My new SW Tank! YAY!!

[William]

Just got my SW tank [ More pics are >HERE< ]


Comes complete with a Penguin 170 Filter and a protein skimmer made by Aquarium Systems, As well as lights and everything else.


My question is, the guy I got this from only has 40 watts of light on it, a 50/50 bulb and a Antinic.

I know the lightings going to have to be upgraded, but how much [ I.E. How many WPG should I shoot for ? ]


I also have this Anenome he gave me because it wouldn't allow itself to be taken out of its rock, as well as all kinds of snails and a few Electric Blue Hermit Crabs.

The food he has for the tank was Freeze Dried Brine Shrimp by Ocean Nutrition, Supplemented with seafood, plankton algae and vitamens.

Some unkown, AquaDine Nutritional Systems Red Pellets, and some Ocean Plankton.

Is there any other food supplements I need to get?

I also got some Kent Marine liquid Calcium [ Don't worry, I won't use it until I get a test kit for calcium, Have the AquaPharm SW Master Test Kit already ]


So, anything else I need to put on my shopping list?


Thanks all



EDIT

Theres also a featherduster in one of the chunks of Rock, Should I just put some food like the brine in a dropper and squirt it in there for him?

 

[dansemacabre]

Lighting depends on what you want to keep. The *general* rule of thumb is 3-5 WPG, so far as I am aware. If it helps any, I have a 125, about 20" deep, and I'll have 3x250w MH as I wanted to be able to keep clams. I'll also have my 4x96w PC 03 ...that's a total of 1134, that's about 9 WPG. So: How deep is the tank? And what do you want to grow?

BTW, sweet tank, and best of luck to you! (hey, it can't hurt, right?)

 

[William]

The tank is a 29 gal, which I think is 18 inches deep.

My primary concern for lighting is the anenome, if he dosn't need good lighting then I was going to just do a fish or two for now, then when I can afford it later [ or find a nice set of VHO bulbs for dirt cheap ] upgrade the lighting and start thinking about more light intense things.

 

[brndfrb]

How long has the tank been setup? Did you say today or did i misunderstand. If only one day you are brave putting snails and crabs let alone an anemone in there already. Just my opinion

 

[William]

The tank has been established for a long time [ the guy I got it from had it 3 months, and I made sure the way he broke it down preserved the cycle and other goodness ]

and the guy that had it before him, I'm unsure.

 

[dansemacabre]

What kind of anemone? I have no idea what that one is. If it's a Condy, they don't need really intense lighting. Any other that I'm aware of need intense lights. I'm no anemone expert though. Anyways, enjoy your new tank!

 

[afilter]

Looks like a condy, if so you are probably ok, but more lighting would not hurt. I have 4 condy in my 75g with only 80watts of lighting and they have been thriving.

Good luck,

 

[William]

Sweet deal! Glad I don't have to worry about him now.


Now from the food supplements I listed above that the guy gave me, what do I feed it?


I also have alot of frozen food [ Didn't take a look at it since I threw it in the freezer and started putt ing the tank back together ]


Also, what can I drop in there for the arrow crab [ forgot to mention him, Excitement causes memory loss ] and hermits and snails?


Mucho appricaite all the help guys!!

You've turned my great day int a even greater day!

 

[afilter]

Sorry forgot about your feather duster. Phytoplankton is what I feed mine 1-2 times a week. They are basically filter feeders that require no special lighting. The phytoplankton is also beneficial to any LR you have. I would probably avoid the brine as it will not have any nutritional value for any fish you may get and the feather duster really will not eat that much. In the end it will probably be just adding more waste.

 

[WarOrks15]

I have 2 leathers in my tank with one feather duster and have been adding DT to the water about 3 times a weeks to make the corals grow and man that feater duster has a really big crown now. he has got to have doubles in size in the last month or less.

 

[William]

DT?

 

[dansemacabre]

So, as far as feeding goes, hopefully this will help some people, including me :

Can you "grow" your own phyto? If so, how?

Is there another name for "silversides" that perhaps a grocery store would call them? I found raw shrimp, easily, but nothing named silversides. Lots of cod and salmon though.

William:: Good recipe for "blender mush" ... I think it's reefrunner69's, but I forgot where I got this URL from, so don't quote me on that:
http://home.comcast.net/~76fxe/food.htm

 

[dansemacabre]

Oh, and DT is a brand of concentrated phytoplankton.
http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=DT1111

 

[afilter]

The crab is basically a scavenger and will eat whatever it can find off the bottom. As for the Anenome it will basically grab anything that floats by. Mine eat mysis, lifeline, flake whatever I am feeding my fish. Occassionally I will directly feed a small piece of shrimp or squid(frozen) with a feeding stick. Since you do not have any fish yet be careful not to overfeed. If you do direct feed to the anenome make sure it takes it and does not spit it out.

Not real familiar with the foods you listed. The plankton algae you listed is that in liquid form? If so I will assume it is the equivalent to the phyto plankton I was referring to earlier for the feather duster and live rock. Honestly, I do not think I would put much in your set up for food right now until you get some more livestock.

Any thoughts yet on what you are going to stock for fish? Long term you should look at a clean up crew such as snails blue leg and red leg hermits as many as 1 per gallon. Shrimp such as cleaner and peppermint are good as well. Be careful with the arrow crab as I have heard they can be aggressive toward small fish.

Have fun,

 

[William]

Long Term, I was thinking two tankraised Black Percula [ Amphiprion Percula var. ] and a tankraised Watchman Goby [Cryptocentrus lutheri].

I was also thinking on a some pistol shrimp, A PomPom crab or two, More Hermits of course, some Turbo Snails, and I have a pipedream of having an Eel, altho most likely that won't happen with this tank.

When I upgrade the lighting I'd also like to get into Corals and other Anenomes, I have a Florida Pink Tip in the tank right now that came with it, And I heard many stories where FPT would wander across the tank just to sting another one so I'd obviously have to be very careful of what Ipicked.

I also want to get more live rock, atleast some rubble to seed the tank with Coralines and some other benificial goodies [ pods, worms, any other little buggers that complete this Eco system in a box. ]

 

[afilter]

Sounds like you are off to a great start. Be patient and have fun. 8)

 

[William]

I've been..

Well, the phrase best to describe it wouldn't be suitable for use on this forum.

But, Heh.

I've been wanting this, and thinking about this for a long time.