Clown barb care
Barbodes everetti · Clear forest streams of Borneo and Sumatra
The clown barb is a large, peaceful barb, salmon-orange with a row of dark blotches and red fins.
- Tank size
- 55 US gal or larger
- Temperature
- 75 to 82 °F (24 to 28 °C)
- Group size
- 6 or more
- Temperament
- Peaceful
- Adult size
- 5.9 in
- pH
- 6 to 7.5
- Hardness (GH)
- 4 to 12 dGH
- Lifespan
- 5 to 8 years
- Diet
- Omnivore
- Care level
- Easy
In a 55 gallon
48¼ × 12¾ × 21 in outsideHow to keep clown barbs
The clown barb is a large, peaceful barb, salmon-orange with a row of dark blotches and red fins. Bought at 1 or 2 inches, it grows to nearly 6, so a group of six needs a 55 gallon or larger tank with room to swim. It comes from clear forest streams and eats crustaceans, worms, insects and plants, so feed a mix with some greens.
Diet: Omnivore: flakes, pellets, frozen foods and blanched vegetables. Fish food types compared · how often to feed.
Where they swim: Middle of the tank.
Clown barb tank mates
Share the temperature and water, and neither side eats, nips or bullies the other. Check the full group in the stocking checker.
Green phantom pleco
5.9 in · 40+ gal · 77–84 °F
Candy-striped pleco
5.9 in · 30+ gal · 72–79 °F
Kubotai loach
5.9 in · 40+ gal · 77–86 °F
Bristlenose pleco
6 in · 29+ gal · 73–81 °F
Siamese algae eater
6 in · 29+ gal · 72–80 °F
Giant danio
6 in · 55+ gal · 72–79 °F
Three-spot (blue) gourami
6 in · 29+ gal · 72–82 °F
Firemouth cichlid
6 in · 40+ gal · 75–84 °F
Keep apart
White cloud mountain minnow: No shared temperature: clown barbs need 75 to 82 °F, white cloud mountain minnows 64 to 72 °F.
Oscar: Oscars are aggressive towards peaceful fish such as clown barbs.
Pea puffer: Pea puffers belong in a tank of their own.
Fancy goldfish: No shared temperature: clown barbs need 75 to 82 °F, fancy goldfish 64 to 74 °F.
Cherry shrimp: Clown barbs eat shrimp.
Amano shrimp: Clown barbs eat shrimp.
What a clown barb tank needs
A tank of 55 US gallons or more (such as the 55 gallon) with a cover, and the equipment below.
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Aqueon QuietFlow Canister Filter 200
Rated by the maker for up to 55 US gal, which covers a 55 gallon clown barb tank without being built for a far bigger one.
Seachem Tidal 55
Rated by the maker for up to 55 US gal, which covers a 55 gallon clown barb tank without being built for a far bigger one.
Aqueon Pro 150
Clown barbs need 75 to 82 °F; most homes run cooler, so a heater holds the temperature.
API Freshwater Master Test Kit
Tests ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH, the readings that matter most before and after adding clown barbs.
Seachem Prime 100 mL
Removes chlorine and chloramine from tap water at every water change.
Fluval Edge Thermometer
Shows the water temperature at a glance, so you know it stays within 75 to 82 °F.
More choices, each with the reason it is in or out: Filters for a 55 gallon tank · Heaters for a 55 gallon tank. We don’t list fish food: any good brand of the foods under Diet will do. Plan the whole tank's equipment →
Common clown barb problems
- Soft-leaved plants get nibbled; anubias and java fern last.
- Kept in twos or threes it turns skittish; six or more settle.
- Baby shrimp are eaten.
Test the water first whenever fish look unwell: see what your readings mean, then match the symptom. For disease, a vet who treats fish can diagnose it and advise treatment.
More to compare
Sources
Name, origin and adult size checked against Wikipedia: Barbodes everetti. Temperature, pH, hardness, group size, lifespan and minimum tank size are common hobby guidance, not figures from that article. Ranges are the range the species tolerates; aim for the middle. Minimum tank sizes are for an adult group. Drawings are our own; photo credits follow.
Photo credits
Real photographs from Wikimedia Commons, resized and cropped to fit; each is used under the license named.
- Green phantom pleco 5snake5, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Candy-striped pleco Gabriel Lelis Togni, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Kubotai loach Lerdsuwa, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Bristlenose pleco André Karwath aka Aka, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons
- Siamese algae eater aleander2137, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Giant danio Faucon, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons
- Three-spot (blue) gourami Peter Jung, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Firemouth cichlid H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- White cloud mountain minnow Petrtyl, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Oscar H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Pea puffer Beta Mahatvaraj, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Fancy goldfish Benson Kua, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Cherry shrimp TheJammingYam, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Amano shrimp Stefanie Leuker, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Cherry barb Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Tiger barb Faucon, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons
- Rosy barb Kkonstan, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Denison barb Anandarajkumar, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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