LFS says 29 gallon tank nothing but trouble

[Erikmichael23]

Ok so I have grown up always having our caring for freshwater fish I had a puffer for almost 4 years...it died recently and im beginning to explore the world of saltwater cuz I always wanted one....recently I contracted the lps and one of them said if I run a 29 gal saltwater tank (witch fits my nice stand) I would have nothing but trouble....is this true? I already bought a bio wheel 350 rated for 75 gal and he said that was pointless and I couldn't run much longer than 6mo without major problems..is this true? I was thinking along the lines of that filter plus a skimmer and a circulator(power head) and maybe a canister in the near future....I'm just confused please help!!!!

 

[carey]

Hi. Welcome to the forum!

You will be just fine with a regular hob filter. Thats a load of bunk that you were given. LOL

Do you want to do corals? Cause if not you most likely can get away without a skimmer by just doing partial weekly water changes.

I'd say add a powerhead on the side without the filter and youre set.

I've run several tanks with just a hob filter or canister filter adn they were fine.

 

[Erikmichael23]

Thank u! Yes I would love to do coral...i dont think I'm gonna start untell I have a skimmer just for better luck...the guy at the lfs said I have to check it almost hourly witch probably isnt true he just wants to drill my tank and put in a sump so I spend a ton of money at his shop....is there a such a thing as a small protein skimmer that wouldn't look so big outside my tank?

 

[carey]

Yep, they make hob models. here are a few

Hang on Back HOB Reef Octopus Protein Skimmers
AquaC Remora & Remora Pro Protein Skimmers
CPR Bak Pak 2 Hang on Back Protein Skimmers for Marine & Reef Aquarium

I used the remora on my 29g and then on my 55g and found it to be decent. The other two i listed get good reviews too. i clean out my skimmer cup every other day in my tanks.

You CAN do what the store is saying, build a sump, get a drilled tank and all that jazz. But, do you want to? It would work really nice but be expensive.

It's what you wan to do. If you just wanna start small them I think the 29g with a hob should be fine.

 

[huma-huma]

I'd take everything the lfs with a grain of salt, its been well proven that nano, or smaller saltwater tanks are possible. Its a good general rule that the more equipment you have, the easier your maintenace will be, but a 29g with a hob filter and a single ph will run perfect as long as you get it established properly and do your pwc's consistantly. Sure you can buy a skimmer, sump/refugium, and a canister filter, but truthfully for a 29g they aren't 100% necessary

 

[Erikmichael23]

Ok...thanks ,I would like to have a healthy environment for a fuzzy dwarf lionfish for years and if its possible with the set up I like than thats what I'm gonna do...no need to spend so much...what would b another good tankmate? Should I even have one or should I just stick with lion and some coral? What kind of coral would fit a little tank like that?

 

[carey]

Oh, you've gone out of my bounds with that question, I know NOTHING about lionfish. Sorry....

 

[Erikmichael23]

Huma huma....skimmer for reef though right?

 

[huma-huma]

Most def skimmer for coral, your water quality needs to be good for corals....in terms of lionfish, make sure that if you do go with a tankmate, that its bigger than the lionfish, and keep him weel-fed....the lionfish will attempt to eat anything itcan fit in its moith....which is unusually large

 

[huma-huma]

And I don't believe lions are invert safe, they will swallow them quick

 

[kurtyboh]

Yes skimmer for reef, but sometimes its best to wait a bit for corals, which means you can defer some costs over a couple months. If youve never had salt before i would suggest it, as it gives you time to get used to it and make a mall mistake here and there with little to no issue.
As with carey i dont know much about lions, but the more aggressive fish go in last usually.

 

[Erikmichael23]

I hope thet can get along with a few...so do I need another ph for the next water change?

 

[huma-huma]

The lionfish can def get along with other fish, just can't be too small, or else the lion will suck him up, and don't let his size fool you, he strikes hard and fast...a ph for pwc's is not necessary, if you can afford a small one, its a convenience, but not necessary

 

[Erikmichael23]

Do they get along with any corals?

 

[huma-huma]

They can, you just gotta be cautious, don't forget inverts, if you plan on having any sort of shrimpcrabs, anything like that, the lion won't work I personally think the lionfish is worth the sacrifice, but to each his own.

 

[huma-huma]

Check out this site, you MAY have to re-home eventually, but some others may wanna chime in, live aquaria says 50g minimum...but it seems their minimums always seem high.

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+36+227&pcatid=227

 

[kurtyboh]

The lion is a messy eater, which is one of the reasons for a larger tank. They also have a wide body so to move around rock formations and have enough rock makes it a tough balance in a smaller tank