A bunch of questions for my 7 gallon...

[Iphantom]

ok I got my rock today...about 16lbs of live fiji

but the only thing is it seems a bit small

I see other 7 gallons with 8 or 10 lbs and the tank looks full

my question is should I get more or should I leave it how it is?

it takes up about 1/2 the tank when placed off to the side maybe i'll center it...

and I am getting my light on tuesday but I have two questions...

1.I hear they have to be replaced every 6 months does that mean $107.00 every 6 months?

and

2.is this a good light to have("high output110 watt 10in") one is blue and one is white

 

also

how should I add my livestock

after the tank is cycled what should I add first?

I am going to have...

1 p.clown

1 ?type of goby? not sure yet

1 cleaner shrimp

1 snaping shrimp

several snails(turbo ect)]

several feather dusters(3 unless more come with the rock)

and im not sure how many and what type of corals(the only one I know I want is frog spawn)

(any suggetions would be apprecited)

so what order do I stock?

and last question( for now)

what exactly is the relationship between a snaping shrimp and a goby?

thank you in advance

-Matt

[technoshaman]

I'll answer a few of the ones I can.

 

Rock - Depending on the geological makeup of the rock it may be more or less porous (dense , has less small cavities and holes etc) and thus 2 rocks that might look the same size one might weigh 1 pound the other might weigh 2 pounds due to fewer holes and more actual 'rock' or sense material. For live rock generally porous/holes are a good thing they give more surface area for beneficial organisms and more biological filtration.

 

Stock - As for the stocking plan you might get away with the clown and the goby but I would pick one or the other to keep a low bioload. Despite their neat relation in the wild it is very rare for any wild caught goby and random pistol shrimp to just pair up. They have to be from 2 species from same geographic region first of all , then of species that pair up, and the only sure way is to find a pair that was collected togetehr in the wild or happened to pair up in captivity. I have 2 small (approx 3/4") pistol shrimp and a yellow watchman in my nano. They ignore each other for the most part and I only know the pistols are still there because as soon as I turn off the light it sounds like someone is popping popcorn in there for a few minutes. Additionally pistol shrimp seem to be mostly shy and you won't see much of them regardless if you put one in the tank. There are also many reports of them doing in smaller invertebrates and fishes. Their modified snapping claw packs quite a wallop apparently and there are many instances of them killing a goby that was placed in there in hopes of them pairing up.

Personally I'd stick with the Clown, small lysmata cleaner shrimp (get a skunk/common striped if you ever want to see him - the pretty fire shrimp hide 99% of the time) and whatever cleaners / small corals you want. IME Clowns also get pretty territorial in any tank they are in for a long period of time so keep that in mind if you decide down the road you want to add another small fish. Watchman are usually able to stay out of the way and are REALLY fast, I would be more concerned about bioload and competition for food from the clown.

 

- One more thing about the feather dusters, not sure if other have had lots of luck in their nanos but the bigger ones usually need spot feeding and tend to waste away in a few months even in larger tanks. Maybe get a small piece or porites rock with a few xmas tree worms in it. If you can live without the big feather dusters most decent live rock that has some life on it often has a few of these growing in it.