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New Reefer looking for insight/suggestions


jerseynano

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Hi everyone I am new to the hobby and this forum.I am from New Jersey and purchased most of the setup from my LFS, Ocean Gallery II(livestock selection is great) except for the tank which I got on amazon. Aquarium has ben running for little over a month and fully cycled pretty quickly.Pictures will be posted. Here is my setup:

  • Jbj picotope 3 gallon bowfront
  • stock HOB filter (running filter pad, carbon, bio sponge)
  • stock 9 watt light filter
  • Hydor pico powerhead (180gph)
  • Aqueon 10W mini heater (tank temp is 78)
  • live sand and 3.5lbs of live rock

Clean up crew:

  • 2 turbo snails
  • 1 astraea snail
  • scarlet hermit
  • blue legged hermit

Current Livestock:

  • False Perc

Questions:

  1. Have the powerhead adjusted to about half strength right now is this good cant seem to figure out when the power head flow is just right?
  2. I understand that the bio sponge is not necessary because the LR provides the bio filtration and from my research most people in this tank just run a filter pad for mechanical and chemi-pure elite for the chemical filtration. Should I run chemi-pure or what media?
  3. Aquascape suggestions? should i add more live rock in the back?
  4. My levels are all 0 based on my api test kit so i was planning on adding some corals this weekend. The light is only suited for Zoas and mushrooms and I don't plan on upgrading it for a while. Just looking for insight or possible species that would thrive in my tank.
  5. suggestions for other invertebrates/livestock I could eventually add to the system.(can i add a sexy shrimp to the tank)I understand I am pushing it by even having the small false perc in the tank so I don't plan on adding any more fish. My false perc seems very curious and happy.
  6. Final question for now is just looking for some help identifying 2 hitchhikers. One is some type of leather coral i believe and the other I think is a large fan worm. Question with this is mainly about the coral that came hidden on the LR. It has grown and opened up more since i placed the live rock in my tank. Can i sustain this type of coral with my current setup?

Thank you and any help, advice, constructive criticism, and suggestions are greatly appreciated.

 

 

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Hi everyone I am new to the hobby and this forum.

Welcome to N-R.com.

 

Have the powerhead adjusted to about half strength right now is this good cant seem to figure out when the power head flow is just right?

You should have flow throughout your tank. You can tie a string to the end of a fish net handle and move it throughout your tank to observe the flow.

 

I understand that the bio sponge is not necessary because the LR provides the bio filtration and from my research most people in this tank just run a filter pad for mechanical and chemi-pure elite for the chemical filtration. Should I run chemi-pure or what media?

It's more common not to run additional bio-media. People feel that it's beneficial to maintain the bacteria on the live rock and not some other media.

 

quascape suggestions? should i add more live rock in the back?

Aquascape is a matter of personal preference, flow, and ease of maintenance. No, don't add rock rubble to the filter chambers; it will just collect detritus and cause nutrient issues.

 

My levels are all 0 based on my api test kit so i was planning on adding some corals this weekend. The light is only suited for Zoas and mushrooms and I don't plan on upgrading it for a while. Just looking for insight or possible species that would thrive in my tank.

Don't use an API phosphate kit. They go up in 0.25 ppm increments; but the target level is around 0.03 ppm, so it does you no good. However, it should be alright to add a couple of corals this weekend.

 

suggestions for other invertebrates/livestock I could eventually add to the system.(can i add a sexy shrimp to the tank)I understand I am pushing it by even having the small false perc in the tank so I don't plan on adding any more fish. My false perc seems very curious and happy.

Some may disagree, but I think the tank is just too small for an adult clownfish. A Goby would probably be a better choice. Yeah, you could probably keep a small shrimp in there.

 

Final question for now is just looking for some help identifying 2 hitchhikers. One is some type of leather coral i believe and the other I think is a large fan worm. Question with this is mainly about the coral that came hidden on the LR. It has grown and opened up more since i placed the live rock in my tank. Can i sustain this type of coral with my current setup?

It's probably photosynthetic, so it might depend on your lighting. If it's a leather coral, running activated carbon (or a product like ChemiPure Elite) might help with the chemical warfare.
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skyscraper2290

While I don't have a ton to input what I would say is kinda repeating what Seabass said. Try to avoid rubble rock in the filter chambers so you don't have to worry about nutrient issues, I used some in my build while it was cycling but took them out before I added any live stock. With the aquascape it comes down to what you like but you want to be able to have flow pretty much all around the tank and avoid dead spots where detrius can build up. Also if you can try to ditch the API test kit and move to something like the Red Sea kit or Salifert. Also might want to change the clown out for something like a clown goby or smaller, 3g isn't much for fish, but you could probably do a couple cool inverts. Just make sure you keep up with WC's to keep water stable, I have found that smaller biweekly WC's have been a benefit for my tank as it helps keep all levels a little more stable.

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thanks for the input seabass and skyscraper very helpful. added a couple of zoa frags this weekend seem to be doing well. agreed the clown will eventually outgrow this tank, he is still young and small though when he gets bigger I will move him to a larger set-up im in the process of putting together.

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