New aquarium owner, please help me !

[Jelena]

Hi All !

 

I just bought this 28 Gallon Hexagon Tank with Canopy Cabinet Stand.

There is nothing included, everything else I have to buy separately.

 

Never owned one aquarium before and need lot of help.

 

I need to know what I need to buy in order to make it ready for fish. (light,pump,filters....)

 

As i already mentioned tank is 28 Gallon, Hexagonal design. ( http://www.hayneedle.com/product/clearforlifehexagon.cfm )

 

It would be very nice if someone can provide me links or names of all accessories I need to buy for this size of tank.

 

Thank you in advance

 

 

[TristanC]

Ive never owned a hex tank so I'm sure others will chime in on its particular needs but you will the following:

Filter- If you don't want to drill it you can do an aqua clear 70/110 for media you could do chemipure elite and/or purigen with filter floss. Check out intank @ mediabaskets.com for all of this.

Heater- cobalt neotherms are of high quality and I would highly recommend one.

Poweheads- tunze makes nice ones or you could do koralia.

Lighting- Led is the way to go on a tank like this, look into a kessil a150 ocean blue

Test Kits-you will need ammonia, nitrite, nitrate for starters. API makes a decent set for beginners.

 

You will also need rock, sand, water (either buy pre made or make your own with ro/di but I recommend the latter), refractometer (to measure salinity), magfloat or similar glass scrubber. Im sure I missed some other misc supplies but this is just to start it up.

Use the search function on this site to answer most of your questions, the beginners section can be of great help. Do lots and lots and lots of research before you make any decisions and do not cut corners, you will pay for it later.

[Jelena]

Thank you for you reply!

I found all of this accessories you mentioned on amazon.

I will just wait for someone else to confirm they are ok for my aquarium and then order it.

 

ps I see Kessil A150W 15000K Special Blend LED Aquarium Light you mentioned is 230 $ on amazon.

Is that good price or I should look somewhere else for better deal?

 

thanx

[ski]

I second everything tristanschlueter said. Also I have a koralia powerhead and I like it.

 

In addition Do Not Try To Cut Corners. I did. It was a nightmare for months. ro/di is a must and the convenience of your own system is difficult to beat especially for a tank over 20 gallons. A refractometer is another must. I tried to use a plastic hydrometer for a time and it isn't a viable option in my opinion, even fresh out of the box they are not very accurate.

 

I don't want to be the mean one Jelena, but I would say to read through a bunch of the beginner section and plan out every variable of your system and what you hope to accomplish with it such as what type corals, or fish only. This will dictate some of your equipment choices. Nothing good in reefkeeping happens quickly. Take your time in picking out equipment and setting up your tank.

[Go Tigers!]

Welcome to nanoreef jelena Setting up for what you plan to keep is very important , don't buy products on a whim do some research first . Planning and building a system is one of the important aspects of the hobby , your aquarium is a life support system . Read read read everything you can get your hands on . Good luck

[Liamgray90]

A lot to get really its surprising

Based on my tank being a 20gallon I'd say you need 12 to 15kg of live rock

A large bag of live sand or gravel

Plus around 70litres of ro salt mixed water I get my shop to do it its only £7.50 for 20litres

[charnelhouse]

+1 on Go Tigers post.

 

Plan WHAT YOU WANT TO PUT IN THE TANK first. Then figure out the equipment you need to support that life.

 

Don't buy equipment without knowing what it is you are trying to accomplish first.

 

Edit: And welcome to N-R!

[Jelena]

Thank you for your responses!

 

You are right, I should first think what to put in..

 

Any suggestions about fish? And how many?

 

I know im very limited because of space. I will go soon to my pet store but I would like in advance what are my options.

 

Thanx again

[charnelhouse]

Igreen's Nano Fish Thread is a great resource for getting an idea of what types of fish your tank is suitable for.

 

As far as corals go, take a look at some of the online retailers such as Liveaquaria and also other members threads to see what appeal to you. Then research the care requirements for those corals to help you figure out what your lighting and water movement needs will be.

[Jelena]

is it ok if I decide to go with fake corals?

[charnelhouse]

is it ok if I decide to go with fake corals?

 

If it's ok with you it's ok. Your tank . Just make sure they are tank safe imitations.

[Jelena]

I have read many treads here and over the web about what fish I can put in.

