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Maxi
01/19/2009, 11:41 PM
Woo! I finally waited so long to be able to have a clam. The tank is almost 7 months old, and there hasn't been a single problem with it except a slight rockslide. Fixed now.

So, I discovered a new lfs and they have some nice little clams 50 a pop. I know that they had Maximas, but what clam would you recommend for a first timer?

I have reefgek tek lights (t5's, individual reflectors)
The clams they have are all no bigger than 3".

BradsOcean
01/19/2009, 11:43 PM
maybe a crocea....you might want to upgrade to halides first....and you'll need to be dosing phyto now

Maxi
01/19/2009, 11:50 PM
How big do crocea get?

I'm not upgrading to halides.. I spent a while researching t5's and the high quality t5 fixtures can replace halides.

Toddrtrex
01/20/2009, 12:30 AM
How small is little? Are they under 3 inches?

Wgluther
01/20/2009, 10:20 AM
Crocea, I believe, stay relatively small compared to Squamus and Maximus. I have 2 Crocea and a Squamus in my 90, all are on the sand bed under T5's and seem to be as happy as Clams:)

spoofer
01/20/2009, 10:36 AM
I wouldn't recommend Crocea's they are very 'light' hungry clams, and the T5's from my experience don't provide enough for them. They may survive, but they won't grow well or color up well. Croceas tend to hop around alot more than other clams- there trying to find a direct view of light- hence the reason i think they like the halide style lighting better. This has been my experience in my clam keeping, but maybe it will work for you- i hope it does if you try'm

I would suggest if your going to try a clam a Maxima- be sure to put a small disc or rock under it and try and place it higher in the tank.

Stray32
01/20/2009, 12:01 PM
I have two croceas on the sand in my 75, under T5 lighting and they are doing great.

spoofer
01/20/2009, 06:52 PM
There ya go..proof is in the pudding...... I've seen people have bad experiences with clams and T5's espically with deeper tanks, but obviously it's not always true. Thanks for the insight

noboddi
01/20/2009, 07:02 PM
T5s are all about the reflectors. Tek has very good reflectors

returnofsid
01/20/2009, 07:24 PM
Tek5s are excellent for Clams of all species. I have a 6 bulb unit over my 75. I have 2 T. croceas at about mid tank. I also have a T. maxima a little bit lower. All are doing awesome!!

n2aviation
01/20/2009, 07:31 PM
To just add a little FYI, don't let your sand-sifting goby drop sand all over the clam. Found that out the hard way when poor clam was trying to spit sand out.

Maxi
01/20/2009, 07:40 PM
Thank you!

I didn't ever think of clams getting drowned in sand either..lol.

loosecannon
01/20/2009, 08:02 PM
Maxi I have had a T. crocea in a 75 gal. under 4 65 watt pc for years! your light is fine. Tridacna crocea say small under 8" or so. T. maxima get a little bigger.