New nano reef tank what to do.

[benwallage9]

So I've been thinking about doing a nano reef in this 20 gal hex tank I've had for awhile. The lfs was having a killer deal on live rock so I pulled the trigger and got 23 lbs of live rock and 20 lbs of live sand. The tank is up and cycling and now I'm at the tricky part of researching inverts fish and corals to make sure I add correct things in the correct manner and trying to keep everything as compatible as possible.

I know I would like to do a pair of ocellaris clowns (preferably of different colors) that being said would I be able to add one more fish? If so would a royal gramma be possible? If not would a goby of some sort that could be bounded to a pistol shrimp?

Additionally I know I would like to do some crabs and shrimp and possibly a conch in my cuc. Does anyone have a good suggestion for a cuc as far as compatible species and which ones to get to cover all my bases meaning ones to take care of algae others for left over food etc.

Finally what order is best suggested for adding creatures meaning cuc first or a fish first etc. I plan to do soft corals ones that are difficult to accidentally kill. So species of inverts and fish would need to be compatible with corals.

I appreciate any advice you all might have this is all new to me. I have been doing my research but keep going around in circles of will this work with that. I figured first hand advice would be the best way to go.

 

[carey]

Well Hello there! Welcome to the salty side. lol

To be honest, a hex tank is a little challenging to work with due to the footprint it has, it's more tall than long. BUT it doesnt mean you can;t get some cool stuff in there.

A pair of clowns would be good, but not the ones that get really big like the maroons. I would stick to percula's and/or oscellaris. They are much more mellow anyway. I dont see why you couldnt get a small goby and pistol shrimp as well. They will mainly be on the sandbed and the clowns will be, most likely up at top. You don't really have any limitations as far as inverts go either. You can get a handful of snails and crabs. I do think a conch, at least the big ones wouldnt be a good choice. I have seen little itty bitty ones though, not sure if they get huge eventually but might be something to look into.

I personally LOVE shrimp. I think they add a greatt dynamic to the tank. I currently have 2 peppermints and a fire shrimp in my 13.3 nano. The only thing I would stay away from are starfish. Not a great beginner animal and some are not reef safe, like the chocolate chip ones or the red knobby;'s that are in like every fish store. lol

Alot will depend on your maintenance and dedication to keeping a clean and happy tank as to what you can stock. You can push the boundaries, sometimes, if you are absolutely 110% into your tank husbandry. That means ro/di water, weekly water changes and not overfeeding. Equipment can help but in the end it's really up to you and how much you want to put into the tank.

 

[benwallage9]

Carey thanks for the reply. I am a fan of shrimp too would a peppermint and pistol be to many in one tank? If not would I also be able to do a banded coral? I attached a short video of my tank. I'm trying to position the live rock in a way to allow for maximum coral placement and maximum hiding areas for fish and critters. Also I'm not 100% sure on how or where to position the power heads so if you guys think I should move them please let me know. I'm also getting a hob filter to do some mechanical filteration and help with water flow it will most likely be here today and will hang off on the same side as one of the power heads as I don't want to pull the tank out to have it hang off the back.

 

[benwallage9]

Video wouldn't upload properly so putting it on YouTube link

 

[carey]

I would stay away from coral banded shrimp, they can get big and kinda mean, well, mean for a shrimp. lol

I have a pistol shrimp, 2 peppermints and a fire shrimp in my 13.3 so yep, you can mix and match shrimp. i am hoping to find a good deal on a cleaner shrimp at some point. When you have a smaller tank inverts can be alot of fun.

Keep in mind you want water flow through your rock structure as well, so that there are no dead zones where poop and other yuckies can build up.

 

[Ricksreef]

The regular coral banded shrimp is aggressive.But the golden coral banded and blue coral banded are peaceful and don't get as big.
I have a blue in my 3 gallon tank along with three sexy shrimp and one blue legged hermit with no problems.


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[bribo12]

Yep I have a pair of golden coral banded a in my 40 and they're awesome! Super chill as well


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[benwallage9]

Thanks for the info on the shrimps. I will read up on both of those. Looks like my nitrogen cycle is finally starting my ammonia started going up Monday and is hitting .5 to 1 ppm today. Nitrate also looks like 5 ppm. Ph 7.8. I had a bunch of brown algae bloom I'm guessing it was due to leaving my lights on. I have since left my lights off and it seems to be subsiding. Now the sand is starting to get algae on it. I think it's called diatom?

 

[benwallage9]

Keep in mind you want water flow through your rock structure as well, so that there are no dead zones where poop and other yuckies can build up.

Yeah I'm worried about that too. I added a AquaClear 30 and placed directly over the rocks. I also looked up the power heads and they are rated at 528 gph so I took one out. I can but it back in but the sand kept piling up. I also read you don't want to point it directly at rocks... Is that false info? I currently have the one pointing at the glass and the bounce back seems to be moving algae hair stuff on the rock.... The pic shows the filter and power head location. I'm open to moving them if you think they should be.

