16 Gallon Bowfront Aquarium help

jxpars004

jxpars004

New Member
Hello and thank you for reading my post.
I am fairly new to saltwater aquariums, i had gotten into the hobby years ago and am now starting to try and get back into it. I am starting out small with a 16 gallon bowfront i've had for some time. I set it up yesterday and today it seems to be doing very well. Water is clear, salinity is at 30, ph is at about 7.8, amonia is at about 0, nitrite at 0, and nitrate at around 5ppm. Are these normal levels for day 2? I am filtering my tank with a floval 200 filter, live rock, and a seaclone protein skimmer that isn't doing much right now as the tank is new. Was thinking about introducing some snails and shrimp into the tank within the next couple days but was wondering if this is too soon? Also, i wanted to make this a mosly reef tank with a couple of clownfish in it and maybe some smaller starfish, how do anemone's do in smaller tanks like this one? Thanks in advance for your comments.
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1guydude

1guydude

Well-Known Member
+1 to early my friend!
Read the tips and high lighted threads at the top of the new hobbyist section!
 
kiefers

kiefers

Active Member
Did you indeed cycle the tank or did you merely throw salt in water? Not to insult your intelligence but this sounds to peculiar. You need to cycle it. Throw in a raw shrimp, sit around for 2 to 3 days and then go back and check you ammonia again. If no spike occurred wait another 2 days and test again. Once you have established an ammonia spike, then your cycle has in deed begun.
What type of water did you use. I ask because tap water typically has about 5 ppm of Nitrates in it.
 
jxpars004

jxpars004

New Member
Thanks for all your input everyone. I used ro water and mixed in the salt about 6 hours before I put it into the tank. Yesterday I threw some fish food in there to try and jumpstart the cycling. I've got about 2 water pumps inside the tank constantly moving the water around. One other question, what do you think would be an acceptable ammount of light for a reed tank of this size? I was thinking t-5s of pc's.
 
kiefers

kiefers

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by jxpars004 http:///forum/thread/386896/16-gallon-bowfront-aquarium-help#post_3400885
Thanks for all your input everyone. I used ro water and mixed in the salt about 6 hours before I put it into the tank. Yesterday I threw some fish food in there to try and jumpstart the cycling. I've got about 2 water pumps inside the tank constantly moving the water around. One other question, what do you think would be an acceptable ammount of light for a reed tank of this size? I was thinking t-5s of pc's.
It greatly depends on what type of coral your wishing on. T5's typically are good for most reefs
 
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