differring size/shape. it makes aquascaping easier and more flexible.

and if i were you i would stick to at most four of those fish... like 1 clown, 1 panda and two chromis for example.

do you know that you really want a panda goby? you would need at least one colony of any pocillopora coral. be aware that these arent easy ish to keep... certainly not anywhere near beginner level. they also lay their eggs on the underside of sps coral which can harm the coral if it isnt a large colony. and to top it all off the pandas sometimes nip sps polyps. just making sure you know what you're getting into.

[Nickel]

Ok thanx for that little losson on Pandas.

I went to an aquarium store to day and the guy there said I should 1 or 2 clowns and 2 or 3 Bicolour Basslets or chromis not a Panda. For a 24g tank. What do you think.
If clowns don't host does that mean there something wrong with them or do they just not want to. =)

[justinl]

Originally Posted by Nickel

Ok thanx for that little losson on Pandas.

I went to an aquarium store to day and the guy there said I should 1 or 2 clowns and 2 or 3 Bicolour Basslets or chromis not a Panda. For a 24g tank. What do you think.
If clowns don't host does that mean there something wrong with them or do they just not want to. =)

thought you said it was a 29gal tank? eh, anyways that isnt bad advice. I wouldnt do 5 fish, but i think a pair of clowns and a couple chromis wouldnt be a bad combination (mind you i wouldnt add any other fish after that).

if a clown doesnt host it's just that... it's not hosting. nothin wrong. some never host, a few rare ones host right away, many take six months or so to pick a home. you just never know. oh i should also add, if you do the whole picture thing, make sure the target host coral is significantly bigger than the clown(s). if the coral isnt big enough it will probably just get too stressed from the clown.

if you go with a pair of clowns, and buy the clowns singly, make sure you do your research well on pairing them according to size. if you find an already mated pair, then that would make life easier.

edit: 2 chromis should be okay in that combo... im not sure about the basslets.

[Nickel]

Do you have to get 2 clowns or could you just 1?

Also a 24g tank would fit 4 fish and a coral or 2 right. =)

[digital-audiophile]

Clowns can be kept alone, but IMHO they do much better as a pair, also just watching the interation between a pair of clowns is worth the price of admission right there.

[Nickel]

New plan I went to this Fish shop and the guy there told me I could buy a fresh water tank put in a skimmer and change the lighting and it would be fine.

He's selling the tank, stand, skimmer, and 40lbs of live rock for about $724 + tax.

Is that good or bad for me to start with? =)

[MikeP]

Originally Posted by Nickel

New plan I went to this Fish shop and the guy there told me I could buy a fresh water tank put in a skimmer and change the lighting and it would be fine.

He's selling the tank, stand, skimmer, and 40lbs of live rock for about $724 + tax.

Is that good or bad for me to start with? =)

What type of lighting? And what type of Skimmer? Also how big is the tank?

[Nickel]

It's a 40g tank with the stand, a protein skimmer and the guy at the store

said I'd just need to get a different light bulb for any coral I'd get. I hope

that helps =)

[scsi]

Originally Posted by Nickel

It's a 40g tank with the stand, a protein skimmer and the guy at the store

said I'd just need to get a different light bulb for any coral I'd get. I hope

that helps =)

If it's a fresh water setup/kit.... the lighting canopy might be just reg flourescent. Many corals require moderate to high lighting. You would want MH or some type of VHO setup.