[TheApprentice707]

Hey, I started my salt water tank about a week ago and I have live rock and live sand in it. I got 4 blue green chromis that are really small. These are my starter fish. I have been running tests and everything is just fine. When do you think I would be able to get the two clown fish that I really want in the tank? The tank is a 10 gallon so I will have to get rid of some of the chromis so that I don't have too high of a bio load. what about best choice for a clean up crew? (shrimp, crabs?)

[leebca]

A 10 gallon aquarium is not large enough for almost any marine fish. It is not large enough for two of almost all marine fishes. This includes the Anemonefish you have in mind.

If Anemonefish are the fish you want to keep, then for the smallest of that group of fishes you need no less than a 30 gallon aquarium.

A 10 gallon marine aquarium is suitable for a reef display (no fish).

You may want to read these other posts:
Setting Up a FOWLR Aquarium
and
Fish Stocking Limit - for FO and FOWLR

New hobbyists are unaware of or have been misled by retailers on how to start a successful aquarium. There is much more to water quality than just the things you test for. These are other posts that can you see a bigger picture:
The Mature Aquarium
and
What is Water Quality.

A lot of reading, but you'll find there is a lot to learn. Good luck!

[TheApprentice707]

well the fish i have in there now have been doing great for a week and seem to be very healthy. do you think they are going to just die all of the sudden? If they are doing fine I don't see why they have to not be able to make it just because the tank is 10 gallons. thank you for all of your help

[leebca]

No, they will not die, "all of a sudden." What happens is that their life will be considerably shorter. They will be more susceptible to disease and disorders and the water quality will not be stable.

I do not rationalize why space is important for fish. It just is that way, despite the human emotional justification of what humans want to do over what is proper. Please don't rationalize why you should continue to keep fish in too small of space. Fish don't speak to us and we don't know if they are okay or not except by our own concept of 'good' or 'bad.' However, we know from knowledge of marine life and their husbandry what they need in the wild and translate that the best we can to captivity.

Consider this human scenario:
Our hospital is overcrowded, so your sick grandmother won't have a bed, but we'll put her in a (Captain's type) chair. And since we're really short on space, we'll put chairs all around her of other sick people, in a room some would consider a large closet.

The above is a space matter. In human terms, would this improve the health care of the grandmother? Might she seem okay? Sure. Will her chances of improving and maintaining her health be the same as if she were in a bed with only one or two other beds in the same room? Yes. Will all the people in the room suddenly die? I doubt it.

[TheApprentice707]

I totally understand what you are saying and I admire your care for fish. I bet you have a GREAT setup at home. what do you have?

[leebca]

Please refer to these posts:
Bio - Lee (a.k.a. leebca)
and
Lee’s Marine Systems