Saltwater & Reef

Und3rthri11 · 01-03-2008, 10:21 PM

I want two fish and an anemone and/or coral. What do you guys suggest? I was thinking a pair of oce. clowns and a bubble tip anemone. Can I possibly fit some coral in? Any advice is appreciated.

Set-up (as-is):
Marineland Biowheel 100 (100g/hr)
Coralife 18w (9w 10k, 9w act)
25w heater
6lbs live rock
5lbs live sand

Sadielynn · 01-04-2008, 07:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Und3rthri11

I want two fish and an anemone and/or coral. What do you guys suggest? I was thinking a pair of oce. clowns and a bubble tip anemone. Can I possibly fit some coral in? Any advice is appreciated.

Set-up (as-is):
Marineland Biowheel 100 (100g/hr)
Coralife 18w (9w 10k, 9w act)
25w heater
6lbs live rock
5lbs live sand

Couple things I see wrong here

1st a 5 will be to small for a pair of clowns(actually all clowns will out grow a 5) , you may wish to look into a goby or just inverts. One thing to think about is that with your LR and LS corals and such your total water volume quickly drops when all is said and done you will have around 3-4 gallons water volume
as to the Anenome they need a well established tank and will quickly (and I meany quickly ) out grow a 5 if it survives , they have poor survival rates and it is usually due to not "filling" its requirements . An anenmome will walk till it is happy and can sting the crap out of your other corals ,it is also not 100% that a clown will host an anenome either

On to the equipment list Filter is ok just loose the bio wheels they eventually become nitrAte , Phosphate factories ....
Heater may wish to go to a 50 watt it will work less to keep the water temp where you want it ...Back to the filter you may beable to house your heater there as well tho you may need to dremel the top to fit the cord to the heater

Also you may need a power head for extra water movement and to keep the ditrus suspended in the water column for the filter to pick up ....
Lighting will be fine for LPS , zoas ,and shrooms but not enough for an anenome ....
To your list you may wish to add a fan to kee the water stedy with the heater I know it sounds cleiche but ....it will help keep the lights cool and the temp stable , you will need to top off more tho with a fan...

Und3rthri11 · 01-04-2008, 12:35 PM

Well. That answers that. What about firefish or possibly a bangai cardinal? I know some species of the fires only get to about 2 inches. What are my choices within the zoa family for something very colorful. Where does tentacled plate coral fall?

Sadielynn · 01-04-2008, 01:01 PM

Plates can move as well , they are ime difficult to keep especially the long tenicles ... You could put one fire fish in but again you would be maxed bioload wise with that ... As for the cardinal they tend to be a schooling fish of 3 or more so that is out .. try looking here http://liveaquaria.com/product/scateg.cfm?pCatId=2124 for the nano gobies some are quite commical and quite gorgeous and the catalina requires a cold water nano something that is a bit hard to acheave with out a chiller .... The more colorful zoas tend to need a bit stronger light ...
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produc...7&pcatid=13637
There is a dual 18 watt light there for around 80 bucks ....That would fit a 5 gallon nicely and would up your choices of zoas and corals , it would still not be enough for an anenome tho....

Und3rthri11 · 01-05-2008, 12:24 AM

Got a killer deal on a green bubble tip. The LFS who sold me everything in my set-up said he would do just fine. So I got him and a scarlett hc and a blue-leg hc. Getting a Oce. Clown or maybe b&w next week...and possibly a purple firefish.

