How to care for salt water fish.

[kmorse]

I am new at this fish thing.

Had a 12 Gallon tank and my last fish a blue tang has died from Ick.
I heard a 12 Gallon tank is too small for even 1 Blue Tang Fish.

Please what does anyone recommend I start with as a tank (Gallons?)

I want a blue tang, 1 shrimp, 2 clown fish, some snails and live rock and coral.

HELP!!!

[leebca]

WELCOME TO REEFLAND!

Well, you're starting off on the right foot! You are trying to come up with a plan.

It is a bit easier to be sure we are talking about the same fish if you use their scientific names. I know this is hard for new hobbyists, but you want to give it a try.

Tangs need a long tank. Doesn't have to be big volume, but it needs to be long. The standard 125 gallon tank is 6 feet long and makes a good 'cage' for Tangs. So if you really want to keep that fish, I'd not go below a 125.

If the above discourages you, then you may want to rethink the fish you want to keep. The other fish on your list don't require that length of a tank. However, a mated pair of Anemonefish will want about a 30+ gallon aquarium. If you'd like to put in shrimp and coral, you'll need to give the fish more space and I would suggest a hexagon or rectangular tank of about 40+ gallons.

There are some posts here on Reefland you should try to find time to read closely, just to give you some good ideas on starting up an aquarium, quarantine processes to prevent sick fish, etc.

This link takes you to a Table of Contents that lists other posts, articles and links: Table/Contents - Link List

Specifically you want to start off reading at least:

An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure: A Quarantine Tank for Everything by Steven Pro - Reefkeeping.com

Quarantine of Fish (step-by-step instructions):
A Fish Quarantine Process

Setting Up a FOWLR Aquarium

After you've read all or at least some of the above, feel free to post more questions. We're here to help! ;)
Good luck!

[tullsterx]

1 - Do some reading and careful planing before you buy any more Blue Tangs. Or any other fish for that matter. I nearly lost it when I read "12 Gallon" and "Blue Tang" in the same paragraph.

2 - I wouldn't start a saltwater tank without at least a 100 gallon aquarium. Or at least the very biggest one you can afford and fit into your space. But, you really shouldn't have a Tang without at least a 100 Gallon IMO.

3 - Check your ambitions. If you can't get a large aquarium don't fall into the trap of overstocking and putting things in there that don't belong. Read, be careful, and put the welfare of your pets in front of your own ambitions.

4 - Never trust what they tell you at the pet store. They just want to move fish. Don't assume they know what they're talking about.

But, those are just my personal rules.