clams are they hard to keep

dreefman · Sep 19, 2013

what is the best clam to keep and what ones are the hardest and how do you feed them thanks :bigsmile:

Tahoe61 · Sep 19, 2013

For me the easiest have been Derasa, the hardest Crocea. Personally I like any clam I buy to be bigger than 2 inches. As long as you start with a healthy specimen, maintain the appropriate values for calcium, magnesium and alkalinity clams are really no harder then most LPS. Knowing how to check for a healthy clam prior to purchase is half the battle. I have never intentionally feed any clams so I can not speak to that.

GHill762 · Sep 19, 2013

My crocea has been flawless since I got it. Good growth, healthy mantle, no gaping.. It's been easy.. Eats up the calcium though.

Agree with not feeding them. Also, I think I heard somewhere that below 2" is fine if they're aquacultured/farmed..

NanaReefer · Sep 19, 2013

GHill762 said:
My crocea has been flawless since I got it. Good growth, healthy mantle, no gaping.. It's been easy.. Eats up the calcium though.

Agree with not feeding them. Also, I think I heard somewhere that below 2" is fine if they're aquacultured/farmed..

Same here! 2+ yrs now under T5HO even

robbrouse · Sep 19, 2013

Just wondering how big of a tank do you need? I've always thought they were cool, but have not done any research..

GHill762 · Sep 19, 2013

robbrouse said:
Just wondering how big of a tank do you need? I've always thought they were cool, but have not done any research..

Depends on the clam. I have a crocea in a 15g. Considering a second crocea..

GHill762 · Sep 19, 2013

NanaReefer said:
Same here! 2+ yrs now under T5HO even

I'm at about 8 months I think..

dreefman · Sep 19, 2013

i got a 90 gal reef tank that has been up know for 5 months now and a 30 gal sump

jedimasterben · Sep 19, 2013

Depends on the species of the clam as to their maximum size and what your method of dosing is, since when they start to get larger, their cal and alk uptake will increase exponentially, since they start adding shell mass, not just length.

dreefman · Sep 19, 2013

Tahoe61 said:
For me the easiest have been Derasa, the hardest Crocea. Personally I like any clam I buy to be bigger than 2 inches. As long as you start with a healthy specimen, maintain the appropriate values for calcium, magnesium and alkalinity clams are really no harder then most LPS. Knowing how to check for a healthy clam prior to purchase is half the battle. I have never intentionally feed any clams so I can not speak to that.

thanks for your help & thank all of you for your help to