5.5 Fowlr

Mike L

New Member
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Hi guys I'm new here, also new to salt water. Today I purchased my first saltwater aquarium after 15 years of freshwater experience.
•5.5 gallon tank
•penguin bio wheel 75 gph
•small cheap led light (thoughts on upgrading?)
• 5 pounds of live sand
•hydrometer

What are your thoughts on this setup before I add some beginner fish? I've heard damsels are very hardy and a great place to start. I plan on adding a few pieces of live rock. What are some areas for improvement? Also my water is very cloudy as I dumped it in instead of using a plate, how long will it take to settle?
 
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lmforbis

Well-Known Member
Sand should settle in a couple days.
I'd get a really good book or two.
What are you planning to put in it?
You'll need a heater. You'll eyed RO water. With a tank that side you can get distilled water at Walmart. I'd also get a small power head.
 

Mike L

New Member
Sand should settle in a couple days.
I'd get a really good book or two.
What are you planning to put in it?
You'll need a heater. You'll eyed RO water. With a tank that side you can get distilled water at Walmart. I'd also get a small power head.
Im pulling a small heater off one of my 10gallons. I plan to start off with just a few damsels but long term I'd like an anemone and a pair of clownfish. I didn't think about a powerhead but I know anemones require them. I used water that I let sit for 24 hours to remove chlorine is that sufficient?
 
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lmforbis

Well-Known Member
At 5.5 gallons you'd be limited. Really too small for even one damsel. Maybe one small clown. Better choice might be a firefish or a goby pistol shrimp pair.
 

jay0705

Well-Known Member
Unfortunate but true. If you want to do sw rt the first time I would try a 29 gal. Still small but gives you far more options then a 5.5
 

Mike L

New Member
I understand I'm just trying to stay on a 100$ budget and see where I can take it
Unfortunate but true. If you want to do sw rt the first time I would try a 29 gal. Still small but gives you far more options then a 5.5
 

jay0705

Well-Known Member
Believe me I'am not trying to be a dick lol. Sw and budget dont generally mix. Sw just isn't cheap, you can def do it on a smaller scale its just much more time consuming and really limits what you can keep. Even in a reef, alot of corals will get aggressive w eachother so they need room apart.
 

Mike L

New Member
Believe me I'am not trying to be a dick lol. Sw and budget dont generally mix. Sw just isn't cheap, you can def do it on a smaller scale its just much more time consuming and really limits what you can keep. Even in a reef, alot of corals will get aggressive w eachother so they need room apart.
Oh I totally understand! What do you think of the goal being an anenome and clownfish?
 

lmforbis

Well-Known Member
The lights you need for anemone will exceed your total budget by more than 2 fold. It is also important the tank is mature (at least 12 months old).
 

lmforbis

Well-Known Member
That can work if you stick to ocelaris or percula clowns and soft coral like zoas. You may still need a better light though. Depends on what you have now. Coral needs light to live. Symbiotic algae live in them and they use light to produce food for the coral.
 

jay0705

Well-Known Member
Lighting by far is the most expensive thing for a reef. Yea skimmers, dosing, ect get up there. However the one single most expensive thing is usually lights. I just spent $300 on mine and I keep fowlr lol
 

Mike L

New Member
Lighting by far is the most expensive thing for a reef. Yea skimmers, dosing, ect get up there. However the one single most expensive thing is usually lights. I just spent $300 on mine and I keep fowlr lol
That can work if you stick to ocelaris or percula clowns and soft coral like zoas. You may still need a better light though. Depends on what you have now. Coral needs light to live. Symbiotic algae live in them and they use light to produce food for the coral.
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I bought a nice damsel today and a piece of coral. Planning on keeping the damsel just long enough to establish it. Lights im definately going too need, the ones on it now are a joke just three little led ones no clue on the wattage.
So far
•Aquarium 5.5 starter kit 30$
Included
•temperature strip
• marine land penguin bio wheel
•led hood with light
•vial for free water testing at petsmart
10$ for live sand
10$ for salt
5$ for damsel mainly for something to look at while it cycles
5$ for fish food
10$ for coral (bought from a friend, apparently it is very rare as in you cannot legally harvest it anymore)
15$ for refractometer

So the total would be 85$ as of where I'm at now.
 

geridoc

Well-Known Member
I see no mention of testing kits other than "free vial for water testing at Petsmart". Not knowing water chemistry during the early run-in of a tank is a pretty sure way to kill whatever you add to the tank. Since you already have a damsel, which is very hardy and will probably survive the changes in water chemistry that are occurring, the only thing you will kill is the coral you have bought. This actually will save you money, since you won't have to spend money on the proper lighting to keep the coral alive [/end sarcasm]. Seriously, a 5.5 gallon tank is suitable only for an expert, which you are clearly not. I have been keeping saltwater fish for over 40 years and don't consider myself ready for a 5 gallon tank. I did try a 13 gallon system once, and managed to keep it going for a year, but decided the effort wasn't worth the result, and moved the few organisms in that tank into my 110 gallon system. And I have all of the back-up equipment you would possibly need to maintain saltwater fish (RODI, test kits, algae scrubbers, LED lights, mixing station, etc) and still found the small tank to be too difficult and time consuming.
 

bang guy

Moderator
I agree with all the advice here.

The typical new hobbyist, especially with a freshwater background, will not believe the limits of small saltwater aquariums. There are no Damsels, including Clownfish, that are appropriate for a 5.5 gallon system.

A pair of Neon Gobies, or a pair of Clown Gobies could work (not both). These are small sedentary fish that could handle such a small swimming area.

Please don't put a hosting Anemone in there, it will just get you frustrated.
 
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