Fish to Avoid & Top 10 Saltwater Aquarium Fish For Beginners! - Ep: 31a

[@dusk1947]

Good list and good advice. I'm still fairly new to reefing. I started with a 70 gallon, after keeping planted tanks for years previous. The tank ran for a few months, I had some clowns and a tomini. And then, I became overconfident. I'm not really a big fish person, I love plants and corals. So, I was bewildered and in awe of the first copperband butterfly I saw in my local store. I did some Google searches, ignored all the warnings, did not fully research it, and walked out with an impulse purchase. When I got home, it would not eat anything. I visited 7 fish stores over the next 10 days. Each time digging to discover a food it may eat. Only to slowly watch the beautiful fish wither. I even went so far as to drill custom feeders from PVC, with no luck. After almost 2 weeks, it began to struggle swimming against the tanks current. It was so weak, I tried holding it in one hand and presenting brine shrimp to its mouth with tweezers. Nothing. I watch it die stuck to my overflow box, after becoming to weak to move. We all loose fish in the hobby, be we hope these pets will die after living long and well cared for lives under our charge. Not wasting away from starvation, watching it grasp for breath at the end. That was not my only challenge as a beginner, I would eventually endeavor to resest my tank and start fresh with a better foundation. But that lone copperband had the deepest impact. Whenever, I get to cocky; I just think of that fish and slow down. So, if you're a reading this: heed his words. If it says expert only, their is a reason.

[@laurencefreeman46]

I work at an LFS and a customer came in that had a clownfish live for 27 years and the the anemone eventually ate it.

[@scarecrow9501]

I have never heard of that happening before could it just be the clownfish died in the anemone and the anemone just ate it?

[@somalol8136]

@@scarecrow9501sounds more likely cf usually only live 30~ years so dying at 27 wouldnt be too shocking

[@stevennguyen4993]

​@@scarecrow9501One or the other. Anemones always have the potential of eating their clownfish.

[@milkspotscausemetospazzout6813]

I remember, if my memory is correct I was watching BRS about 15 years ago give or take...these guys are the real deal..they do try and error, experiments and use real data .... love BRS..I wonder how long BRS has been going strong..

[@_bueno_]

Love your energy my dude. You're such a pleasant guy!

[@OfficialBritta]

This is a great list! The only disclaimer I would add is about certain Clownfish & needing to be careful & temper your expectations - Clarkii, any Maroons, etc. Some Maroon Clowns get to be really big too… I’ve seen some reach 5-6” & be super aggressive. Sure, they can still be easy to keep but they will be mean. Actually though, of my 3 pairs of clowns (all designer Ocellaris) they’re all mean. Clownfish bite, a lot! LOL

[@krishnar1182]

I had a green clown goby and it lived for for about 3 years. Of course with wild caught fish you usually can't tell how long they were alive before they were caught. One interesting thing was that during its final days it lost all its color and became completely transparent. You could see all of its organs and everything. It was a fun fish and I recommend them, especially for nano aquaria.

[@jamesgreen9372]

A great topic and video ! I am looking forward to Part 2, Jim

[@RogueAquariums]

Agreed with the list here Matthew. Nice editing :)

[@VitRav]

I had a mandarin Dragonette, it was kept in a “dirty” 125. That tank always had copepods, etc. for it to eat. I wouldn’t really consider the tank dirty just N03 was around 20-30, I don’t remember the rest off hand. Long story short, big tank was likely a success factor

[@MuslimByChoice]

Greetings from Dubai, great video

[@chopers49]

Im not new to the hobby, but my tank is fairly new. Let me say!!! I've broken every rule, and pray everything stay on the up side! It's a 150 gal Standard about 4 and a half months old stocked with 2 storm and 3 mocha Vinci clowns, a coral beauty and eibli angel fish, 1 long nose 1 flame and 1 Falco hawk fish, 2 diamond, 1 twin spot, 1, 1 yellow watchman Gobys, 1 bi color blenny 1 tailspin, and 1 orange spotted blenny, 1 large tomini, 1 blue hippo, and 1 purple tang, the list goes on with a out 8 other reef safe fish, and a ton of nice coral pieces! With that said I'm hyper vigilant and feed a large variety of fish and coral foods. It nerve-racking but thank God it's working!!! OooooooooHhh forgot to mention I'm running 2 Fluval FX 6s... 😬🤣😬🤣🤟🤟🤟🤟 love ❤ your Videos!!!

