terrified teacher

[aquascaper08]

Lighting is not so important during the cycle process and will even encourage algea growth. If your budget allows, buy everything at once and hold off on the light as much as possible. When I set up my Nano I just couldnt bear to see it without light so I had a lot of algea but knew the trade offl. Untill your cycle is completed ty to leave the tank alone as much as possible. It will be hard but try. After the cycle ends wait another 7 days and start adding the cuc slowly untill the tank balances. You will go through at lease one algea bloom and maybe several. It will go away if you are patient. Good luck and post some picks as you go!

[skabooya]

So shopping list would be:

nova extreme 2x24 24" T5 HO fixture

25lbs LR (Fiji, Tonga, Vantau, Jakarta ? I have no idea which one HELP!)

15lbs sand (Caribsea Aragmax Sugar Sand, for a shallow sand bed)

2 Koralia 1's

1 hydrometer (i know refractometer is better but i cant afford one right now)

1 bucket of Instant ocean salt

I have a few heaters from previous fw setups so i will use one of them.

I will also invest in a glass lid to cut down on evaporation, stabalize temps, keep stuff from jumping out, keeping salt creep/spray to a minimum, and from stuff getting into the tank.

 

 

2 gal water change weekly or maybe biweekly? because i plan on having a low bioload (mostly inverts and 1 or 2 fish max)

Should i think about getting an HOB fuge with a skimmer attachment? Or maybe just a cheap skimmer?

 

Let me know how this sounds and if i am forgetting anything or if i should change anything.

 

Thank you in advance.

[skabooya]

bump.

 

Is this a good list or no?

[Whacked]

looks good to me, but i'm a SW noob

I've been looking at the Sundial T5 myself. Altho from what I hear, technically they dont have individual reflectors, it is bent in a manner to give some of that benefit. Plus the timers come in handy.

I have the koralia nano in my 20g. It moves some water (creates a mini vortex too). This weekend I'm going to add another one for more turbulence plus with what my skimmer does, should be enough.. I dont know but 2 koralia 1's seems too much. thats 40x gph movement on a 20g. more knowlegable types can correct me on this.

 

I use eggcrate for my cover. since i'm single and no kids, not too worried about stuff being knocked into the tank. evaproation is barely noticeable. I have a glass versatop on my FW planted tank (just under 2wpg) and it gets gunked up fast. I didnt want that on my SW tank.

dont forget the test kits!

[aquascaper08]

I wouldn't worry about the HOB fuge right yet. Wait and see if the filtration steadies by itself. One good thing about the fuge is you could put the heater and thermometer in there for a cleaner look in the tank. If you can skip the glass lid as it will interfear with the light. Other than that it sounds pretty good. Good Luck!!!!

[thebrainbot]

I'm also a SW noob... but two Koralia 1's? That sounds excessive. From other threads here, it seems good enough for even a 30g.

 

As far as refractometers... Ebay has them for as much as a normal hydrometer. I checked last week and saw several for $20 (same cost as a hydrometer at a LFS here). However, I am not sure of what quality these refractometers on ebay are.

[aquascaper08]

I think the 2 k1's is cool if placed at either end of the 20. I makes a nice round flow and eliminates dead spots.

[BustytheSnowMaam]

As far as LR goes, if you have some choices go into different stores and look at their LR. I don't know if you're planning on buying it locally or online, but you want rock that has lots of colorful coralline (usually purple, pink, orange) encrusted all over it. Sometimes a mix of branching and more solid rock is a nice effect.

 

Just a response to what someone wrote here about Ebay refractometers- make sure you're getting a refractometer for saltwater aquariums- they make refractometers for other purposes as well.

[skabooya]

Thanks for the responses . Yes i wanted to Korala 1's because i did not want any dead spots. And yes i wanted to put one on each end of the 20. Im hoping it wont be too much flow for shrooms, zoas and other softies.

Tasha I LOVE your 10gal. your tank is actually what got me back into thinking about starting a sw tank again. And because of your tank and mushroom house from another member i am now going to do it.

 

I dont have any selection for LR locally. What they do have are lare potato pieces, very ugly for $10/lb. That lfs in general is not very knowledgeble when it comes to salt water but they are awsome for fw setups.

I think im gonna order 25lbs of fiji from Jl aquatics in Vancouver.

