first salt water, power head help, stocking ideas

[pairenoid]

i just bought a 20 gallon long from petsmart, and a hood there as well (will prob buy brighter light if i dont like how it looks)

Right now I have in my amazon shopping cart:
25 lbs of tahitian moon sand
aquatop 100w heater
api salt water kit
hydrometer
20 lbs of salt mix instant ocean
digital thermometer
am i missing anything ?

i need to know if a 750 koralia power head is too much or too little, or if i should get 2x 425 instead, price is def an issue im trying to keep it low as possible, so i can get nice live rock. Recommendations for live rock?

i looked up online and found 20 pounds for 80 but before buying that im going to my LFS in case its better. Also i would like some ideas for stocking, i like bottom feeders the most, i like seeing them active and eating stuff/cleaning

 

[Terrance]

I definitely recommend getting a refractometer instead of a hydrometer. You are missing supplies to premix your saltwater for those water changes that must be done. 20g is very small, but it will make a good QT tank if you ever decide to upgrade. IMO the 750 is fine. If it starts blowing your sand everywhere, then slightly aim it toward the surface rather than down-ward.

When you say "20 pounds for 80", are you talking about live rocks?

 

[obscurereef]

I have two 750s in my 70 gallon tank (which is too little, I know), so for you one powerhead will do fine. I think he/she means 20 lbs of line rock for $80.

Nano Fish

I'd say gobies and a shrimp are great fish/inverts as "bottom-feeders." Almost any goby/shrimp would be okay for your size tank because they usually don't exceed 3"

 

[pairenoid]

what do you mean supplies to premix my water? i have 20 pounds of salt instant ocean in there if thats what you mean

btw i like this fish
Yellow Stripe Clingfish
any other similar small thin snake like bodied fish?

i think i will get as many of those as i can with gobies

 

[Terrance]

When you do water changes, you must premix your water. I have 2 trashcans with wheels. I siphon water out and into a trashcan. The other trashcan, I premix the water because all the salts do not instantly dissolve as advertised and then use a powerhead to push the premixed water from the trashcan to the tank. This the the cheapest and easiest method for me.

So you will need 2 trashcan, heater, powerhead, and long tube for premixing.


Again, are you going for live rocks? If not, then think of a source for biological filtration.

 

[obscurereef]

Terrance means that you'll need a bucket(s) to put the water and mix in the salt. You can get white clean paint buckets from Home Depot. You're missing an RO/DI system, but you can go to your lfs and they probably have it for .50 cents more or less. You'll also want a powerhead to mix the salt. Also what is your filtration on the tank? Is it just a HOB filter?
A yellow stripe clingfish is hard to care for and would probably be better in a species tank or with sea horses. I don't know if I'm getting that confused with a pipefish, but I know for sure they are not for beginners. There's going to be a limited choices because of the tank size and being that you're a beginner.

 

[obscurereef]

Beat me to it!

 

[pairenoid]

ok cool, btw i bought this hood "Aqueon® Fluorescent Deluxe Full Hood"
it was only 40 bucks but now i am thinking i should return it and buy a better hood online with t5 lighting? or is it possible to keep the hood i bought from petsmart and just replace the bulb with nice ones, any recommendations

i have no idea what will fit in there at the moment, i wont be having anything but fish but i would like nice lighting to show off their color

 

[Cjsanders757]

Don't get the moon sand if your planning on keeping sand sifters or gobies.

 

[JettMillenia]

I would highly suggest T5s on a 20l. Im running a aquasun duel t5 on my 20l and my tank is has been great so far and wasnt that expensive

 

[aadair22]

Skip the hydrometer and get a Refractometer.. Check ebay and you kind find good prices on those.

For your live rock, I highly recommend reefcleaners.org they sell base rock in 3 different size packages. I bought a 50lb box a few months ago and can't say enough good things about.. Awesome rock, and I got it the third day after I ordered (maybe it helps that I only live 4 hours fr where they shipped it...)

 

[pairenoid]

ok thanks, ill check out the refractometer after i get all my equipment.

My biggest question is will just any t5 lighting fit in my hood? i have the hood from petsmart, i would like to keep it and just buy a new bulb if possible, what do i look for in specifications to see if it will fit? all i know is that the hood is 30 inches, maybe ill keep it stock for a while

if someone could link me a bulb i can put into the hood from amazon.com that would be great! i have amazon prime so everything gets here fast

and if i cant get sand sifters, what are some cool fish to have in my 20g long? im open to anything, preferably not clown fish as its so cliche lol but anything really

sucks i cant get gobies, im not sure how fine the sand is yet but if its fine enough ill get gobies, i heard that over the years tahitian changed their labels and now have finer black sand so well see when it arrives

 

[obscurereef]

24" or 36" are the closest I think you can get to a 30". Since they are both 6 inches apart from the hood, it won't work. Does your hood house fluorescent bulbs? A lot of their hoods can only be for incandescent.

 

[pairenoid]

its a t8, pretty sure i can only use t8 in it, i have been looking on youtube and i saw some t8's from zoomed that look good, but too good to be true ><

 

[obscurereef]

I don't think T8 will support corals...It may keep some mushrooms and/or softies alive, but I don't think they would thrive in such inadequate lighting. Try looking on craigslist for some great deals on lights!

 

[Cjsanders757]

I have the moon sand in my tank. It's extremely coarse, too coarse for gobies blennies bottom dwellers and sea stars. It's technically volcanic glass not actual sand

 

[Packohotdogs]

im open to anything, preferably not clown fish as its so cliche lol but anything really

Clowns are a tad cliche, but they are popular for a reason! IMHO, there isn't a more beautiful, playful, entertaining fish with personality out there.

Just so happens you have adequate tank size for a pair.

If you want something different look around online... ORA clowns, Picasso clowns, Black and White Clowns, Candy Clowns, etc... There are many varities out there!! You can def find something 'different'.

Just my .02

 

[Packohotdogs]

Or check out Firefish... They are cool and BEAUTIFUL also and usually stay out in the water column. Plus they should thrive in your tank size.

 

[JettMillenia]

Snowflake clown I really want one. You could checkout liveaquaria.com in the nano fish section for ideas to stock your tank

 

[pairenoid]

the firefish look nice, how big do they grow? how bout a pair of firefish or clown fish

with a goby and shrimp?