Best beginner clownfish

[Patrick M Bodega Aquatics]

Hello! If you have seen my other posts you know that I am new to saltwater fishkeeping and have a 10 gallon that I want to convert from fresh to salt. Most of your replies one way or another included clownfish. I have heard that ocellaris, black ocellaris, and frostbite clownfish are good beginner fish. What clownfish do you think would be good for a noobie? Are there any other fish you'd recommend for a beginner? Like I said, I have a 10g with a power filter and a heater. My water is on the harder side with a 7.8 ph.
Thanks in advance!

 

[sunken3]

i am a little curious about your hard water comment of a ph of 7.8. ideal for a reef tank is closer to 8.3 and you should not be mixing salt with your tap water... now if i misread please forgive me.

on to clowns - most of them are pretty easy fish - most are pretty territorial so they can limit what else you put in the tank.. I have a maroon clown that will kill any other clown i put in my 250g tank (no matter where they swim). he is also the only fish in that tank that always bites me! I also have 2 ocellaris (one orange, one black) that hate my little pygmy angel in a 40g tank (but he is faster and smaller... so i think its a game with him). i have a black storm in a 10g by himself (he killed the mocha storm that i bought at the same time). so you can see clowns are cute... but there is a reason people fear clowns

i'd just pick the one clown type you really find beatiful and go for it.

clarki, tomato, skunk, ocellaris, maroon... personally i like the ocellaris the most

 

[Rickybobby]

I’d say any ocellaris I have an ocellaris (nemo) and a Darwin. (Black). Great fish. They became mates. No aggression very hardy and always happy to see me

 

[Rmckoy]

i am a little curious about your hard water comment of a ph of 7.8. ideal for a reef tank is closer to 8.3 and you should not be mixing salt with your tap water... now if i misread please forgive me.

on to clowns - most of them are pretty easy fish - most are pretty territorial so they can limit what else you put in the tank.. I have a maroon clown that will kill any other clown i put in my 250g tank (no matter where they swim). he is also the only fish in that tank that always bites me! I also have 2 ocellaris (one orange, one black) that hate my little pygmy angel in a 40g tank (but he is faster and smaller... so i think its a game with him). i have a black storm in a 10g by himself (he killed the mocha storm that i bought at the same time). so you can see clowns are cute... but there is a reason people fear clowns

i'd just pick the one clown type you really find beatiful and go for it.

clarki, tomato, skunk, ocellaris, maroon... personally i like the ocellaris the most

That being said .
Is a 10 gal big enough for a Clarki , tomato or maroon ?

 

[sunken3]

it could be snug as they get to be full grown.. but with a nem, they dont really swim much

 

[vetteguy53081]

Pink skunk
percula
sebae

 

[hikermike]

Just stay away from a maroon...they get bigger...up to 4' and fiesty. Ocelaris will do fine together as long as one is big and 1 is obviously smaller and both put in tank at same time. Remember they are a type of damsel. If your tank is well cycled, 10 gal is fine. Clowns don't swim all over the place and neither do most gobies so don't need a big tank wheras tangs and angels etc like lots of roaming room to be happy. My tomato clown hasn't left his corner next to the filter since he arrived 3 months ago.....and it was the same place he was in at the lfs for the several months he was there (which was why I got him for 50% off. Actually, if it were a single clown...it is probably a she)

 

[Gravity]

In a 10 gal tank your best sticking with ocellaris or percula. You can keep a pair if they get along good.

 

[Cambrian Reef]

By far the easiest. Just sayin'.

 

[Billdogg]

I may very well get flamed for this, but IMO if you are planning on having any other fish at all, there really is no clown suitable for a 10g tank. They are all territorial to one extent or another, they can all grow to at least 3+ inches over time (and NO, the size of the fish IS NOT limited by the size of the tank), and other than maybe a couple rock or condylactis anemones, 10g is too small for anemones as well.

jm.02

 

[sunken3]

Just stay away from a maroon...they get bigger...up to 4' and fiesty. Ocelaris will do fine together as long as one is big and 1 is obviously smaller and both put in tank at same time. Remember they are a type of damsel. If your tank is well cycled, 10 gal is fine. Clowns don't swim all over the place and neither do most gobies so don't need a big tank wheras tangs and angels etc like lots of roaming room to be happy. My tomato clown hasn't left his corner next to the filter since he arrived 3 months ago.....and it was the same place he was in at the lfs for the several months he was there (which was why I got him for 50% off. Actually, if it were a single clown...it is probably a she)

a 4 foot maroon clown?? now i am really scared!

 

[Patrick M Bodega Aquatics]

i am a little curious about your hard water comment of a ph of 7.8. ideal for a reef tank is closer to 8.3 and you should not be mixing salt with your tap water... now if i misread please forgive me.

on to clowns - most of them are pretty easy fish - most are pretty territorial so they can limit what else you put in the tank.. I have a maroon clown that will kill any other clown i put in my 250g tank (no matter where they swim). he is also the only fish in that tank that always bites me! I also have 2 ocellaris (one orange, one black) that hate my little pygmy angel in a 40g tank (but he is faster and smaller... so i think its a game with him). i have a black storm in a 10g by himself (he killed the mocha storm that i bought at the same time). so you can see clowns are cute... but there is a reason people fear clowns

i'd just pick the one clown type you really find beatiful and go for it.

clarki, tomato, skunk, ocellaris, maroon... personally i like the ocellaris the most

I'm sorry that I wrote that very poorly. Yes, 7.8 is my water hardness but I am planning to use the RODI filter.

 

[40g Nano]

i am a little curious about your hard water comment of a ph of 7.8. ideal for a reef tank is closer to 8.3 and you should not be mixing salt with your tap water... now if i misread please forgive me.

Pretty sure he meant hard because in freshwater, 7.8 is high.

 

[stanlalee]

I may very well get flamed for this, but IMO if you are planning on having any other fish at all, there really is no clown suitable for a 10g tank. They are all territorial to one extent or another, they can all grow to at least 3+ inches over time (and NO, the size of the fish IS NOT limited by the size of the tank), and other than maybe a couple rock or condylactis anemones, 10g is too small for anemones as well.

jm.02

I agree either a single or bonded pair of ocellaris by themselves or 3 or so small peaceful gobies that stay in the 1-2" range is all that's going to fit. If you can light adequately for an anemone your better off with wavy soft and lps corals than attempting an anemone to host which can grow larger than the tank itself, move all over and split into eventually a bunch of anemones with no space.