Lots of newbie questions!

[NicoleIsStoked]

Seeing as how my tank is 4 feet long, could I pull off a foxface? Same footprint as a 60 but 4" shorter.
If so my proposed stock list:
Ocellaris clownfish x 2
One spot foxface
Fire shrimp x 2
Astraea spiny star snails x 5
Coral beauty angelfish
Royal gramma basslet
Firefish goby
Dwarf red tip hermit crab x 2
Red and Black Sea star
Nassarius snail x 8

Any objections/suggestions/recommendations?

What further would be involved if I wanted an anemone or feather duster? Do I need special lighting?

 

[MacDracor]

I think I mentioned this before, but my foxface is quite happy in a 55. I would consider a four foot tank to be bare minimum for them though. I don't know much about red and black sea stars though.
Anemones require high lighting. Feather dusters seem to be pretty easy, as long as the water isn't TOO clean. They need particulate food of very specific sizes and you're more likely to have this by accident than on purpose. My two have done quite well, but I hear many people have a hard time with them. Sea stars, anemones, etc should be added later after everything is stable and you're comfortable with maintenance routines.

 

[NicoleIsStoked]

I read somewhere that a foxface is venomous. How does this affect things? And can someone give me info on Mandarin gobies? I went to the lfs yesterday and they are SO cute.

 

[Beengirl]

Foxface themselves are pretty timid and shy, but the spiky dorsal fins do have venom on them, that way if something tries to eat them, that fish gets spiked with the venomous fins. They're cool fish.

 

[obscurereef]

Just a defense mechanism so try not to touch them while doing a water change or having your hands in the tank. It is said to be like a bee sting. Mandarins or any other dragonet eat specifically tiny pods and such on live rock. Kind of like seahorses in the way that they constantly eat and need to be fed many times during the day if they eat frozen food. I'd recommend trying to find one trained to eat frozen food b/c most die when they run out of their food supply. They can eat 2,000 copepods a day! So imagine how many you would need to keep this guy alive, more than would sustain him/her for a long period of time. You could spend lots of money on pods then train it to eat frozen food, or let the population of pods grow then train them on frozen food.

 

[obscurereef]

I've ranted about emeralds many times. Lol.
As a side note, my foxface eats bubble algae far better than any emerald I've ever had.

Not to get too off topic here, but if they ate bubble algae wouldn't they eat bubble coral or coral that look similar? I ask b/c I want one, but have heard about how they eat coral and I don't want to be missing chunks in valuable animals.

 

[jefferzbooboo]

I read somewhere that a foxface is venomous. How does this affect things? And can someone give me info on Mandarin gobies? I went to the lfs yesterday and they are SO cute.

On a Foxface Lo the spines are were the toxin is, as long as nothing nips at them. If you want a Mandarin wait 9+ months because of the food they eat. Most Mandarins will only eat live food, they eat copepods and isopods. Some people have had luck "training" them on live food but it's hit or miss.

 

[MacDracor]

Seems this'll mostly be a recap, since the questions have been fairly thoroughly answered, but I'd like to toss in my two cents.
Foxfaces, like all rabbitfish, have hollow spines in the dorsal and ventral fins, and can inject a powerful venom. The venom is a heat labile protein, which means heat will break it down. I've heard it is extremely painful, but then I've never been stung, and he's even brushed my arm with spines extended. I even pet his nose once while feeding him. As with any puncture occurring in a marine environment, heat, then doctor for antibiotics and tetanus. This is an extremely rare occurrence. Google it, and you'll have trouble finding stories of anyone being stung by a rabbitfish. They're just too timid.
The mandarin dragonet (not a goby. Who started that? Seriously! lol) is an extremely difficult fish to care for. There are some wonderful threads on this site, and articles all over, but the short version is that this fish is best left on the reef unless you are willing to pour a lot of time, effort, and money into feeding it. Sucks because they're so beautiful!
And to ObscureReef's question: Bubble algae doesn't really look like bubble coral. The foxfaces just graze all day on anything green they can find, but mine has never shown any interest at all in my corals, and I have soft, LPS, and even some montis. Like most marine herbivores, they turn to meat when very hungry, but seem to be less inclined than most to do so. Mine LOVES caleurpa. I mean, it's like giving spaghetti to a starving child. He practically slurps it down! Chew, stupid fish, chew!

