Kessil

IM 10gal Reef Stocking advice.

A

anizato

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Hey all

Looking for advice, input, steer in the right direction, inspiration and schooling! So let 'er rip

My tank currently has about 6 or 7 Sexy Shrimp and a Cleaner Skunk Shrimp. You can see my Aquarium Journal. In addition to these shrimp, I want to keep some peaceful fish. Below are some stocking possibilities I came up with.

I am thinking of going one of several routes.

  • 1st Possibility:

Yasha Goby
Tailspot Blenny
Tanaka Wrasse
Red Firefish
more Sexy Shrimp

  • 2nd Possibility:

Sand Sifting Goby
Pistol Shrimp
Starry Blenny
Six Line Wrasse

  • 3rd Possibility:

Tanaka Wrasse Super Male
3 Tanaka Wrasse Female
Sand Sifting Goby
Tailspot Blenny
 
Welcome!

For such a small tank (10g but actually less display due to the back chamber) I wouldn't recommend anything more than one very small fish like a clown, very small shrimp goby, damsel, clean goby, Midas blenny, or no fish at all, just invertebrates.

Also stop all the coral foods, testing(other than alk/salinity), and additives, just stick to a simple water change schedule. No need to complicate things so much when really all you need to maintain on a tank this size is evaporation. Usually you can keep up with mineral needs with a slightly boosted parameter salt.

Focus on getting the tank established because often issues will rear their head at the 6-12 month mark.

Also highly recommend joining the club as a supporting member to attend some of the events as well as get more access to the club's knowledge and resources.
 
Wrasses are very active swimmers, with a im10 aio if you factor rear chambers rocks and substrate you probably only have 6-7 gallons of water in the display.

I would not recommend a Wrasse in something with limited space. My 6 line wrasse seems cramped in my 32 gallon tank fyi.
 
Darkxerox said:
Welcome!

For such a small tank (10g but actually less display due to the back chamber) I wouldn't recommend anything more than one very small fish like a clown, very small shrimp goby, damsel, clean goby, Midas blenny, or no fish at all, just invertebrates.

Also stop all the coral foods, testing(other than alk/salinity), and additives, just stick to a simple water change schedule. No need to complicate things so much when really all you need to maintain on a tank this size is evaporation. Usually you can keep up with mineral needs with a slightly boosted parameter salt.

Focus on getting the tank established because often issues will rear their head at the 6-12 month mark.

Also highly recommend joining the club as a supporting member to attend some of the events as well as get more access to the club's knowledge and resources.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the warm welcome!

So with all the current livestock my Phosphorus is at 0.3ppb which is ridiculously low. That is without feeding and just the invertebrates doing their thing for a week, the second week without feeding Phosphorus went down to 0.0ppb. So I started feeding the coral. Needless to say my Nitrates are around 1-3ppm.

I dose 7ml of ALK daily to maintain 8.5dKH.

I just need help choosing fish.
MichaelB said:
Wrasses are very active swimmers, with a im10 aio if you factor rear chambers rocks and substrate you probably only have 6-7 gallons of in display of water.

I would not recommend a Wrasse in something with limited space. My 6 line wrasse seems cramped in my 32 gallon tank fyi.
Click to expand...
cool no 6lines!
 
I'd go with a combo of:
Yasha Goby
Candy Stripe Pistol Shrimp, this symbiotic relationship is cool.
Tailspot Blenny
Red Firefish or check out the Purple Firefish or Helfrichi Firefish, better colors IMO.

Also, consider starting a Tank Journal here on BAR as well for more local help.

And before you get any of those fishes, replace your netting on your lid with window screen. You already had a jumper.




Like Reply
 
SupraSaltyReefer said:
I'd go with a combo of:
Yasha Goby
Candy Stripe Pistol Shrimp, this symbiotic relationship is cool.
Tailspot Blenny
Red Firefish or check out the Purple Firefish or Helfrichi Firefish, better colors IMO.

Also, consider starting a Tank Journal here on BAR as well for more local help.

And before you get any of those fishes, replace your netting on your lid with window screen. You already had a jumper.




Like Reply
Click to expand...
thank you my friend! yes I have a Kraken Reef Lid on. so no more problems regarding that will be had. Also have a fish guard for the overflow. ;)

Cool I'll start my journal on this forum
 
Darkxerox said:
Welcome!

For such a small tank (10g but actually less display due to the back chamber) I wouldn't recommend anything more than one very small fish like a clown, very small shrimp goby, damsel, clean goby, Midas blenny, or no fish at all, just invertebrates.

Also stop all the coral foods, testing(other than alk/salinity), and additives, just stick to a simple water change schedule. No need to complicate things so much when really all you need to maintain on a tank this size is evaporation. Usually you can keep up with mineral needs with a slightly boosted parameter salt.

Focus on getting the tank established because often issues will rear their head at the 6-12 month mark.

Also highly recommend joining the club as a supporting member to attend some of the events as well as get more access to the club's knowledge and resources.
Click to expand...
^^^^^ this right here
 
Darkxerox said:
Welcome!

