With a 20 gal fowlr tank you should be good. If you ever want to add coral, which is a hardthingto resist with salt water, you need about 30 lbs of LR. I would go 35 for good measure. I would get rid of those two hang on power filters and get a canister. This will help with the water quality while your away if you fill it with the right stuff. They need cleaning as well and are no excuse for not doing water changes. You can either do more rapid partial water changes, or you can do large monthly changes. In your case you should go with
monthly.
Sounds like your off to a good start hope everything continues to go well.
i would not try overstocking the tank. just learn with this one, and then move up to a larger system once you've got it down.
algae is hard to kill. during the cycle, you don't need to run your lights, and in many cases, it could be detrimental running the lights, since the nutrient level during the cycle is high. it's a perfect environment for algae to thrive.
a cannister might be better than what you have. what HOB filters are you using currently?
Kelso - yes monthly would be fantastic! i got used to the PWC with my freshwater setup, but if i can set my tank up to help prolong from one PWC to the next than i will. it will just be more practical for my current schedule.
Mr_x - all of my live rock and substrate is starting to gain color, including green on certain rocks close to the water surface. is it really a bad thing now? . i also just reorganized rocks so that some parts that werent getting light are now getting light.
my water test results:
Ammonia - 0-.25
Nitrate - 20
Nitrite - .1
would a Fluval 305 or 405 be a good idea? is there such thing as too much filtering with the 405? from looking on craigslist i will get either one of those, depending on how good the deal is for each.
for the GPH/price, its just the best bang for you buck. i couldnt resist not getting them when i first started.
i have two of these