Beginer clownfish advice.

My tank is about one month old and has finnished cycling. After testing it, all the conditions are normal. The tank is a 20 gallon long with 29 lbs of live rock. I'm planning on getting a two young common clownfish within the next week or so. I've read some articles on them but I'm looking for some experienced people to help. Do you guys have any advice on keeping these guys healthy? Did you make any mistakes that I can learn from? Thanks for the help everyone!

PS: IDK if it matters, but I'm planning on having many different types of soft corals. Eventually I want to get an annemene (spelling) for them to host. Any ides?

 

just get two that seem to get along. they should become a pair. they are pretty hardy, just feed them a good balanced diet and keep nitrate low and they will flourish

 

They are a VERY hardy fish. As a clown fish owner of 6 years & my oldest female is 6 years old.. I have 3 pairs of them in three different tanks.. They can & most likely get meaner with age. My two oldest bigger clowns (females) bite & will draw blood... The smaller clowns (males) are fine... If you get a pair, one of them will change sexes if they are the same sex.

Mine eat whatever I give them.. So fair warning, they are far from Nemo nice! lol..

 

great fish, tough little suckers they have withstood my rookie mistakes.

and they bite, lord does my female like to bite.

feels like a bee sting.

...they will know you, you will know them... you will watch them... they will bite you.

it's a beautiful relationship.

 

+1 on getting a couple that seem to get along and placing them in your tank together, they dont forcibly need an anemone right away but would be a good idea to get them one later and in this regards i suggest a bubble tip as they are one of the hardiest.

other than that i have 2 perculas myself with an orange BTA and they love it.
also dont be afraid of their strange habits, clows are...well....clowns. they act really strange at times. if you dont have a "home" for them (torch coral, anemone or whatever else) they will sleep in the strangest manner.

some sit at the bottom of the tank sideways and look dead, others let themselves float around at the mercy of the powerhead currents. dont worry this is "normal"

 

I had a clown for 8 years, I had it in Seattle and moved it with me to San Diego on my road trip. Tough fish. It ate out of my hand.

 

I like clownfish there really cool fish, they are very easy fish to keep as long as you feed them good nutritional foods and keep water quality good. As for anemones, be sure that you do your studies on which one to get because some anemones are not compatible with clownfish.

 

Thanks for all of the advice everyone! I can't wait to get these little guys home and into my new tank. Watch my build thread for pictures and videos.

 

Can't wait to see photos of your new clowns!

As others said, they are super hardy fish. One of my guys lived through a tank crash (after moving the tank), where all the other fish died in a matter of hours.

They eat pretty much anything and are cute and fun to watch - especially in pairs.

Good luck!

 

My favorite is the gold striped maroon. I had one for about 5 years and I really enjoyed it. I plan on starting my new tank (first tank since 2006) with one. Like others have said, they can be very hardy fish, and have quite the personality.