For such a small tank (10g but actually less display due to the back chamber) I wouldn't recommend anything more than one very small fish like a clown, very small shrimp goby, damsel, clean goby, Midas blenny, or no fish at all, just invertebrates.

Also stop all the coral foods, testing(other than alk/salinity), and additives, just stick to a simple water change schedule. No need to complicate things so much when really all you need to maintain on a tank this size is evaporation. Usually you can keep up with mineral needs with a slightly boosted parameter salt.

Focus on getting the tank established because often issues will rear their head at the 6-12 month mark.

Also highly recommend joining the club as a supporting member to attend some of the events as well as get more access to the club's knowledge and resources.
Click to expand...
Didn’t know about 6-12 month issues. What kind of issues do you mean? Wondering if that’s why my tank has been smooth sailing (especially coral health) so early on - maybe I have not hit the rough patch yet?
 
tribbitt said:
Didn’t know about 6-12 month issues. What kind of issues do you mean? Wondering if that’s why my tank has been smooth sailing (especially coral health) so early on - maybe I have not hit the rough patch yet?
Click to expand...
If you're using new rock (especially any man made or concrete containing) it can slowly leach chemicals that buffer alkalinity levels in your tank or absorb/release phosphate until it reaches equilibrium. This happened at the Steinhart and anecdotally in a lot of other tanks in the hobby.

Another thing is that your microbiome takes months to stabilize, especially if you didn't start with any real live rock. A little benthic succession takes place throughout this time too as organisms battle it out.

Deficiencies in minerals or accumulation of waste will change until equilibrium too.

Also you usually start to reach full stocking at this point and start to get "comfortable" and might start getting lazy with maintenance.
 
Darkxerox said:
If you're using new rock (especially any man made or concrete containing) it can slowly leach chemicals that buffer alkalinity levels in your tank or absorb/release phosphate until it reaches equilibrium. This happened at the Steinhart and anecdotally in a lot of other tanks in the hobby.

Another thing is that your microbiome takes months to stabilize, especially if you didn't start with any real live rock. A little benthic succession takes place throughout this time too as organisms battle it out.

Deficiencies in minerals or accumulation of waste will change until equilibrium too.

Also you usually start to reach full stocking at this point and start to get "comfortable" and might start getting lazy with maintenance.
Click to expand...
I used marco rock….. RHF said phosphate leaching shouldn’t happen until painfully low pH happens (like 6’s), but also that not every reef tank phenomenon matches what happens in theory. I’ll keep an eye out for fluctuating parameters.

I can see myself getting lazy. Won’t let that happen though, proper upkeep is just as important as proper setup.

thanks for taking time to explain :)
 
Stocking a tank is always so exciting.
I have a 10g IM Nuvo stocked with a skunk shrimp that's getting a little too big, a Pistol Shrimp and Yellow Watchman Goby pair, and a Clarkii pair. I would not recommend Clarkii clownfish or Maroons for a 10g, as others have also mentioned. I have another 10g IM Nuvo sitting right next to it with another clown pair, designer ocellaris, and they're much more sedentary than the Clarkii pair. Clarkii girl is always off harassing the snails and hermits and moving her host corals around, and often very active in the top 2/3 of the tank, where the designer Ocellaris pair stays with their host corals about 90% of the time.

Clarkiis are getting an upgrade to 20g soon, and eventually 40-50g. I don't expect to have to ever move the designer clownfish pair, but if I do they'll get a corner of the 20g once the Clarkiis move out.
For what it's worth, I'm going to tear down the Clarkii's 10g completely, or turn it into an invert or nudibranch tank. Maybe a macroalgae display? But something with less fish, or no fish. I would say I have about 7.5 gallons of available water volume in my display with rocks, corals, and substrate.

Do you have a cover on your tank right now? If not, I'd prioritize fish-proofing the tank before getting any more livestock that might want to explore your floor.

I will also second Eric's notion of spending 30 bucks to become a supporting member - cheaper than the Zoa colony I picked up last night, and it really is something worth considering for the shared knowledge from others alone.
 
tribbitt said:
Didn’t know about 6-12 month issues. What kind of issues do you mean? Wondering if that’s why my tank has been smooth sailing (especially coral health) so early on - maybe I have not hit the rough patch yet?
Click to expand...
Because if it caused a problem faster, you'd see it fast and we know to not do things like shock salinity, alk, temp.

No nutrients will take 3-6 months to really bite you, as will pest population explosion

What they all said is good. Small tank means one sedentary fish. If you want more livestock, think about what a larger tank footprint looks like in your home. Lots of deals routinely come up on the b/s/t page, which you need to be a supporting member to see.
 
I picked up some gorgeous colonies and centerpieces for the tank, and got the Clarkiis moved over from the 10g to their 20g today. Man, they were peeved at first but two hours later, they've happily settled in the right hand corner (sigh). They've still got a decent bit of size to put on, and they're both very happy to have more space.
I hope this helps with size reference for stocking.
IM Nuvo 10g is 11.8" long, while the IM Nuvo 20g is 23.6" long. Exactly twice the length.

1000010742.jpg


This is what they looked like in the 10g.

1000010599.jpg

20240501_164433.jpg
 
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