Few simple, probably dumb questions.

[Capsle]

Hey reefers,

Is there any type of guide or chart that shows fish compatibility for a reef tank?
Do I need to worry about what types of coral I put in with what fish as well as anemones?

What about quantity for each? I know its based on whether or not your tank can handle the bio-load but if it can is there a maximum number of fish / coral / anemones that a tank should contain? They say for freshwater its about an inch per gallon, does that apply to saltwater as well?

Thank in advance for the help!

Caps

 

[TauntingBeef]

http://www.liveaquaria.com when you look at the stats of the fish there is a chart you can read

but I'm still new I just know of that one chart for fish. I have no info on corals

 

[vikinglord13]

That chart is good. If you look at the general "family?" pages on liveaquaria you'll find some information for different fishes. For instance, many angels will nip at soft corals/sessile invertebrate feet (clam feet). Other fish are listed as reef caution because they eat snails and stuff (like non-reef safe wrasses).

If you note that liveaquaria chart has a section called "live corals". It's very generic but is a simple, quick guide.

 

[farfromsea]

If you are interested in getting a host anemone for a clownfish you definitely have to be wary. (1) different species of clownfish like different types of anemone--although I am sure there are exceptions as in nature. sometimes clowns host different things. Was just talking to someone at a swap and they said their clown hosted a Duncan coral. (2) some anemones eat fish--saw a thread a while back where someone's goofy clownfish associated with one of these fatal anemones and ended up being eaten by the next day or so...

List for clownfish+anemone by species
Here is a list. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_3/cav3i1/Clown_anemone/Clown_anemone.htm

I would recommend reading a lot about the fish you are interested in getting. I've had my eyes on a jawfish for years now and just the other day I was reading that anemones are not the best choice for a tank with a jawfish in it. I need to research more on this to verify the source's credibility but this is just an example of something that is not mentioned on LiveAquaria. LA is a really great source though for the basic information! It has helped me a lot.

As for the coral yes you have to be somewhat careful. You can search on here for examples of "coral warfare" and see how coral will attack each other to maintain or gain space in the aquarium just as in nature. Spacing the corals appropriately can help with that. Me, I'm too lazy to deal with that so, so far I avoid corals with stinging tentacles and toxins, but all of these are beautiful so it is quite tempting

You'll do great as long as you read a bit!

 

[Capsle]

If you are interested in getting a host anemone for a clownfish you definitely have to be wary. (1) different species of clownfish like different types of anemone--although I am sure there are exceptions as in nature. sometimes clowns host different things. Was just talking to someone at a swap and they said their clown hosted a Duncan coral. (2) some anemones eat fish--saw a thread a while back where someone's goofy clownfish associated with one of these fatal anemones and ended up being eaten by the next day or so...

List for clownfish+anemone by species
Here is a list. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_3/cav3i1/Clown_anemone/Clown_anemone.htm

I would recommend reading a lot about the fish you are interested in getting. I've had my eyes on a jawfish for years now and just the other day I was reading that anemones are not the best choice for a tank with a jawfish in it. I need to research more on this to verify the source's credibility but this is just an example of something that is not mentioned on LiveAquaria. LA is a really great source though for the basic information! It has helped me a lot.

As for the coral yes you have to be somewhat careful. You can search on here for examples of "coral warfare" and see how coral will attack each other to maintain or gain space in the aquarium just as in nature. Spacing the corals appropriately can help with that. Me, I'm too lazy to deal with that so, so far I avoid corals with stinging tentacles and toxins, but all of these are beautiful so it is quite tempting

You'll do great as long as you read a bit!

Thanks for the info. I have been reading a lot, probably more in the last few weeks than ever before. The amount of information needed is a little overwhelming and I just want to make sure I start my tank off right and have compatible livestock.

Thanks

Caps

 

[Ron Reefman]

As is so often the answer to reef aquarium questions, I'd say, 'It depends.'

If you have a system set up with lots of filtration, quality skimmer, multiple reactors, refugium and such, and intend to do very regular water maintenance by testing and doing water changes, you can have a large number of fish and corals. But understand that as soon as you get tired, bored or busy with other things and let your efforts drop with the tank, things will die and the tank may crash.

It's a long term process and taking your time is a HUGE advantage.

 

[Capsle]

As is so often the answer to reef aquarium questions, I'd say, 'It depends.'

If you have a system set up with lots of filtration, quality skimmer, multiple reactors, refugium and such, and intend to do very regular water maintenance by testing and doing water changes, you can have a large number of fish and corals. But understand that as soon as you get tired, bored or busy with other things and let your efforts drop with the tank, things will die and the tank may crash.

It's a long term process and taking your time is a HUGE advantage.

Thanks Ron,

I'm still a little confused with all the reactors and such.

I plan on having a refugium in the sump with some macro algae (probably chaeto). For my sump setup from what I've read it is better to have a low flow fuge so I plan on doing skimmer and fuge at opposite ends with return in the middle. I'll divert 30% (approximately) of overflow to my fuge.

I have a 75g display tank. I've got 70 lb of live rock sitting in a Rubbermaid bin at the moment in saltwater with 2 circulating pumps waiting for my tank to be ready. I also have 9 lb of dried Tonga branch and 40 lb of live sand.

As for a skimmer I purchased and can't wait to receive (sometime this week) a reef octopus classic 150 skimmer, which is probably way more than my tank needs as it's rated up to 150g moderate bio load and 210g light bio load.

All in all I think my system should be pretty well set to start off.

At the moment I have a basic lighting system, 2 tubes. One with 15k white and the other a blue. I am planning on purchasing in the next few week the Maxspect R420R 180w 15k. I just spent a small fortune on my other equipment so need to wait a week or two for light (especially if I don't want my wife to kill me).




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[Shawn O]

I see a lot of people going by double the manufacturer's rating on a skimmer. If you're running something rated for 150g on a 75 you're probably going to do pretty good in that department. Post more pics when you make more progress. btw, it would be beneficial to resize your pics to 1600 pixels or less. Yours take up twice the screen width.

 

[Capsle]

I see a lot of people going by double the manufacturer's rating on a skimmer. If you're running something rated for 150g on a 75 you're probably going to do pretty good in that department. Post more pics when you make more progress. btw, it would be beneficial to resize your pics to 1600 pixels or less. Yours take up twice the screen width.

Sounds good. Will post more further along. I will try and adjust the pics. I'm using Tapatalk and not sure what it's doing.

Thanks.


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[Tisbe]

There is no hard rule in saltwater. You have to think in terms of, "if I put X amount of nutrients in the tank to keep things thriving, I need to take X amount out or I am going to have problems". Some coral need lots of feeding some not so, some fish like triggers are really messy eaters and other eat algae and are almost part of the clean up crew in regards to their bioload impact on the tank.

Note: Nutrients can be absorbed into the rock and sand for awhile masking a problem. Then start releasing them after you already have too much in the tank. So like Ron said, there is a huge benefit to going slow. For me it was a year and a half before algae became a problem. Now that I have learned better export methods it is not a problem.