 

Im really wondering about a skimmer though. I guess i could always get one at a later date because i will have a very low bioload starting out . Also im tossing the idea of a 10lbs or 20lbs substrate. I really dont know. *bites nails*

 

Also how fast do reefers go through salt. Will a bag last me a while or do i need a 160gal bucket?

[Whacked]

I'd say the bag will be fine for now.

Remember, no water changes while cycling. So you will use 20g worth of the bag from the start. Rest is up to how much and how often you do water changes.

[skabooya]

Ok after much more reading about the Koralia's and turnover in tanks. I found that generally 10x turnover is good. 20x is medium flow and 30-40x is high flow. I dont know why but i thought 40x was average. So because of that i thought 2 k1 would be perfect (400gph each). But after doing the math i only need 1 K1 in my tank.

 

Am i right with that?

 

Whacked: So your saying that a bag of salt will be fine for me now because im starting. Im assuming i will be using a lot as i start because it will be for a full 20gal tank. Then it will be wc with only a couple of gals a week and therefore less salt. So I am assuming a bag will last me about a month or two? In any case i will go with a bag instead of a 160gal bucket. Geez i dont even know where i would put that in my house lol.

 

I notice that you are using a rio nano skimmer. Ive been looking at those and reading some reviews. The people that do have them say they are pretty good for $30 on their small tanks. You however have 1 on a 20 gal. I was wondering what your experiences with it are.

Im asking because i may be lazy with wc during the school year at some points so i may need help with removing the nasty stuff. I also want to keep coral toxins from polluting the water and hurting other corals when the tank does become mature and full of corals (mainly softies and some lps)

Let me know thanks.

[Whacked]

yea a bag will be fine for awhile.

 

As for the rio skimmer, it aint bad for $30

[skabooya]

Ok then i guess my order list will be

4x24 T5 HO "nova extreme" $209. ? tax + shipping included

25lbs fiji live rock $149.95 tax + shipping included

20lbs caribsea live sand $ 25

1 bag instant ocean salt $20

1 koralia 1 $40

rio nano skimmer $30

hydrometer $20

 

 

I went to the lfs today and saw a 30gal cube with stand all ready for sw. $459 I was like WOW but then i took a look at the lights 96watt PC and it had a hang on canister for flow. For me to updgrade the lights and get better flow (powerheads) LR, etc it wouldnt be a deal. Im doing my 20gal for a heck of a lot less than that 30gal would be to set up. Now if they sold it for $300 i might just consider it

 

Well for corals for my 20gal im already dreaming of blue shrooms and a few red ones, but mainly blue.

I want a pulsing xena, and some cloves. I fell in love with some electric blue cloves i saw online. So pretty.

I also love fan worms. The lfs had a yellow one today and i mean it was YELLOW! I fell in love *sigh*

Also zoas and lots of them. I love zoas. esp 'green eyed sally', 'man of steel', 'mean green', 'iceberg', 'devils armor', 'red delight', 'safecrackers', 'blue eyed girl', fire and ice, 'polar ice', 'true joker', 'whami'n watermelon', 'royal thunder', and i dunno but i love zoas.

Of course a rainbow acan would be cool too but thats way out of my price range $120/head. lol

Rics are cool too and again i would go for blue's. Pink Yuma would be nice too but thats expensive as well.

Ive been thinking about a frogspawn or hammer for something tall and green but im not in love with them. Im thinking for something tall the xeina will be enough.

 

As for livestock I LOVE hermits. they are so cute. Love the little blue leg hermies. Of course id have to get snails for the CUC. Id def get a cleaner shrimp. They are just too cool. Im not in love with any fish. Although i would love to get one or two. I was thinking of a yasha goby/pistol pair but $60! for a YASHA holy moly. Then i was looking at firefish but they jump. Then i was thinking clowns but they are so common. I also like yellowtail blue damsels. but they get to be 3" and they will end up killing eachother. I was also looking at a group of blue green chromis but ive heard they dont live long. My all time fav fish is a coral beauty but a 20gal is too small for one and they might nip my corals.

I just dont have a clue. I need help. I dont want a lot of fish just one or two and thats it. Ive been looking around and i dont fall in love with many fish. Im pretty picky but i want all ideas all set up and planed out before i start. Thats just the way i work. Then i have a plan and i dont deviate from it unless i absolutely have to.

HALP! i need ideas.

[dsoz]

If you still have time to change to the TEK light, then I would say do that. I know Sunlight Supply. THey are based in Vancouver (Washington, not BC), which is just across the Columbia River from where I live (about 30 minutes from my house.) One of the guys that works there is going to come talk lighting to my class before we end this year. Also, T5 does not have the same "shimmer" as MH.