[@BrandenBowser]

Have had chromis fish (as well as a suite of others / corals / nems) for about 2 years now in one of my tanks. I feed once a day, and they all have done fine.

[@steveconnolly8078]

The list was spot on

[@c3dpo]

Another great video! Just finished my first cycle, struggling to get nitrate down with water changes?? 🤔

[@peep_show8037]

I'd say keep adding live bacteria

[@FoolOfATuque]

Do a big water change. Bigger water changes will be more effective than smaller water changes.

[@c3dpo]

@@FoolOfATuque thanks James, I struggle with the 120 litres for 50% so had to use my AWC for 10% only Ive done this 5 times so approx 50% dilution of nitrates. still looks deep purple on the red sea basic nitrate test.

[@c3dpo]

@@peep_show8037 I think the bacteria is good, 0 Ammonia and 0 Nitrite this was after a massive overdose of Ammonia too. so if I understood correctly, I have the bacteria colonised just need the nitrate below 50ppm for first couple of fish

[@FoolOfATuque]

@@c3dpo did you cross check with a different test kit? Are your reagents in date? Also with the Red Sea test kits you can dilute the sample to get more accurate results at high ranges. It’s not very accurate at those high numbers. I have the Red Sea Marine Care kit and it says to dilute 1ml of tank water with 5ml RO. Check your test kit instructions on what exact volumes to use. Then take the reading you read and multiply by 5. Have you tried that?

[@farzinfgb3178]

As a begginer i had best luck with blue tang and foxface. These 2 are the only survivers of my tank.😅even my clawns died also😅

[@mikewoolverton2126]

Great job Matthew! Good list, could disagree with a couple but well done. Can't wait for your stock lists, that should be interesting 🤪

[@bananna7465]

Hi I interesting stuff. You say two clown fish but your clip shows several together ? How is that done or is it an age thing that they get aggressive at a certain age?

[@BulkReefSupply]

More than two clowns can be kept in the same tank, but some special preparations and precautions need to be considered. We actually have a series about doing this. If you're interested, the link below will take you to that playlist here on KZbin. kzbin.info/aero/PLBaMLrfToJyxQ2ssQRPnmwFOJ2Qp8NBHi

[@andyproctor696]

Love the video!

[@Big_E_247]

I don't recommend a small tank for a saltwater beginner. Minumim of 55 or 75 gallons is actually easier to keep your water STABLE.

[@BulkReefSupply]

While a larger water volume may be easier to keep stable, it's also a lot more expensive and takes up more room than something like a Nuvo 20. Totally understand where you're coming from though 😀

[@kingofstones8797]

Great video! I do have a question though. I once purchased a spotted hawkfish from my LFS that was very aggressive towards its tank mates. It managed to kill my yellow watchman goby and would constantly strike my melanurus wrasse whenever it was in sight. I then had to take apart and remove my entire aquascape in order to remove the hawkfish. Is this aggression found in any of the other hawkfish out there, or is it exclusive to the spotted hawkfish? Thanks!

[@BulkReefSupply]

Hawkfish can all be on the aggressive side. We've typically seen the flame and longnose hawkfish be the least aggressive towards other fish.

[@kingofstones8797]

@@BulkReefSupply Gotcha. Thanks!

[@darktonio377]

Hey my LFS told me that cardinals refuse pellets and flakes and eat only fresh/frozen. Is that so?

[@BulkReefSupply]

Hmm... Interesting. Maybe it depends. We've kept various cardinalfish species for many years, but we feed our tanks a mixture of pellets and frozen food, so I'm not really sure. It's a good idea to feed mysis shrimp anyways, as most of your carnivorous fish will love it!

[@ffxfgxsfxxxg2419]

I refuse to have a fish that is not a sea horse but have never kept fish before, what do I do?

