Best fish for 30gl tank

[Mr. D]

I'm new to the saltwater hobby side of things but going to jump right in... I will finally be setting up my tank in the next month if everything goes right... Wondering what some of your favorite fish for a tank this size are so I can knock out my research... Reef safe though

[Nu-Nu the eel]

Same here i have a 30 as well i will try and list a few of my favorites

Osc clowns
Bangaii cardinal
Pajama cardinal
Orange stripe prawn goby
Chalk bass
Six line wrasse
Mckoster flasher wrasse
Yellow watchman goby
Midas blenny
Scissortail dartfish
Fire fish (many types)
Blue chromis
Royal gramma
Clown goby
Yellow head jawfish
Harptail blenny

Just a few lol

[AquaRick]

Can't go wrong with 2 clowns. A goby & pistol shrimp pair is pretty awesome to watch too.

[Mr. D]

How do you think a pair of osc clowns or gold striped maroon clown would do with a mandarin?

I know I want a mandarin or GSM clown but where would that take me with keeping other fish

[Mr. D]

I would try to mate the two clowns if I went osc by getting a big one and a smaller one

[AquaRick]

You won't be able to keep a mandarin in a 30g tank. They require tons of liverock and a mature tank to sustain copepods for them to eat. Best bet would be to try to find one that has been trained to eat other types of food. It can be hit or miss sometimes even with ORA brand mandarins.

Maroon clowns are awfully aggressive, but will be fine in a 30g tank. Be careful if you're adding anything else to that tank though.

[Nu-Nu the eel]

Originally Posted by AquaRick

You won't be able to keep a mandarin in a 30g tank. They require tons of liverock and a mature tank to sustain copepods for them to eat. Best bet would be to try to find one that has been trained to eat other types of food. It can be hit or miss sometimes even with ORA brand mandarins.

Maroon clowns are awfully aggressive, but will be fine in a 30g tank. Be careful if you're adding anything else to that tank though.

Go with peaceful clowns i agree ^. Its really not worth it watching your clown pair rip every fish you put in there to shreads. The mandarin is probably a bad idea as well

[Mr. D]

Okay I'll rethink but the Maroon clowns at my Lfs are $65, they say because they are tank raised and about 2inch... Good price? J/w if I do decide on them and I wouldn't be able to add some tank mates?

For osc clowns around same size it is $18-20.. But I could add almost anything as far as other fish right

[DigiDave2002]

Maroon clowns at the jacks by me are 25$ a piece. 65$ is a bit on the high side...

[AquaRick]

$65 seems a bit high. Regular Oscellaris clowns @18-20 seems really high too.

[Mr. D]

Yeah, I know there saltwater fish are high but always way healthier looking than the fish store down the street from them... Didn't know it was that much higher though

[Mr. D]

They have small osc clowns for like 14 but 65 is the cheapest maroon I seen... They only ever carry about 1-2 at once

[Choonchiesback]

Naked clowns! They rock! I have a pair I got from my local guy that got them from ORA a few weeks back. These guy are awesome!!!

[Mr. D]

Yeah they're neat... I'm really leaning on O. Clowns though the maroon is my favorite but it's so much for one and since they are a bit nasty I'm not sure what could be house with them

[Choonchiesback]

If your heart is set on a maroon. There is a guy breeding "lightening maroons". But god only knows when they will be available to other aquarists. So go with peaceful save your pennies and later on get the designer maroons when they become available. That's what I'm doing. Got my pennies bunched up for a tank and works for them! LOL

[Mr. D]

Lightning maroon? What is that just a name or some trying to breed out aggression in the fish?

[Choonchiesback]

Designer mutation. Kind of like what ORA did with misbar, naked, snowflake, Picasso, platinum, etc. list goes on and on. Google lightening maroon. It's an awesome fish. Has even been published a few times.

[Mr. D]

Yeah they look neat, I think there's a small white and black butterfly fish in the 1st link that looks great too

[Choonchiesback]

Just remember if you do get maroon they are VERY territorial and aggressive. So choose wisely. I lobe the gold bars very much. Nothing like the yellow pop on the dark red body.

[Mr. D]

Will do, thanks for the advice