 

[benwallage9]

Cycle seems to be taking awhile... The test haven't had any significant change since last week. Ammonia remains at .5ppm. Nitrate is maybe 5 ppm (however could easily be zero this whole time). Nitrite is 0 and ph is 7.8. I have been putting in a defrosted cube of brine shrimp every couple of days to help cycle the tank and there were a couple hitch hikers that have appeared, a snail, small hermit, and a what I think is a peppermint shrimp.

Put about a gallon in of freshwater to top off the tank. Haven't done any water changes and that was the first time adding water since it was setup. Good news is a lot of the brown algae has gone away and the diatoms in the sand have seemed to died off. A green short hair algae has started to cover the rock closest to the surface. I have done some reading and it seems like I am going through the "ugliness" related to the phosphate cycle. Order a reef test kit should be here tomorrow so I can test phosphates.

Thinking about adding a clean up crew next week if I don't see any significant change in test results.

 

[54seaweed]

in a hex I would go with 3 powerheads one on three sides at different levels to get full coverage ,
I started out with a hex all my rock was in the center of the tank leaving it open on all sides so there's better flow and swim space along with more surface area for coral ,
before adding anything be sure your tank is cycled , I've always used straight clear ammonia dosed it till it hit 4ppm , if it is gone by the next day your tank is cycled always better to be safe than sorry , always add your livestock slowly over time giving your bb ( beneficial bacteria ) a chance to build , enjoy your new adventure into saltwater

 

[benwallage9]

in a hex I would go with 3 powerheads one on three sides at different levels to get full coverage ,
I started out with a hex all my rock was in the center of the tank leaving it open on all sides so there's better flow and swim space along with more surface area for coral ,
before adding anything be sure your tank is cycled , I've always used straight clear ammonia dosed it till it hit 4ppm , if it is gone by the next day your tank is cycled always better to be safe than sorry , always add your livestock slowly over time giving your bb ( beneficial bacteria ) a chance to build , enjoy your new adventure into saltwater

Awesome advice thank you! I will adjust power heads accordingly. On the ammonia I'm assuming you mean the stuff you can buy in the cleaning section at most grocery stores? Also do you have an addition suggestion like X amount per gallon? Like should I start with a tablespoon or like half a cup?

 

[54seaweed]

yes as its straight ammonia as long as it has no scents or dyes in it , it should be clear ammonia , a table spoon at a time till you see 4 ppm no certain amount per gallon
it shouldn't take much as that's a small tank

 

[benwallage9]

Went out looking for ammonia after work bought stuff with ammonia hydroxide and surfactant after some quick research found out the surfactant is a big no no. Glad I didn't get too excited and throw it in. Other test kit was here when I got home. the results:

Ammonia: 0.5ppm
Nitrate: 5ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Ph: 7.8
Phosphate: 1ppm
dKH: 5 or Kh: 89.5ppm
Calcium: 420ppm

Will check Home Depot tomorrow for ammonia.

 

[54seaweed]

good catch it has to be straight ammonia no additives like said above but I'm glad you researched the stuff you got before making a mistake

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

Went out looking for ammonia after work bought stuff with ammonia hydroxide and surfactant after some quick research found out the surfactant is a big no no. Glad I didn't get too excited and throw it in. Other test kit was here when I got home. the results:

Ammonia: 0.5ppm
Nitrate: 5ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Ph: 7.8
Phosphate: 1ppm
dKH: 5 or Kh: 89.5ppm
Calcium: 420ppm

Will check Home Depot tomorrow for ammonia.

1ppm phosphate? What are you using for source water. That wil turn into an algae nightmare as your cycle crates nitrates. You may want to drain and refill with rodi mixed sw to eliminate that headache before it starts and before you start your cycle


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[benwallage9]

1ppm phosphate? What are you using for source water. That wil turn into an algae nightmare as your cycle crates nitrates. You may want to drain and refill with rodi mixed sw to eliminate that headache before it starts and before you start your cycle


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I did use tap water. I know it's a big no no. I will check the tap water tomorrow if bad I will drain and get ro water. Just hate to completely restart.

 

[benwallage9]

so turns out that the tap water does contain about 1ppm phosphate. So should I completely drain the water and restart the tank?

 

[benwallage9]

Drained the tank last night filled it with water I got from petco. Says its ocean water. Tested it before adding it and ammonia was .5 ppm in all 3 five gallon boxes I got. Everything else was fine nitrate ph and phosphate, so I added it to the tank. Tested again today and ammonia seemed to go down but who knows, everything else 0 ph 7.8. Went out and bought raw shrimp since I couldn't find any pure ammonia. We will see how this goes. My planted tank has always had a algae problem I'm guessing it's due to the phosphate in the tap water. I will be looking into getting an ro system as I can probably used it when I make beer too.