i have a 20 gallon i plan on maybe making saltwater any advice?

[carey]

no, they have sw hermits that live under water. I have quite a few myself, very amusing to watch. Just have to provide them with extra shells so they don't kill each other or snails.

They dont get nearly as big as the ones I think you mean, don't worry. I'd put like 5 in a 20g.

 

[allaboutfish]

So can I do 5 hermits 1 occelaris 1 goby or blenny and ? Amount of shrimp?

 

[thominil]

I don't know if I would stick a blenny in a 20g, you are just on the small side for one of them. However, Carey gives great advice, so, if she recommends one, you are probably fine.

Don't just go with all hermits for your CUC, you need something that can clean your glass for you. I found that astrea snails do the best job for this. Stay away from turbo snails, with a small tank, your chunks of rock won't be so big making it easy for them to knock stuff down. They do get pretty big for a snail. Split your CUC with about 3 hermits, 4 astrea snails, 6-8 nassarius snails (they keep sand stirred up by burrowing), and if you want a shrimp, you could get away with a cleaner shrimp, or a pair of peppermint shrimp.

Also, remember to keep anything such as rocks on the bottom glass, and then pour your sand around it. This helps keep rocks from sliding due to things burrowing under the sand.

 

[allaboutfish]

So and occelaris and a goby?

 

[Crepe]

Hagen sells a kit with just a ballast and end caps. It's capable of supporting up to 4 bulbs. You just need to buy however many bulbs you have and also the reflectors which you can make or purchase with the kit.

This way you can make a cheapo fixture and have your bulbs staggered so you'll get even lighting all throughout the tank.

I believe fishneedit also sells similar retrofit kits.

 

[allaboutfish]

can i get a link for that? also i like cardnalfish is my tank too small for one of them?

 

[Crepe]

30in 4Bulbs fixtures

30inch 4 bulb fixture. 110USD

30in 2Bulbs fixtures

30 inch 2 bulb 70 usd


edit: I couldn't find the 4 bulb retrofit. I think I was hallucinating the extra two bulbs because they were all two bulb kits lol. But anyways fishneedit also sells cheapo ballasts in case you're all up for wiring your own light fixture. (I'd be deathly afraid of my own wiring skills lol)

 

[allaboutfish]

haha now i need like a list of what i need. and some explaining on the saltwater part and why you need ro di systems and stuff

 

[carey]

There are some blennies that dont get too big, thats what I was thinking on. You can check Aquarium Fish: Tropical Freshwater Fish and Saltwater Fish for Home Aquariums they have a nano fish section. Any of those fish would be fine in your tank. You could do a clown and an orange lined cardinal fish with CUC and shrimps.

A good cuc in my opinion would be about 5 hermits, 5-10 narcissus snails and maybe 6 snails that eat algae. The narcissus snails go under your sand and dont eat algae but eat ll athe other crap.

I would look at the links for the fishneedit lights, cheap and can support a lot of things.

 

[allaboutfish]

Now I got the stock and the rocks and corals and rocks down but what salinity do I need and do I need a skimmer or whatever and do I need a operettas or anything?

 

[huma-huma]

Being that you're setting up a 20 gallon, a skimmer isn't a necessity, I mean it'll make life a lil easier but not a necessity. Same with the ro-di, although its highly recommended all salties use one, being that you are in a smaller tank, you could get by with tap water and a good de-chlorinator

**edit** carey may need to chime in about the salinity, haven't quite got a full grasp on that yet... And you'd be surprised how simple a properly-cycled and cuc-stocked 20g saltie is to upkeep

 

[Ibrahim]

Your Salinity should be around 1.024. Use a refractometer to check salinity as they are super accurate.

 

[carey]

I keep my salinity at 1.025 in all my sw tanks, even the ones without coral just in case. But a fish only tank can be lower than 1.025.

If you do your water changes like you should you won't need a skimmer. And even then it wouldnt be unless you had some coral.

 

[allaboutfish]

So with a 50% water change a week I don't need a skimmer unless I decide to do corals in the future? So I need sand, rock, a light, the fish, the cuc, the salt, the refractometer and do they need a special food? Is that everything?

 

[thominil]

No, don't do a 50% PWC, just do your regular 10%-20% weekly water change as you would on a freshwater tank. You won't need a skimmer on your tank, even if you add coral. Your weekly water change will accomplish the same thing.

I highly recommend that you get a RO/DI unit if you plan on coral, or really any invert at all. There are heavy metal levels in tap water that are toxic to corals and other inverts, have a RO/DI unit would remove these. Dechlorinator only removes chlorine and chloramines, nothing else.

 

[allaboutfish]

I don't think I can afford a ro di unit.

 

[joy13]

A RO unit is cheaper than buying RO water in the long run.
I am glad to see you doing all the research before jumping in.

 

[huma-huma]

I keep my salinity at 1.025 in all my sw tanks, even the ones without coral just in case. But a fish only tank can be lower than 1.025.

If you do your water changes like you should you won't need a skimmer. And even then it wouldnt be unless you had some coral.

My tank leveled out at 1.023. wish I wouldve just filled the whole tank THEN mix in the salt

 

[atte]

I don't think I can afford a ro di unit.

You can try eBay. I know several people here have bought one of those portable RO/DI filters for as low as $60. It will be worth it in the long run, if you want an easier time dealing with nuisance algae and maintaining perfect water quality.

 

[allaboutfish]

Ok I'll search eBay. Would I be ok without ro water for a month or two?