New to salt water, 5 gall tank lots of start up questions!

[oneball]

Ok, to start I picked up a 5 gallon acrylic thanks to my dad ( old feeder fish/ hodge podge tank from years ago). Cleaned it super well, looks brand new, want to start a tiny coral and tiny crustacean tank, no fish. It comes with a filter, tube pump then filter than bio wheel then out, don't know how much of that I will need but all the old stuff is gone obviously.
( (tl;dr) what do I need all to set up? Lol))


First question, it has a spot for a bulb, tried it last night and it fits a normal lightbulb, but not much bigger. Came with a tiny halogen style bulb,
But in this case what wattage, size, style type etc would you guys recommend for that little tank? I think I am going to go closed lid because the whole setup is there, but to save on heat I may splice in a tiny computer fan to help dissipate heat, there is just a metal plate and some holes there now to keep it from melting the plastic. Thank you in advance, there is question one lol

[rebelyeller89]

I am going to try this light in my five gallon aquarium. And if that doesn't work out I'll be adding a led fixture

[Travis55]

Originally Posted by rebelyeller89

I am going to try this light in my five gallon aquarium. And if that doesn't work out I'll be adding a led fixture

Thats wut im using on my ten gal. Looks really nice. I haven't added anything but looks good.

[oneball]

Here is my starter. Gotta get a bulb, got the sand and mixed water lined up. Local shop is having a half off deal on all live rock so I'm gonna pick that stuff up today. Hope it's all cool!! Anything else I may need?

[Travis55]

Originally Posted by oneball

Here is my starter. Gotta get a bulb, got the sand and mixed water lined up. Local shop is having a half off deal on all live rock so I'm gonna pick that stuff up today. Hope it's all cool!! Anything else I may need?

Nice little tank! Id get a api sw test kit, refractometer both can be bouggt off ebay fairly cheap.

But liverock, sand, and saltwater are the main things to start ur cycle

[Travis55]

And a heater

[oneball]

Question though, should I cut an inch or two off of that tube? It too close to the sand to be a problem?

[Travis55]

Originally Posted by oneball

Question though, should I cut an inch or two off of that tube? It too close to the sand to be a problem?

I would cut a couple inches off for sure.

Mine is prolly 3-4" away from the sand bed

[oneball]

Ok I have a tiny little black heater that came with this thing. 99% this works still

[Travis55]

Originally Posted by oneball

Ok I have a tiny little black heater that came with this thing. 99% this works still

Is it adjustable? Ull wanna get a thermometer. Its probably set to 78 which will be ok

[oneball]

Got it up and running.



The heater would be nice at night but during the day those bulbs ( basically what was posted) raised the water temp from like 60 some to 75+ in just a few hours

[Travis55]

Originally Posted by oneball

Got it up and running.

The heater would be nice at night but during the day those bulbs ( basically what was posted) raised the water temp from like 60 some to 75+ in just a few hours

Looks good! Consistent temps are key. Looking forward to new pics!

[oneball]

Gotta get that tiny heater but even after being off all night( the light) the water temp was close to 70. The guys at the store said it wouldnt effect the live rock. I may need a tiny fan inside there though, I am not sure if the water circulation is high enough.

From this morning:

[rebelyeller89]

Just a tip, there's no reason to have the light on during a cycle. It just promotes algae before you're able to get a CUC in there.

[oneball]

Thank you so much! I was doing it for the heat mainly but I will turn it off when I get home. I'm picking up a tiny heater on the way

[corinne118s]

Nice tl;dr wonder if you are a redditor

Can't wait to see what you come up with I have a 10g nano

[oneball]

Doesn't look like the water flow is good enough though, I wonder if a powerhead would be needed or just a tiny air pump with some bubbles? I do have a pump that puts it out but doesn't seem like enough at least looking At it now

[Travis55]

Originally Posted by oneball

Doesn't look like the water flow is good enough though, I wonder if a powerhead would be needed or just a tiny air pump with some bubbles? I do have a pump that puts it out but doesn't seem like enough at least looking At it now

Dont use an air pump! Lol it will make a huge mess all over. It also increases evaporation. U can get a small powerhead.

[oneball]

Anyone recommend a good tiny powerhead?
Also, can I hold off on the powerhead until I want to introduce corals? When does it become the most important?

[rebelyeller89]

I'm gonna get this one, for my 5 gallon hexagon
http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/...00-160gph.html
I'm not sure if it's gonna be too much flow or not, if it is, I have my 28 gallon to put it in.
Flow is important to corals, but you also need surface agitation for proper gas exchange.