Tropical Fish Forums

[Ash-P]

I've just been given a 200litre corner aquarium, means I can upgrade my 37litre nano into a real marine tank!

I've already got 1 false common clownfish and a hermit crab.

What other fish can I have? What do you recommend?

Is a black clownfish OK?

[FloridaBoy]

Congrats on your new tank!
make sure you test fill it before proceeding, sometimes pre-owned aquariums can be leakers...
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Keepin' marines happy for 25 years

[Ash-P]

All is OK, now just need fish! Any suggestions?

[diademhill]

I wouldn't mix clown species.

What is in the tank so far?
Sand. live sand. rock etc?
Sump or what for filtration?

What brand is the tank?

[FloridaBoy]

If your tank has been properly cycled, you can start building a community by adding one or two fish every 2 or 3 weeks, move slowly and before you add more fish you need to set up and cycle a 10 gallon quarantine/hospital tank (QT) and make sure you quarantine all new arrivals for 3 - 4 weeks before adding them to your main display; this will go along way in helping to avoid introducing pathogens and disease.

Please do not underestimate the importance of the QT. This is essential to your long term success, in fact, having a second system is my "first rule" in the hobby. It will also provide a safe haven for certain "rejected" specimens in case you encounter a bullying problem, which is very common when building communities in marine aquaria!

It will also be a good idea to plan your tank carefully at this point because one species may create a problem for the others. You need to decide if you want to stick with peaceful fish like your existing clown, or maybe a more aggressive community. If you can avoid the aggression issues (especially inter-species aggression) and keep an eye out for bullies, single specimens like Chrysiptera cyanea can make an excellent beginner fish and in my experience should be okay with your clown.

Some of the smaller Hawkfish (Flame, Longnose, etc.) are also very good as well; but again you have to consider any shrimp that may be predated.

Another excellent fish is the tank raised Orchid Dottyback (Pseudochromis fridmani) which is usually more peaceful than other Dottybacks; some of which can prove to be real terrors, see here:
http://www.aquahobby.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=55617
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Keepin' marines happy for 25 years

[Ash-P]

http://www.juwel-aquarium.de/en/trigon.htm

Its that tank. Its been used to house cichlids for a couple of years but the previous owner had to move house and couldn't accomodate the tank. It currently has nothing in it other than the filter (excluding the medium), heater and the lights it came with.

Do I need to take any futher precautions before adding sand or anything?

[FloridaBoy]

[Ash-P]

By precautions I mean that, since it used to be a topical freshwater, do I need to buy any different types of filter medium? Do I need to give a special cleaning or something or can I start setting up and cycling?

[FloridaBoy]

Cleaning is not really an issue, but I have some concerns about the filter. Based on their information, it appears that filter is a low volume unit designed for planted freshwater aquaria; I don't see any information on gallons per hour or turnover at all. The filter link states:

"The cleaning intervals mentioned above mean that the pump does not need to be as powerful as is often recommended. Slow circulation of water through the media is the optimum for cleaning the water... vigorous water movement and aeration damage plant growth."

Stop the car and pull over; you are not setting up a freshwater planted tank! Higher turnover and good gas exchange is important with marine systems, and skimmers are great for nutrient export. So, I can only suggest that you might be better off going with a trickle filter including an overflow and a sump below the tank. If you added a sump, you could always add a skimmer down there later and hide your heater down there too.

Another option would be a very simple, hang-on-the-back filter designed for marine use with a built in skimmer; like the AquaC Remora, which is rated for up to 75 gallons and can be ordered with an optional prefilter.
http://www.amazon.com/Remora-Skimmer-drain-fitting-Maxijet/dp/B000XE2FGU/ref=pd_sbs_k_3

Filtration choices depend on your system goals. Of course, you need to make sure that whatever filter you choose will fit on the back of that corner style tank you have, and be compatible with the cabinet canopy.
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Keepin' marines happy for 25 years

[diademhill]

You can't use a hang on back filter with a Juwel and they are not available in the UK.
You can use the Juwel filter box as an internal sump space with an upgraded power head and a extra power head in the tank.

You would need to be creative to fit a skimmer.

Every Trigon 190 (not 200 litres) I've seen as a successful marine tank, apart from one with just a pair of clowns and no other fish, has had a sump.