First saltwater tank?

[Ayi]

After the cycle is over how high should they stay? Also, what are we looking at cost-wise?

 

[TheTodd]

You want to keep nitrates close to zero after the cycle. Add fish slowly so the your BB can keep up as the bio load increases.

 

[Ayi]

You want to keep nitrates close to zero after the cycle. Add fish slowly so the your BB can keep up as the bio load increases.

Thank you! I changed my wanted stock list some.

3 bicolor dottybacks
4 blue/green chromis

How does that sound?

 

[Bectan01]

Cost wise for everything? I can't remember if you are going with the 29 or sticking with the 10g?

 

[Bectan01]

Oh if it's the 29g I think you may be pushing it with the stock. Dottybacks are aggressive little fish so not sure if more than one is going to be ok. Chromis are hilarious, I have heard odd numbers work better 3 or 5

 

[Ayi]

Oh if it's the 29g I think you may be pushing it with the stock. Dottybacks are aggressive little fish so not sure if more than one is going to be ok. Chromis are hilarious, I have heard odd numbers work better 3 or 5

I think I will try the 29 gallon. So the lfs has LR for 2.50/lb.
40 lbs. of crushed coral
Powerheads
Heater
Protein skimmer

Is this all I would need?

Because chromis do better on odd numbers, I will do 3, 1 dotty back and 1 benggai cardinals. Will this work. If not I will get rid of the cardinal.

 

[Bectan01]

I am not a big fan of crushed coral, I like a finer substrate. Do you have test kits yet? And a refractometer? What kind of water are you planning on using?

 

[Ayi]

The only reason I wanted crushed coral was to raise the ph. I was planning on filling the tank with store bought water and do pwc with tap water. And I don't have any equipment as I am still trying to convince my mom of it. She says it's because of the water bill as it has gone up in recent months (not by much though).

 

[Bectan01]

I highly recommend you don't use tap water, ever. You will only have a world of problems down the track. If you are still planning this set up put a ro-di filter on the top of your shopping list! You won't regret it and its important to start out right

 

[Bectan01]

You asked earlier about cost? Overall I would expect you would pay (assuming you have the tank aready) around $300-$400 for equipment and supplies. Of course you could spend more but this would be a rough minimum...

 

[Ayi]

What r/o filter do you recommend? Is there a type of fine substrate that will raise the ph?

 

[Ingy]

The only reason I wanted crushed coral was to raise the ph. I was planning on filling the tank with store bought water and do pwc with tap water. And I don't have any equipment as I am still trying to convince my mom of it. She says it's because of the water bill as it has gone up in recent months (not by much though).

Crushed coral won't raise pH in a saltwater aquarium. Because that is the environment that the coral was made, it won't break down into its alkaline and calcium components. Freshwater has much lower levels of both and can absorb alkaline and calcium from corals.
The salt you add to the water has all the components you need to maintain an appropriate level for alk, calc and pH. If you get to be heavily stocked with corals, then you may need to dose alk and calc.

 

[Ayi]

I think I will slowly start buying stuff, maybe a few things every two weeks or so. I was looking for RO filters and they are EXPENSIVE!Are there any cheap ones on the market?

 

[Airgoose2222]

Check Craigslist. I picked up a 6 stage RODI unit for $50 bucks with replacement filters included.

 

[donniea1800]

Pygmy Angels would not live in a 10 gallon tank. They need at least 50 gallons to be happy. Its not just about the size but how much the fish likes to swim. In your size tank I would say 2 fish max. I recommend a fire fish and maybe a yellowhead jawfish or small clown goby. Both can be kept it that size tank.

 

[Brandon K.A]

I think you can also just buy distilled water from walmart. 98 cents a gallon. It's not as good as RO water, but better than tap, from what I hear. Feel free to correct me on this as I am no water expert. Just a guy with a FOWLR tank.

 

[Ingy]

OK, a bit of a correction. Distilled water should be at 0 TDS, and is not only as effective as RO/DI, it should be better. RO/DI units needs to have filters changed as TDS start to climb. A low temp distiller should have no maintenance issues requiring changing. Water evaps, and then condenses in a cooler clean collector. Theoretically. Of course, at the large scale production side, both methods are probably not kept clean enough and run some level of TDS.

 

[KatieKontak]

OK, a bit of a correction. Distilled water should be at 0 TDS, and is not only as effective as RO/DI, it should be better. RO/DI units needs to have filters changed as TDS start to climb. A low temp distiller should have no maintenance issues requiring changing. Water evaps, and then condenses in a cooler clean collector. Theoretically. Of course, at the large scale production side, both methods are probably not kept clean enough and run some level of TDS.

So using distilled water is good for the sw?

 

[Ayi]

So could I just use fridge water instead of tap or distilled? I would just warm it up wit an extra heater, right?

 

[TheTodd]

Refrigerator water is not usually RO or DI. It is usually water run through a carbon filter to make it taste good. TDS difference is minimal.