Jump to content
SaltCritters.com

20 gallon hex


Saltnewbie12

Recommended Posts

Saltnewbie12

I am brand new to the saltwater game. After joining a group on facebook hoping to get help and find people that enjoy giving advice, i found a bunch of people that just wanted to make fun of and bash me for the fact that i am doing a 20 gal hex. I really dont know how this site works or how to post a pic, but basicAlly i am in week two of my.cycle. i just have live sand and live rock. I have a power head at the top pointed kind of down. My temp has been staying at 78.4 and salinity 1.021. I would like tips and help. I would like to have two clowns, an anemone, some red legged hermits a few snails...was hoping a neon goby..would i beable to have anything else? Should i not have a top on my tank?

Link to comment
KP_Reef_Tank

Well... Let's start with equipment.

 

What kind of filtration, lighting, or chemical products are you using?

Link to comment
Saltnewbie12

Lighting is a question, I currently have a coral life strip light. But just got a fluval led light, i was going to take the lid off my tank and.mount the light because from reading i am assuming i should keep the lid off since its a small space so the gas can excape. I have a fluval hangback filter, and power head

I am using the black Hawaiian sand, and a bunch of live rock. I would post a picture but have not figured out how yet lol

I used the instant ocean water conditioner and salt

I want to do it right so whatever recomendations you have, even if it is to start over. I just want to learn an do it right.

Link to comment

So sorry to hear about the issues you've had online. I am very sure ppl here will be very helpful.

 

Most go hoodless with reefs for gas exchange, evaporation, and heat purposes. Do your lights sit on the rim of the tank or can they be hung from the ceiling? I use eggcrate(light diffusers) on the top of my tank as an open lid...prevents fish jumping out and my lights sit on the rim of my tank.

 

How many lbs of liverock do you have? That and your sand will be your main filteration source. If using a hob filter you can put some floss in there to collect material(needs changing every few days), carbon, purigen etc. Depends on your tanks needs and load.

 

2 clowns(no large breeds) and a goby should be ok in a 20 as long as you are doing your water changes regularly and monitoring your water. I have no experience with anenomes, they can be difficult to keep and not necessary to have for the clowns in a tank.

 

Posting a pic: there is the more options you can click on and that allows you to attach a photo.

Link to comment

If you are using tap water I would suggest finding someone with a RO system or finding a LFS that sells RO. I'm sure the io conditioner says it will work good but I highly doubt it removes much probay just neutralizes the chlorine and such. Might possibly lead to algae issues for you.

 

A hood is a personal preference. I use mine since my 2 year old likes to put stuff where it doesn't belong and I think it look much cleaner. But if you use the hood just make sure it has plenty of air flow through it.

 

And you need to mix your salt a little stronger to get your salinity up to 1.025. The directions on the buckets/bags of IO are for mixing it to 1.021 for some reason.

Link to comment

Oh yes, like Hig suggested, its best to use RO/Di, RO, or distilled water. Using tap, even treated tap will lead to algae issues and sometimes worse. There are ppl who use tap with success but a lot don't especially with corals.

Link to comment
Saltnewbie12

Darn, i used tap...from now on, i will use distilled

I have about 20lbs of live rock and bought a 20lb bag of sand but only used a little over half the bag because i read somewhere you dont wabt your sand too deep...i still can't figure out how to get a pic up...i have my rock in like a cave and stacked but someone told me i should just pile it in the middle?

Link to comment

You either want your sand 1" or less for a shallow sand bed...or 4" or more for a deep sand bed. When doing the rockwork you want to make sure there is flow through it, whether it is stacked or piled and either is ok if you have good flow.

 

I personally love 20g hex tanks and I have been involved in saltwater since the late 90s. Any and every tank can be beautiful if maintained properly.

 

My advise for a person new to saltwater would be start with the easier corals, softies and a few LPS. Get comfortable with doing consistent water changes and maintenance and then move to SPS and tackle dosing and closely monitoring parameters.

 

PS I use Instant Ocean salt and it is fine. If you get a lot of SPS you may want a reef salt but IO works great for a lot of tanks and is close to natural seawater in its composition.

Link to comment

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recommended Discussions

×
×
  • Create New...