gonna need advice on my nano

[piratealx]

ok so bought my FIRST saltwater tank so im gonna have some questions you might think im stupid or something IM SORRY!!!! but better do things right than suffer.

Ok so i got my 6 gallon nano and it has a couple live rocks piled up and sand.

here go the stupid questions.

1. random shell its flat on top and sprial on bottom, is there something in it? hasnt moved yet.

2. if i get hermit crabs do i need extra shells laying around (this is where i figured it would be a stupid question)

3. someone give me a stock list of what to put in it. i know i atleast want 1 or 2 fire shrimp, but along the lines of snails and such and i at least want 1 or 2 regular fish. just need a stock list with how many of each.

4. and finally, if i bought already made and ready saltwater from store and transported it home in a bucket, when will the tank be ready to stock

Thanks for your time and replies.

 

[Relofish]

1. its probably just a shell
2. not really. but they have been known to swap their shells
3. general rule of thumb is 1 inch of fish per 5 gallons; but I've read that the ratio can be 1 inch per two gallons if you load with 1 pound of rock per gallon and a protein skimmer
4. you should cycle the water for at least a week.

 

[piratealx]

ok thanks for the info. do you know of any cheap protein skimmers?

and yeah its just a random shell i checked up on it today.

also i have about 8 lb. of live rock. they are very neat and some have lots n lots of feather dusters

 

[melosu58]

1) I`d have to see a pic.
2) Having extra shells around is a good idea. If not they will kill your snails to get their shells.
3)IMO you`ll only be able to have 1 fish in a 6 gallon tank.
4)No it will not be ready to stock. Water does not carry any beneficial bacteria. You need to cycle your tank no matter how long it takes. Read this
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/articles/articles/3/1/Cycle-your-salt-tank/Page1.html

And no you dont need a protien skimmer for that size tank. PWC`s will accomplish what you need for that small a tank.

 

[bawel]

You don't need a skimmer either, that tank is small enough. As long as you do PWC routinely like weekly, it should be good for you.

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

1) I`d have to see a pic.
2) Having extra shells around is a good idea. If not they will kill your snails to get their shells.
3)IMO you`ll only be able to have 1 fish in a 6 gallon tank.
4)No it will not be ready to stock. Water does not carry any beneficial bacteria. You need to cycle your tank no matter how long it takes. Read this
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/articles/articles/3/1/Cycle-your-salt-tank/Page1.html

And no you dont need a protien skimmer for that size tank. PWC`s will accomplish what you need for that small a tank.

Agree 100% with melosu's advice. And with 3)... that 1 fish should be one SMALL fish.

 

[piratealx]

i was just thinking a clown or cardinal. maybe even a fire.
(not sure on the types of fish quite yet)
the guy at the petstore told me i could get 3 hermits, 5 snails, at the most 2 shrimp and 1 regular fish and possibly a goby.

and the sand was in a mature marine tank at petstore and I replaced in my new nano. if that makes a difference.

 

[sqrle]

don't even think about stocking yet. Just give it time to cycle. I have a 10gallon in my bedroom on my computer desk, and the only fish that I have in there is 1 firefish goby. I have only one hermit, 4 turbos, a tonne of cowrys that just multiplied. As for the cardinall, they usualy require a minimum 30gallon. Get used to the idea of having only one fish in there.

 

[piratealx]

yeah well the question was originally ideas for stocking.

i was wondering how many hermits, how many snails, how many shrimp. and such