fish and coral balance?

[reef cuber]

Is there a proper balance, between the number of fish and type or quantity of coral in a 30 gal tank? I'm still pretty new to reef/fish keeping and since I'm working with a smaller tank I know I need to be more aware of conditions and relations between fish and corals and water quality. Am I correct to believe that some corals benefit from fish or am I wrong?

I don't mean symbiotic relationships like anemone and clowns etc.. I'm thinking more on the lines of a water quality, fish waste, etc.

or is this not even necessary to consider and I should just be on my merry way, buy what fits the tank and enjoy it?

I am trying very hard to go slow... lack of lots of funds help limit my purchases but I want to balance out what I get as I get it.

 

[Ron Reefman]

IMHO, for the most part corals don't care much about how many fish you have as long as you aren't overloading the tank's ability to deal with waste. And yes, some corals do utilize some fish waste.

Pick the corals you like, the fish won't care how many you have. Pick the fish you like, just make sure they are coral safe and don't over stock the tank.

Good luck and have fun. I'm 12 years in and still love it!

 

[davehead86]

I started with a 20 Gallon and these sizes limit what fish you can have just based on the amount of swimming room available. So basically no tangs or large body fish. In a smaller tank corals are usually the main attraction to focus on since the number of fish is smaller and they are just smaller fish. You can pack coral in all you want but you ahve to keep flow requirements, and lighting requirements in mind. So you can put in a MONTI but with the way it grows it may shade out half the tank if you dont cut it back frequently. and keep it in line.

I moved to a bigger tank for the sole reason of wanting bigger fish, more coral, and wanting equipment that would help keep my water clean and healthy for the fish without having it all hang off the back like a maze of stuff. So those are some other things to keep in mind.

 

[mcgyvr]

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/blog/fish-pee-is-vital-to-reef-health