Only problem is that my tank is Hexagonal design and my understanding is that I can not put in same fish like in other tanks with different design.

I would like someone to list me 5-6 fish species I can put in for sure and also how many of them.

As I said I will go soon to pet store but I don't trust them too much, they are very pushy and want me to buy everything I like.

[Tamberav]

I have read many treads here and over the web about what fish I can put in.

Only problem is that my tank is Hexagonal design and my understanding is that I can not put in same fish like in other tanks with different design.

I would like someone to list me 5-6 fish species I can put in for sure and also how many of them.

As I said I will go soon to pet store but I don't trust them too much, they are very pushy and want me to buy everything I like.

 

You definitely need to pick suitable fish.

 

Percula or Occy clownfish (1 or 2 but if you get two, they need to both be babies or a pair)

 

Firefish

 

Bangaii or Pajama cardinal fish (great option as they generally hang out at the top of tanks)

 

Small gobies (clown goby, neon goby, yasha, orange spotted, greenbanded, wheelers, ect) There are tons of options for gobies, try to stick to smaller species and be sure to research before you buy, not all gobies eat prepared frozen foods and can starve in small nano's and others start out tiny and grow into giants.

 

Pearly/Yellowheaded jawfish (if you plan on having a 4-6 inch sand bed as they need to make a burrow, they also need a secure top as they jump out of tanks)

 

Tailspot blenny, barnacle blenny

 

 

Some of these fish can be found in mated pairs like cardinals, neon gobies, and jawfish. Generally fish fight if they aren't a pair.

 

I am not saying you can add all of these fish but these are some ideas. Try to get rock/decorations that are tall to give more area for fish to live.

 

I would suggest you go with live rock or dry reef rock over plastic decorations. The rock actually provides a lot of filtration.

 

There are many options for lighting, over my 20g hex I had a reef breeders value fixture. If you don't plan to keep corals ever, then you can use any cheap light.

[Jelena]

I just came from pet store and found this TaoTronics® TT-AL09 165w Dimmable Led Aquarium.

 

Sales guy said its ok for my hexagon tank (22 in deep)

 

Should I go with that?

[WickedBear]

I have read many treads here and over the web about what fish I can put in.

Only problem is that my tank is Hexagonal design and my understanding is that I can not put in same fish like in other tanks with different design.

I would like someone to list me 5-6 fish species I can put in for sure and also how many of them.

As I said I will go soon to pet store but I don't trust them too much, they are very pushy and want me to buy everything I like.

 

You need to stop, breathe, slow down. I get the impression you're excited and want to get this setup but I don't think you truly understand the desire, the expense, the upkeep, and basic saltwater biology/chemistry. I would not purchase ANYTHING else, at all, untill you:

 

• Understand the basic nitrogen cycle of saltwater aquariums.
• Understand basic upkeep through natural filtration, mechanical/chemical, when & why you need to do water changes, and your own necessary involvement!
• Understand generally what you CAN put into a tank of this size. (Fish, Inverts, Corals)
• Understand and clearly have a direct goal of waht to put in the tank (It sounds like you want a fish only with live rock, theres nothing wrong with simple setups like this, but your equipment purchases are derived from what you want to put in it.
• Understand what equipment you need to support your livestock and tank/filtration setup.

 

This is a hobby that rewards people for patientce and diligent research not impulse shopping and quick replys.

[WickedBear]

To build on my previous post, all of these topics should be readily available to research on multiple sites. If you need help or direction, you can ask specific pointed questions. The more knowledge you have, the more you will understand why you need particular equiment and why or why not you would want rock vs artificial decorations and the impact it will have on the tank and your involvement.

 

I'm not trying to beat you down, im trying to make sure your fish tank is successful (with long lived happy fishes!) and it is what you want it to be!

[Tamberav]

I just came from pet store and found this TaoTronics® TT-AL09 165w Dimmable Led Aquarium.

 

Sales guy said its ok for my hexagon tank (22 in deep)

 

Should I go with that?

 

Do you want to a light to support corals or no? This will have a huge impact on what you get.

 

Personally, no. I would not buy a led light that isn't full spectrum.

 

Make sure you understand how to cycle a tank btw.

[WickedBear]

I think I scared her off.

[charnelhouse]

Hopefully she is doing research...