Complete rookie to salt water tanks

[rocknerd8509]

Hey:

So my wife and I have two little boys and they are obsessed with fish. So the other day my wife and I surprised our boys with a 24-gallon saltwater tank. It’s the aquatop 24-gallon Recife cube. I personally have had a fresh water tank since I was a child ( as small as 5-gallons to as big as 75 gallons) so I understanding of the basics of keeping a tank and what to look out for. I do want to get into corals but I do know that takes a ton of time and more advanced equipment so just fish for now. Right now we have a blue devil damsel fish ( which we were told was not aggressive and can cohabit with of fish) and 3 blue green chromis fish. We are looking to get a couple of clowns and maybe a royal gramma fish. My wife and I don’t want to stress these fish out and in talking with people at the local shops we have been going to we get a range of answers. So I guess my question is do you guys feel that is to many fish in a 24-gallon tank? We are also thinking of bubble anemone (maybe 6 months later) a cleaner shrimp, fire scallop maybe a clam and some snails. Like I said my wife and I are kind of new to the saltwater game and just want to make sure that we don’t stress anything out and have one big happy family. Thanks all.

 

[lavoisier]

Welcome to R2R by the way!

Damsels tend to be aggressive fish and 24g is a small tank. Adding fish will increase the aggressiveness but you may be able to get away with your wish list...a lot depends on the individual personality of the damsel. Are you prepared to catch and remove the damsel if it becomes too aggressive?

You can also mitigate aggression with lots of rock, which will provide hiding or "breathing" space.

Good luck.

 

[rocknerd8509]

Awesome thank you so much, I think I am
Going to get more live rock today to increase the living space a bit. This is what I have so far.

 

[rocknerd8509]

also yes if I have to I would remove the damsel. I hoping to not have to but if it becomes to aggressive I will.

 

[dmy535]

Clams and anemones require just as much of the “advanced equipment” you mentioned as corals. So just make sure your system is equipped when you try to get those species

 

[rocknerd8509]

I understand. The place that we bought the tank from they claimed that they had the same tank with no modifications to the equipment ( ie stronger lights and/or wave pumps) but just because they said so doesn’t mean it’s right. So as I progress with knowledge of this world
I will move up and make sure that I have the right stuff. That’s the one thing I see with a saltwater tank is time is your best friend and not rush into things. Thanks for the helpful knowledge and I am excited to learn a lot more.

 

[rocknerd8509]

I understand. The place that we bought the tank from they claimed that they had the same tank with no modifications to the equipment ( ie stronger lights and/or wave pumps) but just because they said so doesn’t mean it’s right. So as I progress with knowledge of this world
I will move up and make sure that I have the right stuff. That’s the one thing I see with a saltwater tank is time is your best friend and not rush into things. Thanks for the helpful knowledge and I am excited to learn a lot more.

They claimed to have corals and an anemone in their tank.

 

[Rickybobby]

Welcome. That’s a lot of fish for a 24g. Your stocking list is very high and will require full on reef parameters for later on. I had an azure damsel who was a sweet heart. Not sure about blue devil. What are the dimensions for your tank? I find chromis stress in small tanks. They need a good amount of space to do their thing

 

[rocknerd8509]

Welcome. That’s a lot of fish for a 24g. Your stocking list is very high and will require full on reef parameters for later on. I had an azure damsel who was a sweet heart. Not sure about blue devil. What are the dimensions for your tank? I find chromis stress in small tanks. They need a good amount of space to do their thing

The tank is 18”x18”x18”.

 

[Clownfish_Boy]

I personally would leave the anemone at the LFS. I once tried to keep one with a clownfish I had and it was nothing but trouble.

 

[fishhead1973]

Hey:

So my wife and I have two little boys and they are obsessed with fish. So the other day my wife and I surprised our boys with a 24-gallon saltwater tank. It’s the aquatop 24-gallon Recife cube. I personally have had a fresh water tank since I was a child ( as small as 5-gallons to as big as 75 gallons) so I understanding of the basics of keeping a tank and what to look out for. I do want to get into corals but I do know that takes a ton of time and more advanced equipment so just fish for now. Right now we have a blue devil damsel fish ( which we were told was not aggressive and can cohabit with of fish) and 3 blue green chromis fish. We are looking to get a couple of clowns and maybe a royal gramma fish. My wife and I don’t want to stress these fish out and in talking with people at the local shops we have been going to we get a range of answers. So I guess my question is do you guys feel that is to many fish in a 24-gallon tank? We are also thinking of bubble anemone (maybe 6 months later) a cleaner shrimp, fire scallop maybe a clam and some snails. Like I said my wife and I are kind of new to the saltwater game and just want to make sure that we don’t stress anything out and have one big happy family. Thanks all.

First and foremost take your time and information here on r2r is unlimited always someone to help. Have fun and enjoy. You’re be hooked before you now it.

 

[Ntimm]

A royal gramma can be aggressive. Damsels are normally aggressive. The amount of fish you can house will be dependent on your bio filtration and nutrient reduction methods. Saltwater is much differant then fresh and alot more sensitive.

 

[TrevorL]

With it being a 24gallon aquarium and you are considering adding corals to it later on as well as a anemone I wouldn’t add too much fish. I have a 29gallon Biocube with and anemone and a couple other corals and all I have are 2 clownfish and a goby for fish.

 

[TrevorL]

This seems to be the perfect amount for this tank