[@BulkReefSupply]

Sounds like you've got some decisions to make! If you're experienced with sea horses, I would just pick which interests you more. After all, that's what this hobby is all about 🙂

[@harrisonhanson2998]

Yea gotta agree w keeping more captive bred fish vs wild caught which is just cruel imo.

[@apss5736]

great video

[@sharkbitesback2749]

Damselfish were the first saltwater fish I ever got, and the first one I got is still going strong at around 3.5 years old. I would recommend smaller damsels like blue devils and yellowtail damsels.

[@laxman1312]

You should have added that you need a medium to large group of Chromis due to pecking order and how they kill each other off. The same with Bangii Cardinals, if they pair up they will push the others away.

[@opethmike]

That lawnmower blenny at the beginning looks emaciated.

[@muhammadzahrul4336]

Can i use the natural sea water and fill it inside my saltwater tank? Im a beginner btw.....hope to get a good advice regarding this

[@BulkReefSupply]

The short answer is yes, but with caution. For a solid answer to that question, check out this video kzbin.info/www/bejne/f3bRdpR6raaCjKs

[@harrisonhanson2998]

The trigger fish is probably the most gorgeous salt water fish altho they probably require their own tanks like puffers.

[@adrianshorter9264]

That hoodie tho!!

[@whitefang8329]

How many total fish in 43 gallons tank + 10 gallons Sump ?

[@krisreed3412]

Hey guys! I’m a somewhat experienced freshwater aquarium keeper and I’m looking to finally start my own saltwater reef tank…I’m in the design phase still but I have a 75 gallon tank of standard dimensions and I’d like to have input from the saltwater aquarium community on how I set this up…I’d like to have Bangii Cardinal fish x 4 Diamond or Yellow Goby x 1 clownfish x 2 Royal Gramma x 1 Marine Betta x 1 Flame Angel x 1 Foxface rabbitfish x 1 Is that feasible? Am I crazy? Any info is helpful…

[@BulkReefSupply]

I would suggest two Banggai and skipping the Marine Betta (it may eat smaller fish like your clowns). Other than that, your stocking list looks good for a 75 gallon.

[@krisreed3412]

@@BulkReefSupply okay thanks for the advice I’ll do that

[@mryes413]

So are anthias the goldfish of saltwater or is that clown fish?

[@gr743g43ggfb4]

I had a cardinal fish for two weeks but refused to eat, tried 4 different food with no luck. Will buy captive bread next time

[@BulkReefSupply]

Sorry to hear that! Captive bred cardinals certainly do tend to eat prepared foods more aggressively, so that's a good move.

[@Canadaisthegreat]

my dart fish always gone

[@fantasyskeep]

Captive bred clowns that I've been around don't seem to have any idea what hosting is.

[@tonyclicky2132]

the first fish you should have said !!!!! is a tang all of them special ''dory ''

[@wendysthomas1]

2nd half ????

[@vijayridlaan8453]

Wow namaste

[@TehSharkX]

Clown gobies will eat Sps. At least mine did.

[@abinder3]

Clown fish are not the host. The coral or the anemones are the ones that do the hosting not the clown fish. SMH.

[@myexoticanimaljourney5619]

Is My First Fish Tank youtube channel dead?

[@BulkReefSupply]

Matthew just posted on his My First Fish Tank channel yesterday! Here is a link to the video if you wanted to check it out. kzbin.info/www/bejne/mXbLnGxpjLGIjMk

[@myexoticanimaljourney5619]

@@BulkReefSupply 😁👍

[@johnwatley1809]

Never buy a neon dottyback

[@federicomanglavite9897]

They're all nano fish.... any NON nano fish?

[@BulkReefSupply]

Like Matthew said at the beginning of the video, he was making a few assumptions about the tank that these fish would be going into. One being that the tank would be 40 gallons or less 🙂 Maybe we'll have to do a top 10 non-nano beginner fish!

[@kevjonadiaz]

Clown gobies will eat acro polyps

[@tonyclicky2132]

your safe fish are missing tails!!! not so safe

[@tomk3952]

Sorry but wish brs didn’t add the guy imo

[@FoolOfATuque]

Good for you. You don't have to watch his videos