 

I personally have a 4 foot, 6 bulb TEK light over my tank, and love it. I can keep anything, including SPS, clams and anemones (I don't have either a clam or anemone, but do have some SPS). Another local reefer has the exact same light, and is keeping clams, and they are happy as... never mind. Bad joke.

 

I know clowns are common, but the kids at school love them. I have a pair in class, and I have kids that come in-between classes just to watch them. I think after I have them a while the novelty will wear off, but they still come in and shout "NEMO!!!!!" I started hanging a sign that sais "Not Nemo" along with the names for the fish that my daughter gave them.

 

I personally am a fan of frogspawn and hammer corals. At home, I have more than 25 heads of them, in 6 or 7 different color combinations. I took 3 heads of FS to school just to show the kids what living coral is like. The kids at school also love the xenia. They like how it will keep pulsing, even when there is no current. The power went out at my school over the long weekend, and there is a safety switch that needs to be reset in the event of an emergency (lab safety). I don't know how long my tank was without power, but the xenia all melted away, and caused a small ammonia spike. When the ramifications of the ammonia spike lessen, then I will take in some more.

 

Keep asking questions, and I will help as much as I can.

dsoz

[skabooya]

TEK are awsome lights but i really dont need them. I dont want sps, they dont interest me in the least. Lps are also not high on my list. I love my softies which to my advantage dont need as much light.

Because i wont have a teaching job next year this tank will be in my home until i do get another teaching job (im low on the seniority list). This tank will be in my home office. If i was going to do a salty in my classroom i would probably do a FOWLR and i would do clown fish and maybe a few softies but nothing searious.

This is for my own personal tank for now. but thank you for your input dsoz. I feel like im being a burdon with the constant questions and always making sure about every single step. But really as i mentioned before i am freaked out about starting a salty tank.

 

I showed my hubby a firefish and he thought the "antenna" on its head was cool. lol

So maybe i will end up with one firefish and leave it at that? or maybe 2 firefish? *sigh* This is difficult.

[skabooya]

of course i should have known i showed my hubby a whole bunch of pics of fish for the 20gal and guess what he liked the best..... clownfish. Typical run of the mill clownfish. So i guess im getting two baby clowns for my 20gal when the time comes.

 

At least this way he will somewhat like my tank addiction since hes not happy about it now

[Whacked]

I've only had my purple firefish and wrasse for a week, and they are skittish. Dart into the rocks at any sudden movement. I'm guessing that they are still getting used to me and their new home. With all the movement in a classroom, that could really stress 'em out.

just my observance anyhow

[Zippy-T]

I've been following your thread for a couple of days now and while I don't have much advice, I can't wait to see your set up! I bet it's going to look great. Keep us posted.

[skabooya]

Really zippy? wow. And here i thought people were like ugh noob and moved on, except for the few that do respond YAY

yes i am getting excited there is 8 days left in school and i will be ordering very soon I cant wait!

 

Im bringing my 10gal home this week from my classroom otherwise it will be a PITA. Then im gonna move all my plants from my 20 into the 10gal get that all setup then place the order. Eeeek i cant wait!

I just hope i dont make the order and then someone on this forum says OH BTW you need this too or dont get that its pooey!Get this instead its the same price and better. Stuff like that which is why im a bit aprehensive.

The LR supplier does not have any fiji in right now but will be getting some in soon and then they do a curing process with it so it will be a little while until i at least get the shipment i am assuming.

 

EEEEEK i am so nervous and excited all at the same time.

[thebrainbot]

Hey, you should take your husband to the pet store and show him the black clownfish. I saw those and immediately decided to go with those over the normal ones.

 

Cant' wait to stock my tank!

