My 60 gallon....

[FishKid13]

Hi im new here first I would likt to say hi! .ANy way to my question,im soon getting a 60 gallon tank from a friend(for free!)He has kept fish in it before with no sucess,I havnt realy seen the tank yet but all I know about itis that it has an oceantic system and set up.This will be my first saltwater tank though I have had way to many freshwater tanks with sucess.I think im ready to move on to salt.Heres my plan(please forgive me this is my first sw set up so I dont know much )any way this is whats going on,I already have the salt(instant ocean),I will get the substrate tommorow should I get crused coral or sand?I have a filter not in use its a aquaclear for a 30 gallon ill add it as extra filtration.I will use the filter he is giving me too I think but first ill notify you guys to see if its ok.Should I have a protein skimmer?IM also getting a salinty measure tommorow what should the correct reading be?I also have a heater and plan to keep the tank at 78f.I plan on having two test fish in there for a while before I add live rock.Wait should I test clowns or my one male molly in there?And about lighting what should I choose/It already has lights but I dont know what kind.What kind of fish should I keep in here?I would lile an aquarium with many many small to medium sized fish I want active and attractive fish by the way.Thank you so much for your help.Sorry for all the questions but im new so bare with me.

 

[mulron]

temp and salt
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=3068

cleanup crew and a few other good reads
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=3454

As for the coral or sand?
I'd get enough sand to get at least 4inches. There is is a calc on this site you can use.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/calcs_new.php

Also I would not use any other filteration other than the sand, LR(live rock) and skimmer. You can run the filters without anything in them for flow.

As for getting 2 fish to help cycle the tank, I cannot find the article atm but I suggest gettting the LR and sand first. Get that settled and then add 1 shrimp in the tank(buy it at any store). It will decay and you will begin your cycle.

As far as a skimmer goes?
I'd get one, they just do so much for the water quality(WQ). Most people will point you at this skimmer.

http://www.marinedepot.com/a_ps_ac_remora_info.asp?CartId=

It is a very good skimmer and I will point you there also.


---

that all aside, the only 2 things I offer for advice is to read, research and ask. And the biggest secret in SW fishkeeping is patience

Let things take its course and you will be happy about it.

Welcome to AA and GL!

 

[kribbz]

1. The shrimp idea mulron suggested is very good, it saves you alot of hasle in replacing fish because they are always dieing. and it is also a little inhuman. the shrimp is just a raw uncooked cocktail shrimp from the store.
2. as for that sand idea, also another very good suggestion. if you can i would try to get ahold of Southdown playsand if it is available at your local Home depot. this is good because it has a good mix of grain size. when adding the sand you can either just dump it in or rinse it of. you will get arguments both ways but just do what makes you feel comforitable. Also the reason you want a 3-5 inch sand bed is because this allows nitrates to be broken down in the bottom layers of the sand which pretty much the same as using a filter.
3. Live rock, Get as much as you can afford. 1-2 lbs per gallon is what the ideal amount of rock is. this also acts as a very good biofilter because all the little creatures on the rock will feed on the excess nutrients in the water. if you cannot afford all this rock at once that is ok because when you start the tank your not going to want to load the tank full. GO SLOW. let the tanks Deep Sand Bed (DSB) and live rock adjust to your bioload.
4. Skimmers in my opinion are great. i'm a newbie in the saltwater business so ive personally never gone skimmerless but i believe that by adding a skimmer it allows you a little bit of a cushion for error. the skimmer will basically pull excess nutrients and dirty crap out of your water keeping it cleaner longer.
i myself have a 65 so if you look at my profile it will tell you my set up and if you have any questions PM me. i'll try to answer them the best i can and if i can't i know most of these people here can. Welcome to Aquarium advice. hope you like it. and sorry for such a long post.

 

[fishfreek]

I cannot find the article atm but I suggest gettting the LR and sand first. Get that settled and then add 1 shrimp in the tank(buy it at any store). It will decay and you will begin your cycle.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=15

Was that the link you was looking for?

Doubt you can find southdown since your in TX. Any argonite based sand will be prefered over standard sand.

As far as lights. If your just looking for fish at this point then the lights they have will do fine and no need to buy more lights. As you progress and want to advance from only fish to other things then a lighting upgrade will probably be in order.

Another thing to remember is you can not stock your tank as heavily with saltwater as you can with fresh. Saltwater holds less oxygen in the water and saltwater fish in general have a more agressive nature than freshwater fish. I would say you could have a half dozen small fish or if you go for something larger than just a few inches the number of fish will be less.

If you get your live rock locally it should be cured. If its cured then you can add any amount of it at any time. If you get your live rock uncured (usually via mailorder) then you will have to either do this before you put fish in or cure teh live rock in a seperate container. I use trashcans to cure my live rock.

 

[FishKid13]

Is it true that I have to have a protein skimmer?

 

[fishfreek]

Is it true that I have to have a protein skimmer?

No you dont have to have one but I do recommend one for beginners. The reason is that beginners often over feed their fish. Its not that they mean to its just that they love them to much. Also beginners sometimes will overstock their tanks. A skimmer will help in both reguards as it will aid in the removal of disolved solids like fish waste, excess food, etc.

If you feed lightly (once per day only enought that they eat it all in a few min), and stock lightly (less than 1" of adult fish per 5 gal of water capacity). Perform regular water changes (i like to do biweekly water changes of 10-15%) you could get by with out a skimmer. But one would definatly be more benifit than hinderance.

 

[FishKid13]

Ill get one.

 

[mulron]

Yea that's the link FF. I was tired when I posted so I couldn't find it

 

[BrianH]

You've gotten some great advice above. I'd just add that The Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Robert Fenner is a great beginners book that explains a lot of the basics in laymans language. I would suggest you buy a copy and read it before you set up your tank.

Brian