Im setting up my first saltwater tank!Please help!

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

Alllllrighty then!!! I am starting a 2.5 gallon saltwater tank with fish and i think i have a live rock?(it's white with holes all over it and some leed through to the other side?)i have regular freshwater sand and a marineland 50 gallon filter(oh yeah! !!!!!!! But i will still be doing water changes once every 1 or 2 weeks) now heres my question. When i fill it. Can i use regular declorinated water mixed well with Api aquarium salt? If not is there a specific brand you would reccomend? Ive heard you can get your water at a petstore too? But id rather have the stuff on hand! I also know to keep the water in check daily and when it evaporates the salt is still in the water so just add more declorinated water. So if theres anything im missing please jump in!! Oh and ill use a hydrometer to moniter the salinity levels depending on the critter i get.(ive been keeping freshwater for 8 years)so yes how long to let the tank cycle for b4 adding anything? Would it be easier if i stared off in a 10 gallon? All my other tanks are occupied and the 10 is in my brothers room. So i can trade him the 28 gallon(unless there is a salt mixture where i can do it like freshwater instead of buying it every time. Then ill start off in the 28!) please help me with this!! Is there a salt in a carton i can use to mix myself?

 

[Nu-Nu the eel]

Sounds good so far! What fish do you plan on adding?? Thats a small tank

 

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

What fish would you suggest? I was thinking a damsel? Idk

 

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

I really want a clownfish

 

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

My question is can iuse api salt? Its the type in a carton

 

[spoonman]

You need salt mix. I dont think aquarium salt in those cartons is the same thing.

 

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

Ok thanks any suggested salt mix i should use?

 

[FTMMWS]

Just go to petco and get Instant ocean or even their brand...

I would avoid the 2.5 gallon altogether ..Go with at least the 10 gallon ..
28 would be ideal though...
its actually better to start out bigger than smaller

 

[NyteGTI]

Please don't put a fish in a 2.5 gallon. there isn't a fish out there that's suitable for a tank this small. it can be a temporary home of a small gobie but make sure it's temporary.

 

[Nu-Nu the eel]

Yup definitly NO clownfish. They get way too big. I wouldnt put a fish in there, just a shrimp

 

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

Ok im going with the 10 and will be picking up petco salt(ocean salt) any suggestions on a hydrometer? I want the most accurate and easiest way sof reading it but they have one that has a temperature gauge with it and its like a tube. It is $3. Would that one work well? What fish in a fowlr 10 gallon? I want a blennie and a clownfish unless insrtucted otherwise. Thanks so much so far though. I feel like i just got that much closer now!!B-)

 

[Nu-Nu the eel]

Get a refractometer! You can get 30 dollar ones from ebay or amazon..

If you REALLY want to have a happy clown and blenny (most likly a small one like a one spot) get a 15 g. Then you could get maybe 1 other fish like a small cardnal or something

 

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

K i was going to use the 55 or the 300 but they are aquascaped and i dont wanna mess i all up for ive workedbhard on those. The big*est i can do is the 10 at the moment. But later on i will definetly do a 400 or higher gallon of saltwater. As of now though i am stuck with the 10(i am 16 so yeah no steay income) i traded out the 28 to my bro because he wanted it so now i have the 10(call me stupid or whatever) the reason i wanted to start in the 10 is because ill have to buy and use less salt than in a bigger tank. So if i had a what is a list of fish i could keep? Just wondering whats out there. I have been looking at alot of saltwater creatures so yeah. But i dont have the experience level as many of you in the saltwater world. Thanks for the help on the gravity measurers ill look into that! Some guy at Petco told me to use a regular marine sand($8 for 20 pounds) its not the live bacteria built up in it. Just the sand(really fine grain!) i was wondering what is better? Sand with the beneficial stuff.. Or without? He said to get the fine grain stuff so nothing builds up inbetween th3 cracks. He also said not to se the biowheel in the marineland filter? He told me to get a powerhead too. I want a powerhead but i gotta get one thing at a time and if i dont absolutely need it then im not getting it just yet. Another concern is the lid is plastic and doesnt cover the whole top of the tank. Will the water evaporate like crazy?? And can i grow live stuff on my live rock? Like wavy stuff?? My lighting is just stock but its pretty good lighting. Would an actinic Zoo Med work well?sorry for all the questons and requests for fish. NOOB AT WORK.

 

[NyteGTI]

So if i had a what is a list of fish i could keep? Just wondering whats out there. I have been looking at alot of saltwater creatures so yeah. But i dont have the experience level as many of you in the saltwater world. Thanks for the help on the gravity measurers ill look into that! Some guy at Petco told me to use a regular marine sand($8 for 20 pounds) its not the live bacteria built up in it. Just the sand(really fine grain!) i was wondering what is better? Sand with the beneficial stuff.. Or without? He said to get the fine grain stuff so nothing builds up inbetween th3 cracks. He also said not to se the biowheel in the marineland filter? He told me to get a powerhead too. I want a powerhead but i gotta get one thing at a time and if i dont absolutely need it then im not getting it just yet. Another concern is the lid is plastic and doesnt cover the whole top of the tank. Will the water evaporate like crazy?? And can i grow live stuff on my live rock? Like wavy stuff?? My lighting is just stock but its pretty good lighting. Would an actinic Zoo Med work well?sorry for all the questons and requests for fish. NOOB AT WORK.

I'm going to try to sift through this post. use paragraphs to separate ideas so it doesn't look like one giant thought lol.

I personally wouldn't put a clown in a 10G for very long. I've got to B&W clowns in my 12 but they're juvies still and are going into my 90 in september.
Most of the fish here will be fine for a 10, but don't fill this tank with tons of little fish.

as far as sand, just get something that's pleasing to you. the really fine stuff will get blown around by a powerhead pretty easily so just keep that in mind.

the biowheel is fine for this tank. you don't "need" it, but it's nice to have some form of mechanical filtration to remove some of the bigger debris from the water.

the powerhead is needed if you want corals. for a 10G a simple hydor nano 240 should suffice

depending on what kind of lights you have you should be able to get "wavy" corals. check to see if you have T5 or t8 lighting in your stock hood. 2 bulb t5 should be fine for most stuff you';ll want. look for things like hammer, frogspawn, & torch coral.

as far as the actinic Zoo Med I'd get one actinic and one 10K white bulb. it'll give you a better look. or if you only have 1 bulb go with a 15K bulb(if they make one)

HTH

 

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

Wow thank you so much!! And sorry bout the clumped up message.lol. I will most likely get a powerhead.

 

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

K so i will be picking up salt, a powerhead, a hydrometer(cause there cheaper) ), sand, some more live rock. I think thats all...

Im looking at building a sump but i have no idea how the thing works?

How about a protein skimmer? I saw one at petco for $50. Can i get one for cheper? How do they work as i am curious?

How long do i cycle the tank for before adding anything live?

Could i have 1 starfish, 1 cleaner shrimp, and maybe a Blennie? Anything else?

Welp. If theres anything i can do in my tank to make it look better then please .. Im open to suggestions.
I'll post pics when i get it setup.

 

[Nu-Nu the eel]

Ya man get a refractometer... Definitly worth being accurate

 

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

Ok.. Ill go for it!

 

[NyteGTI]

more than likely a starfish with either a) not be coral safe and/or b) trap that blenny in a corner of that small tank & eat him..

 

[ZacksFlowerhorn123]

Wow thanks for the heads up anything a starfish can go with?