Discussion is invited.
For fish---long is generally better.
For corals---because coral-capable lights are expensive---cube or wedge is nice. Note: stony coral (skeleton) needs fancier lights than softies, plus calcium supplementation: this is not hard, but must be done. They eat it.
10-20 gallons---small softie reef. Invertebrates like shrimp. Eventually (they're fragile fish) smallest gobies, esp the littlest shrimp-gobies.
30 gallons---much the same as 10, but 1 dartfish is ok, slightly larger gobies, small blennies are good. Pearly jawfish if you have fairly deep sand. Royal gramma, or chalk basslet. THat's a selection menu, not a 'get them all!'
40---much the same, but multiple gobies are ok: some blennies don't like their own kind.
50---1 damsel, 1 dwarf angel, 1 dartfish, plus previous others, or small clowns with, after 6 months, nem. If you go for larger species clowns, they need the whole tank, and other fish are at risk. This size tank is good for specialty fish like full-sized lionfish, or others like eels, etc, that may need both room and a lack of roommates.
75--- additional gobies, but still only singles of those in the 50 list.
100---1 damsel of a kind, up to 5. Cardinals, dartfish, one of the very small tangs (tomini, eg), all of above.
120---better for tangs than a 100, but stick to very quiet grazers like kole. All of above. Go long tank for tangs and anthias. Rabbit is ok, but will get large fast.
150--More of same, and for tangs and other 'running' fish, the longer and more water the better.
300-500 A lot of oxygenation is helpful for tangs, big angels, butterflies, and others that are appropriate for a large tank...the little guys can live in the cracks, if not on the menu, and some fish like damsels and anthias will occasionally school-up. Very few novices start with mega-tanks: we all wish, eh? But they're quite a bit of work.
If you have fights or aggression, very probably you're overstocked, or you have a tank dominant: once a dominant gets established, this requires some fish-handling skill to get a new guy in.
For fish---long is generally better.
For corals---because coral-capable lights are expensive---cube or wedge is nice. Note: stony coral (skeleton) needs fancier lights than softies, plus calcium supplementation: this is not hard, but must be done. They eat it.
10-20 gallons---small softie reef. Invertebrates like shrimp. Eventually (they're fragile fish) smallest gobies, esp the littlest shrimp-gobies.
30 gallons---much the same as 10, but 1 dartfish is ok, slightly larger gobies, small blennies are good. Pearly jawfish if you have fairly deep sand. Royal gramma, or chalk basslet. THat's a selection menu, not a 'get them all!'
40---much the same, but multiple gobies are ok: some blennies don't like their own kind.
50---1 damsel, 1 dwarf angel, 1 dartfish, plus previous others, or small clowns with, after 6 months, nem. If you go for larger species clowns, they need the whole tank, and other fish are at risk. This size tank is good for specialty fish like full-sized lionfish, or others like eels, etc, that may need both room and a lack of roommates.
75--- additional gobies, but still only singles of those in the 50 list.
100---1 damsel of a kind, up to 5. Cardinals, dartfish, one of the very small tangs (tomini, eg), all of above.
120---better for tangs than a 100, but stick to very quiet grazers like kole. All of above. Go long tank for tangs and anthias. Rabbit is ok, but will get large fast.
150--More of same, and for tangs and other 'running' fish, the longer and more water the better.
300-500 A lot of oxygenation is helpful for tangs, big angels, butterflies, and others that are appropriate for a large tank...the little guys can live in the cracks, if not on the menu, and some fish like damsels and anthias will occasionally school-up. Very few novices start with mega-tanks: we all wish, eh? But they're quite a bit of work.
If you have fights or aggression, very probably you're overstocked, or you have a tank dominant: once a dominant gets established, this requires some fish-handling skill to get a new guy in.
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