Clams and their benifit to a reef tank.

S

sfsuphysics

Active member
Someone over a local reef forum asked a question where to get clams locally. This had me to ask a questoin "Do clams benifit a tank in anyway other than being pretty", being as my lighting is not overly intense (2x 175w 14kMH & 2x 55w 10kPC) I never really thought of clams as an option, mostly due to expense, and another is upkeep by needing a tank that's more than clean.

I got two responses, the first was "about as benificial as a clownfish", then the other was that they increase nitrates, not having any references to go by, only experience that he had a 12" clam (can't recall what species) and nice clean tank, he eventually had to give it away for whatever reason, and then whammo algae all over the glass, attributed he believes to an increase in nitrates.

So this had me curious if they infact do provide some sort of benifit to a reef system. So I decided to post this question here, where just about everyone is a clam fan/expert of some level, and might get a few more responses (and hopefully not start a flamewar between conflicting opinions :)).

So there goes the question, do clams (specifically the pretty ones) "do anything" for a tank?

And if so are there any 'beginner' species that would work under my lighting? (24" deep tank with a 4-6inch DSB).

Thanks
Mike
 
What k value are the bulbs? I just saw a fellow reefer's 2' deep tank lit by 6500k 175's and IMO, they were about as bright as 10k 250's. I've heard that clams will filter feed (some species more than others- gigas) and take in some nitrates and other nutrients along with phyto. All my info I've heard from other reefer's and I can't recall a link to any pages supporting this info :confused: Does anyone know where to find some more formal studies of this?
 
Clams do reduce nirates, but not as much as other filtration methods....but they are a great supplimental natural filter to a reef, especially gigas, but they should only be kept in exceptionally large tanks.
 
Um, IME they're fantastic at sucking down nitrates & phosphates. I keep a 40 gallon clam tank w/ now 5 clams in it & one heavily fed seahorse (frozen mysis). The amount of food to keep a seahorse is deadly to most tanks due to nitrate & phosphate buildup. Never a measurable amount of either in with the clams though.

-jamie
 
Hmm sounds good, so now the question goes what are good "beginner" clams, I do have a 135g tank, but I'd rather not get a Gigas if its going to get to be more than half the length of the tank at 1+ meters!
 
yeah, Gigas get HUGE! Derasa seem to be really pretty hardy, they can get quite big too, 135 is plenty i'd say but make room. I've got one that's about the size of a football & can put on a 1/4 of shell every 2 months if you dump in enough CA.
Squamosa are also quite good. I think they may have more fun color/spots than derasa too. Much slower growing but have a bit more 'quirks', like they are prone to getting bubbles trapped in 'em. Sometimes they just wont open until you pick 'em up & shake, then they'll burp out a big 'ol bubble! I hear good things too about the hippopus (avail from clamsdirect) & had one for saddly only about a week, guy didnt survive the move well but I'm dying to try again.

Tell us more about your lighting? I kept a derasa for a year or so about midway up in a 60 under 440/vho fyi. Pretty much the most standard lighting there is???
 
sfsuphysics: What kind of lights do you have? A 135 is pretty big (not big enought for a gigas...I know clam freaks that won't put them in 250s!), and might need MH for even a lower light clam (since the low light ones need to be on the bottom)
 
Well I 2-175w 14k hamilitons MH, and 2- 55w 10k PC bulbs. Now I know the watts per gallon rule falls short of what I'd probably want, but remember that silly rule is usually only for VHOs and other lighting which spans the length of the tank, where as with the MH lighting its concentrated at one area and spreads out in a cone, so placing something directly under a MH bulb would give more lighting that any watt/gallon rule of thumb says you should have. </minor rant> :)
 
Oh, that's totally fine for derasa and squamosa. Just make sure they're under the bulb directly :) (A maxima or crocea would be good too high up on the rockwork)

Oh, and watts per gallon is totally worthless across the board :)
 
yeah wpg is useless. I agree about the clams go for a Deras or Suam to start with. I have nice 6"+ Maxima that I got at All About Fish in Pleasant Hill about 4?? months ago?? and it's doing awesome I have it directly under my 250w 10k.. Don't buy anything too small though especially like 1-2" they usually die..And rely alot on phyto for food source and it can be kinda PITA to feed them. I had a really small Maxima in my 6g nano underneath a 65w pc and it did great until it got into my 90g something ate it or it died overnight or something.. Did great for about 2months in the nano
 
Bamm Bamm said:
I had a really small Maxima in my 6g nano underneath a 65w pc and it did great until it got into my 90g something ate it or it died overnight or something.. Did great for about 2months in the nano
Click to expand...
Hey Bamm Bamm, do you think if you kept the maxima in the nano for longer than you did, it would have done well? I've read many people recommending MH for clams, but I'm wondering if your PC lighting would have sufficed for that clam.
 
I feel like the clam would've been fine in there as long I would be able to maintain my levels and temps in the tanka nd keep up with the water changes the lights was only about 8" from the water.. I had about 15 or so different corals in there as well..
 
Palidin: For what it's worth...I've known people who have tried that. Several with 96watt powerquads over 6 and 10 galon tanks. The maximas didn't last past 6 months :( They would be fine, then as clams do, they just sudenly bit it.

Those who have 70-175w MH over their nanos (my 15 included) have no probs light wise sustaining clams long term.
 
also smaller clams aren't as reliant on lighting for food source as large ones are.. smaller clams rely on filtered food as well
 
Sorry to jump into this thread, but in a tank that is 28" deep, what would optimum placement be in the tank taking into consideration I am running 400W 13K bulbs????
 
OK, after further consideration and more researching, I decided that my lighting would not be good enough to sustain a clam long term (88w PC over 12g nanocube), and MH is not an option for the nanocubes. I bought a 2 1/2" crocea less than 2 weeks ago, but luckily, the LFS guy let me return him for full price, and I just exchanged him for some coral. I figure someone else with better lighting could better care for him.
 
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