New tank

[paintballa]

hey guys. i bought a 10 gal tank from my friend for 35 bucks and it came with a tomato clownfish, large pink tipped anemone,heater,pump,2 mini compact fluorencent lights,topfin filter,thermometer, live rock and live sand and like 3 snails and a crab that just sits under the rock.
i was wondering what other kinds of fish should i buy to put in the tank.
what do i feed the anemone and how often?
wen i feed the clownfish it just eats the food and spits it out.
also how often do i change the water?

 

[paintballa]

what does acclimation mean? some ppl say a 10 gal tank is too small for a anemone but the anemone isnt that big, only takes up a little corner. and there is a lot of room just in open space.
i read somewhere that it is good to put in a raw peeled shrimp in the tank to get the nitrogen cycle going is that true and are they talking about like store bought shirmps for eating?

 

[viper_930]

When people say that a 10g is too small for an anemone, they aren't saying the anemone will outgrow the tank. The water parameters fluctuate much more in a smaller tank than in a bigger tank, and stable water conditions are critical to keep an anemone alive and thriving.
IMO you shouldn't get any more fish. A tomato is already too much for a 10 gallon.
You can feed the anemone meaty foods like mysid shrimp.
I'd recommend a 2 gallon water change every week or every other week is fine.
Acclimation is to get the animal used to something gradually instead of just shocking them suddenly. Like acclimating it to the lighting, new water, etc.
No need for that raw shrimp, your tank should already be cycled when your friend had it.
Also, I'd recommend you give the tomato and anemone away. A LFS may give you some store credit to buy something else. IMO a tomato clown is way too small for a 10 gallon, and that anemone should be in at least a 20g. You do not have enough lighting for it either. Instead, you can get a percula clown or a small goby (<2.5"). A clown doesn't necessarily have to have an anemone to survive, they would do just fine without one. HTH

 

[paintballa]

thanks for the help viper.
wat does LFS mean? live fish store?
and i fed my anemone some raw shrimp before my mom was goin to cook them to eat and the anemone seems to be eating it.
IMO i think precs look prettier than tomatos. if i get a perc and took out the tomato would i be able to keep the anemone and and let the perc hide in it?
also is there other plants that a clownfish would hide/play in besides a anemone?

 

[thomas712]

I can pretty much agree with Viper_930 on this, good post Viper :yes:
As an option you could upgrade lighting and purchase a 29 gallon tank, this would suffice with what you have already and may allow another smaller fish.
Tomato clownfish can be aggressive, I've seen them kill other clowns so don't mix them with any others. A pair of false percs would be ideal to start with they are fun, playful and make excellent tank mates in most aquariums.
Personally I would take the advice on removing the anemone if you are not going to upgrade to a larger size tank, as pointed out bad things can happen in smaller tanks much faster than larger ones.
Good luck, and welcome to the board
Thomas

 

[thomas712]

LFS = local fish store
Some live rock would be ideal furnature for any fish, sometimes clowns will take to other corals for a home, hairy mushrooms, leathers, frogspawns ...etc...
You could get some macro algea if you choose but I've never really seen clowns play in it, maybe others have different experience.
Thomas

 

[jacob_poly]

I had a clarkii that would sleep at night on a caulpera bed. That was the only time it would take to the macro algae though....

 

[paintballa]

my friend is gonna give me some live rocks and coral(like brain and fingers) should i use them? and what kind of light bulbs would u guys suggest?