 

[NicoleIsStoked]

Thanks for all the info. You guys are the best. The guy at my lfs called the mandarin a goby. I was confused because I think it looks more like a frog that a goby. How do you know when you have copepods?

 

[MacDracor]

People have been calling them gobies for years, but they're not gobies. Drives me batty, and I'm already pretty batty.
You almost definitely have pods, if you used any live rock at all. BUT...
The Mandarins will eat a copepod about every 3-5 seconds in the wild. So, let's do the math.
1 every 5 seconds is 12 per minute. That's 720 per hour. If you have a 10 hour day, that's 7,200 copepods per day. In a 50 gallon tank, that is incredibly difficult to maintain. Even with a large refugium that was crawling with pods and other appropriately sized foods, they are very difficult to sustain.

 

[NicoleIsStoked]

Did another water test today.

Ammonia 3ppm
Nitrite 5ppm
Nitrate 20ppm

I took the shrimp out of the pantyhose a few days ago and it's just floating around my tank now. Looks to be disintegrating. I'm contemplating removing it. I'm very eager to add my CUC but those nitrites are super dangerous.

 

[obscurereef]

Don't take it out yet. Let it reach higher than 3 ppm ammonia. Yes a CUC is quite tempting, but not only are those nitrites high, so is your ammonia. The combo of those two will surely kill a CUC if you got one. Don't get tempted and waste your money and time!

 

[NicoleIsStoked]

Once i get 4ppm ammonia should I remove it? I redid my aquascaping and added a piece of live rock I bought on Saturday. Opinions?
Before:




After:

 

[MacDracor]

Just leave it in. With a constant source of ammonia (rotting shrimp) you'll know the cycle is complete when the bacteria convert it faster than the shrimp can rot it out.
The rockwork looks better now. I don't recall, did you use any live rock, or is it all base rock?

 

[Beengirl]

You can leave it, or if the smell has really gotten to you, you can take it out. If you take it out, you'll need to make sure to put some food or something in the tank every couple days so that the ammonia-eating bacteria that has grown doesn't starve.
The rock looks better, there are some hiding holes and such. The 3 rocks on the far left look all smushed together, though. I would create more crevices amongst those rocks. You're getting there!!

 

[NicoleIsStoked]

It is all base rock except for the very top piece which I bought live on Saturday. It has some coralline purple stuff on it.

 

[NicoleIsStoked]

Once the cycle is done should I do a water change before adding livestock? I assume my nitrates will be pretty high at that point. How far in advance of doing a water change should I prepare the water? And how long is it safe to leave it for? Let say I mix up some salt water and don't wind up using it for a month. Is it still okay to use? Should I keep it aerated with a power head or can I just put a lid on it and store it away? Ideally I'd like to mix up a big huge batch of saltwater and just store it until I need it. Thoughts?

 

[MacDracor]

I believe most people do a water change right after cycling. I don't recall if I did or not. Can't hurt!
Generally, saltwater should be mixed a day or so in advance, as this gives time for the all the salt to fully dissolve, microbubbles to settle out, etc. This is to make sure you get an accurate reading of the specific gravity. I really have no idea whether or not salt water can be stored for that long, but I can't think of any logical reason why it would be a problem, so long as it is covered to avoid massive evaporative losses. Just make sure it is close to the tank temp before using it. If your tank has adequate surface agitation and aeration, I don't think you'd need to keep the water circulating for weeks on end while it is being stored.
Me personally, I find it easier to just go mix up 10-15 gallons at a time so I'm not storing a dozen buckets.

 

[Beengirl]

Yeah, your Trates will probably be pretty high after the cycle, so a PWC will probably be in order. I actually have no idea if you can store SW for a month. As previous poster said, if its covered so that dust and stuff can't get in it, seems like it would be ok. I usually mix up my SW a day or 2 ahead and throw a heater in, so I've never tried it.

 

[NicoleIsStoked]

Alright so my ammonia is at 0. My nitrites are off the chart. Nitrates are 40. Getting there!!!