[skabooya]

lol our lfs has 2 saltwater tanks. One holds dirty LR and is only for damsels. The other is their display tank which is filthy and i mean filthy. Its where they hold corals for people to buy. Typically they dont have a lot. It looks like a FOWLR setup. They get about 5 saltwater fish at any time in that particular tank. In the 1 year theyve had those tanks going ive only seen clowns once and they were the regular false percula. I would more than likely need to order fish online. I did however show him pictures of nano fish (black and white clowns included) and he chose the regular orange and white clowns. He thinks the black and white look too dull. Well hey if this is how i can get him somewhat interested in my future salty tank then thats how its gonna be. At least he didnt say shark. lol

[Fishtachio]

hi,

i've also been looking at your thread for a few days. i just have a few suggestions. 1) it's better to go with 2 powerheads instead of 1. i've used the penguin 550 and you can get 2 of those for the price of 1 koralia. they don't look as cool, but they get the job done, they're quiet, and they're reliable. 2) you should consider adding at least another 10-20lbs of live sand. aim for at least a 3 inch dsb as most of your biological filtration will take place in the sand. use grain sizes of .1-2mm, mostly in the small range. you can probably mix several grain sizes of sand to get that range. 3) if you're going to use instant ocean, buy reef crystals instead. i believe reef crystals is instant ocean but with higher alkalinity. this means that your tank water will be better buffered against pH changes and the salt will provide more carbonates for coral building. you still have to add calcium, though. i would also buy the bucket which is a better value money wise, unless you plan to give up reefing after a few months. it will last you more than a year. 4) don't skimp on the skimmer. aqua c remoras are good for nanos. they are "fire and forget" skimmers. you turn them on and they work well and reliably. no need for constant adjustments. they are worth the price.

 

as for lights, i have a 20 gallon long and i use the orbit pc 130watts with dual actinic and 50/50. it's not as bright as dual actinic and dual daylight but the colors of the corals really stand out! besides the actinics are probably what's beneficial for corals as that's the region of the spectrum they absorb ~ 420nm. note that, i've been keeping only soft corals (xenias, yumas, mushrooms, zoas, toadstool, taro trees, palys, finger leather) with the exception of 1 head of frogspawn but they reproduce well. also, please check out garf.org for their "bullet proof reef" system. it might give you more ideas. have you thought about the water you will use to make for wc?

[skabooya]

In response to your response

1. Yes i thought 2 power heads would be better than 1 (lol sorry) but after looking at many other 20gal tanks and even 25 and 29gal tanks i see that many have 1 K1 powerhead. I didnt choose the koralia because it "looks cool" i chose it because its efficient high power and shoots water everywhere in your tank.

2. If i went for a DSB i wouldnt have much room left for swimming fish. granted a DSB is awsome for filtration but for nanos the general concensus is theyre ugly and typically unessesary. Ive only seen one other person with a 20gal that had 40lbs worth of substrate. Most people that have 25gal tank only have 20lbs worth of substrate. Anyone else want to chime in on this?

3. I would love to use a different kind of salt but unfortunately and as i have mentioned before i only have access to instant ocean salt mix. unless i plan on ordering saltmix online and pay shipping each time i need salt (yearly if i get the bucket) then i will easily be paying double or triple the normal price for salt. Im not doing that. I cant afford that at all.

And thank you for suggesting that i get the bucket instead of the bag. I wanted to know how long it lasts and over a year for a bucket sounds pretty good to me. I guess im putting the bucket back on the list

4. I would LOVE to get a better skimmer and again i have more excuses. My husband would kill me if i spend over $600 on a little tank right off the bat and not even know if i will succeed. As it is without the skimmer i am pretty close to the $600 mark which already freaks me out; never mind my husband.

Originally i was not even going to go with a skimmer and just rely on WC. many people say thats all you need but because there may be some days where i will be a little slack because of work i thought about getting a cheap skimmer and $30 was right up my alley. Again i would love to get a better skimmer like the remora nano but unless anyone wants to do a RAOK and i just pay shipping then please by all means get me a better skimmer or if someone local or on Canreef is getting rid of a good skimmer for dirt cheap ($30) then that would be my other option

 

i will check out that site you listed. thanks for that

So my tank would be either with or without a skimmer. I figure something is better than nothing.

[skabooya]

anyone?

Im getting confused and discouraged.

 

I just got my house tax bill in the mail... $2500 ugh and we just bought a new comp because the motherboard blew. There goes another $700 among other things *sigh*

I may need to put the tank off for a bit longer, will talk to hubby see what we can come up with.

 

In any case i need someone else to respond to the previous post. Im confuzeled

[skabooya]

Talked to hubby the tank plans are still a go. Turns out our bank takes care of the house tax with our mortgage so no worries.

 

Anyway someone on another forum suggested a JBJ Viper 70MH. But 70watts over a 20gal?

The price of this fixture with shipping will cost me $6 less than the nova extreme.

 

Would this be a good fixture for my 20 gal and what i want to keep? I want my corals to be vibrant and healthy not drab.