New set up!

[Luke]

Ok
Originally what i thought i wanted was a nano reef tank. I decided that going with a tank that housed photosynthetic organisms was not for me. Still bing interested in a marine set up, here is a list of what i have done.

I bought a new, 6 gallon Marineland Eclipse tank.
Bought a heater, Hydrometer, Instant Ocean mix, and ten gallons Distilled water. I've got it all set up and im waiting on the salt to mix in, and for the temperature to come up. (the water was 50 degrees when i put it in the tank.)
Oh, i got "Marine Lab" test kit too

Once i have my specific gravity right, i will go to the LFS and get live sand and live rock. i do NOT intened to get a protein skimmer, as i have read both good and bad about them. The sand will be 2 and a half inches deep, and i'll get 6 lbs of live rock.

After i cycle the tank, Fish. What options do i have for community fish in a 6 gallon tank? I don't want to over do it and risk killing them. Also i'll need recomendations on a clean up crew.

Also, are there species of non-photosynthetic corals that would do well in a tank this size?
Thanks for any advice

Also,l this tanks filter is a bio wheel style. Should i remove the bio wheel and filter, and use live rock rubble?
~Luke

 

[mattscheck4]

After i cycle the tank, Fish. What options do i have for community fish in a 6 gallon tank? I don't want to over do it and risk killing them. Also i'll need recomendations on a clean up crew.

I have a 10g in a similar situation. I'm actually going to have dwarf seahorses in mine, so that's an option. Here's something I used when examining my options:

"Nano Fish Listed By Tank Size

Note: Suggestions for Seahorses by tank size can be found under the "Seahorse" heading in the next section of the guide, Nano Fish Listed By Group, for the time being.

Key

• Green = Beginner (Ideal for first time fish owners and or new tanks)
  Black = Intermediate (Ideal for hobbyists with established tanks)
  Red = Difficult (Ideal for experience hobbyists who can meet the special needs of these fish)
  ** = Available Tank Raised (Please let me know if I am missing any)
  V = Venomous

Note: There is a lot of controversy around the idea of keeping saltwater fish in tanks under 10g. Whether or not it is ethical will be up to you to decide and not something I'm going to get into. Like it or not, the fact is there are going to be people who do it. Therefore, I would rather at least provide those people with some guidance to make good choices instead of just leaving them in the dark.

Note Mandarins/Dragonets: There is a lot of controversy around the idea of keeping fish from the Dragonet family in nano tanks. Whether or not it is ethical will be for you to decide and not something I'm going to get into. I personally do not encourage people to keep dragonets in nano tanks, however, despite my feelings there a many who have successfully kept them in smaller tanks, there for I will include them in this guide.

0.5g Pico (1.9 L) (Includes Red Sea 0.5g Deco Art) (1 extra small fish)

• -Blue Neon Goby**
  -Catalina Goby [cold water]
  -Clown Gobies**
  -Eviota Gobies
  -Panda (Clown) Goby
  -Redhead Goby**
  -Trimma Goby
  -Yellow Neon Goby**

2.5g Pico - 5g (9.46 - 18.93 L) (Includes 2.5g Minibow, Eclipse Explorer, JBJ 3g Pico) (1 fish)

• All of the above plus:
  -Citron Goby
  -Green Banded Goby (added by c'est ma)**

7g (26.5 L) (Includes 7g Minibow, 6g Eclipse, 6g CPR, 6g Nano Cube, 8g Aquawave) (1-2 fish)

Note: Keep in mind that the display area of all-in-one tanks hold less water than the total tank since some of that water is in the filtration area. When picking out fish, pick fish based on the display area volume, not the total tank volume.

• All of the above plus:
  -Ocellaris Clownfish (False Percula)** (1, if you want a pair, move up to 10g+)
  -Percula Clownfish (True Percula)** (1, if you want a pair, move up to 10g+)"

I got all that from this site.

As far as a CUC, I have some sexy shrimp in my tank. I'd suggest some tiny shrimp like them (sexy shrimp, harlequin shrimp, bumblebee shrimp). Because your tank is only 6g, only one or two snails (I think that nassarius are better cleaners than astrea, but that's just a matter of opinion). You'll probably see the astrea more often than the nassarius, because the N. like to bury under the sand and just stick out their little black straw thing (yeah, that's not the scientific word for it ).

Best of luck!

 

[Luke]

Would it be correct to assume that no matter wich of those i choose, my tank is only going to support one fish?
1 fish
2 cleaner shrimp
2 snails

Or is that too much even?

My SG is up to 1.023. Tomorow i will get live rock and aragonite and will have an idea of what this will actually look like when there are fish in it =D

 

[thominil]

I would go with just a clown and maybe a peppermint shrimp. I have a cleaner shrimp, and IMO, it is too big for a 6g. Maybe an astrea snail and two nassarius snails for the CUC. Make sure you test the water every other day for the first few months, as that tank is really small. If the test kit you have is strips, go grab a liquid test kit as they are a lot more accurate.

There are no negatives to a protien skimmer unless you get one that is a hunk of crap, but on a 6g, a simple weekly water change would accomplish the same thing.

 

[AMDPhenomX4]

Their are prawn gobies that only get to around 3/4 of an inch that you could get a few of. My LFS has 2 in a 5G tank. I don't remember their species though.

 

[Luke]

Could i go with a hermit crab instead of either the snals or shrimp? Or would it outgrow the tank?

 

[thominil]

A hermit would be fine, could go with two. I like snails because they do a better job, but that's just me. Your tank, so you decide.

 

[mattscheck4]

Their are prawn gobies that only get to around 3/4 of an inch that you could get a few of. My LFS has 2 in a 5G tank. I don't remember their species though.

Saw that you were from MA. Where did you see those guys? They sound great!

 

[Luke]

I think i'll get the crab and the snails. I just like the way hermit crabs look. The blue legged ones that is.

 

[Luke]

This is totally unrelated, but i just happened to think of it so i wanted to put it out there before i forgot.

I'm an avid bowhunter. I was reading about certain beneficial organisms that consume calcium.

I may be reaching here, but...
Being a bowhunter, i have a couple of pairs of white tailed deer antlers around (Dont worry, the shots i take are ethical, and none of the animal is wasted!) I was wondering if it would be possible to use them to supplement calcium in the tank.

 

[thominil]

Just my opinion again, I would go with either one or the other because hermits tend to go after snails when they need a new shell. You can include extra shells for the hermit, but a moving snail is easier to find, may be easier to pull of in a 6g though.

More than likely your calcium wouldn't need to be buffered until you get a good amount of coraline algae growth along with a good population of inverts that need calcium in which a water change would replenish the calcium.

 

[mattscheck4]

If you get both snails and crabs, the crabs will most likely eat the snails so they can have their shells. Some people believe that, if you put plenty of empty shells in there, the crabs will leave the snails alone. Others swear left and right that the crabs WILL eat the snails. I'm not adamant either way, but I had both in a tank and was left with only one nassarius snail after a few months. Your call.

Not sure at all about the antler. If you put anything at all in your tank, though, you have to boil it beforehand in order to eliminate infecting your tank with something. My guess would be that this process may remove all the good calcium, as well. This is completely a guess, though. Best of luck, Luke!

 

[AMDPhenomX4]

Saw that you were from MA. Where did you see those guys? They sound great!

They were at Krystal Clear Aquatics in auburn on the checkout counter. They were so small, they could be mistaken for krill. Im just happy their only 10 minutes away, I'm there way too often. They also have a bunch of 120G F/O tanks, 3 180G coral tanks, and a bunch of invert and other fish tanks, so if you go, bring cash.