Sadielynn · 01-05-2008, 07:51 AM

Slow down you are going to fast .... The lfs just made money on you .....I have found that even with a good pet store NEVER listen to thier advice .....They have to make sales , that is their lively hood .That is what these boards are good for we have nothing at stake and need to push a sale ...He is right that it will do fine ...................for a short period, but long term is sucess is not likely...I really think that you are headed for a crash ,,,long term success does not come over nite .... Set up your tank , cycle it the only things that should be in your tank right now is :
Live Sand or sand
Live rock (this is a must)
Salt water
sit back and wait , your cycle is under way ....
Here is how your cycle will look
Ammonia will rise and fall to 0 . Ammonia is the most toxic to fish and will burn gills.
NitrItes will rise and fall to 0. NitrItes are the biproduct of ammonia less toxic but toxic none the less .
NitrAtes will rise and fall you will then do a water change at this point to drop them to lower than 20 .... This is the biproduct of the Ammonia breaking down to NitrItes, NitrItes then go to NitrAtes it is still toxic but less so than ammonia or nitrItes ...
Ph should be steady at 8.2-8.4 will be higher with the cycle of lights .
Spg should be at 1,024-1.026
Temp should not have huge swings and be at around 77*-80*
The cycle can take any where from 2-6 weeks to complete ...No fish are needed to cycle die off from the LR is enough to kick start it if not add a table shrimp (unseasoned ) All you need is die off to start it .
Once complete you can add a CUC to help with the algea that will be there (also a biproduct of excess nutrients and the cycle )
You are headed for a crash and I dont want to see that happen ... I have been where you are I wanted it and I wanted it NOW trust me it doesnt work like that . I advise you to keep all reciepts and log them to see what kind of money pit this can turn into if you have a crash..I can see you becoming fustrated or even broke trying to "fix" the broken tank that could have been prevented from the get go ... You ask for advice but ignored what was given ... I dont want to see you think this hobby sucks due to failure ....But you are moving far to fast to have long term sucess , short term perhaps but long term not at the rate you are moving ...Please dont make the same newbie mistakes I made , these boards and folks teach from experience of what works and what doesnt ...

lando · 01-05-2008, 09:28 AM

WOW...Sadielynn offers some very good advice. It would appear to me that you are not really starting out on the right foot. Your tank is far too young for any livestock. Have you experienced a cycle yet? I am afraid that any livestock in your tank now is in grave danger. My suggestion would be to bring all livestock back to the LFS and allow your tank to cycle naturally and properly. Nothing happens fast in this hobby. As far as fish selection goes...you are pretty limited. Maybe one small o. clown and perhaps a small clown goby. That is about all I would consider for a tank of this size. It is not too late to get things done the right way. Just put the breaks on research, research, research while your tank is cycling. As Sadie mentioned...do not rely on your LFS for advice. They have proven to give some poor advice already. Keep bringing your questions here. Good luck.

Und3rthri11 · 01-06-2008, 12:08 AM

I do thank you very much for the advice. The tank cycled for 2 weeks and is perfectly healthy. I tested and the LFS tested my water as well to make sure all was well. Got the Anemone and it is very happy. Added a oce. clown today. I have friends and family who have been in the hobby for 20+ years and agree that I am pushing it, but with the proper care I will be safe. I'm gonna let it sit as is for now and make sure I can keep these little guys alive.

Tank is at 0 Amm, 0 Nitrites, and less than 10 Nitrates(about 6-7) but still dropping. Algae is minimal. Temp is a steady 78-79* depending on night and day. SPG is and has been 1.023 since I started.

I have tested and re-tested and taken all the precautionary measures to prevent a crash. I will keep you guys updated weekly, if not daily.

I also have a couple small white feathers that have shown up in the past couple of days and they are out all the time.

Two last questions...

Would I be over the safe limit to add one more fish(to a total of 2)? I was thinking about a purple firefish or a goby to the sort. What about 1-2 mushrooms?

Sadielynn · 01-06-2008, 07:20 AM

No more fish you are maxed out . And for the mushrooms you could add them but be prepaired to remove them or have them be stung by the anenome ....
You are moving toooooo fast and a crash is likely ... If that anenome dies it will nuke a 5.5 gallon ...Remember that with the sand and rock you have about 1-2 gallons (perhaps more ) H20 displacement making your total H20 volume around 3-4 gallons .

lando · 01-06-2008, 09:10 PM

How did you cycle your tank? A two week cycle is pretty fast and I wonder if your tank actually expereinced a full cycle. Keep an eye on water paramters. I suggest your next purchase be a basic SW test kit. Do not rely on the LFS for testing our water. I still think you are asking for trouble with the anemone in your tank so early on. Sorry to be bearer of bad news...but I just think things may be heading down hill. Once again...slow down. Seriously, refrain from adding ANY livestock and let your tank settle down a bit.