Advice for 5g Nano

switch

switch

New Member
Hi
I'm pretty new to reef aquariums with my sister first introducing me to this extremely addictive hobby about 2 months ago.
I currently have a 5 gallon nano tank and wondering how much live rock and livestock can I put in this tank. I was talking to one of the staff at my local fish store and he said he has lots of fish and inverts including 3 sea stars and a sea urchin in his 5 gallon tank. I thought this seemed pretty over populated so I'm seeking a second opinion. I find shrimp and crabs very interesting, especially the relationship between pistol shrimp and goby's so I'm hoping to be able to get at least those and a few fish. So basically, How much live rock and what fish do you guys recommend?
 
otradnoje

otradnoje

Member
You can put as much live rock as you want in there.
As for fish...I think you could get a like a Yellow Watchman Goby (do a google search to see what other gobies have the symbiotic relationship w/ the Pistol) and Pistol shrimp combination.
Other fish choices: (generally, you want to find fish under 4" that aren't very active swimmers)
-Green Clown Goby (max size is about 1" and doesn't swim much at all, perfect candidate for a Nano)
-Yellow/Black/Brown/Burgundy Clown Goby
-Orchid Dottyback
-Blue Assessor
-Firefish Goby
-Purple Firefish
-Sixline Wrasse
But for a 5g (which I plan on doing eventually) 2 fish would definitely be pushing it in terms of bioload. I personally am just going to have a Green Clown Goby.
But don't forget to add a few snails, hermit crabs, crabs, conchs, etc.
Also, check out: www.nano-reef.com
 
switch

switch

New Member
Thanks very much for the info :happy:
I think I will go with he pistol shrimp and goby for now, along with a few snails and hermits.
I also like the look of emerald crabs. Would one of those be safe to put in?
 
cprdnick

cprdnick

Active Member
One fish in that tank would be pushing it in popular opinion. It would make a good invert tank, but that's as far as I would go to add a bio-load.
 
overanalyzer

overanalyzer

Active Member
I started back into this hobby with a 5 gallon half hex tank
I had two gobies - a long finned prawn goby and a green clown goby. The prawn/shrimp goby went carpet surfing during a bad spring storm that involved tornados ..... the green clown died in a rockslide in my 20 gallon tank.
Emerald crabs hide and a rarely out. My kids love ours but never see them!
The key to a tank this size is continual maintenance. I would suggest getting a 10 gallon or a 20 gallon and starting with that!!
 
elijah

elijah

Member
Hey,
You should have at LEAST 1# of LR per gallon of water. I prefer 2.5 # per Gal. I have a 30 gallon reef tank with at least 80 # LR
About the fish Here are some fish I just Love that would do well in your tank.
-Green chromis
-blue/yellow tail damsel
-almost all types of damsels
-jaw fish if you have lots of rock work and a deep sand bed. They are so interesting,pretty and dig.
- Persula Clown Fish. They are the sweetest fish you can find, and do well in pairs.
-most gobies
need anything else just post.
Elijah
 
viper_930

viper_930

Active Member

Originally posted by Elijah
Hey,
You should have at LEAST 1# of LR per gallon of water. I prefer 2.5 # per Gal. I have a 30 gallon reef tank with at least 80 # LR
I should also note that the type of LR will affect the amount (in weight) you add in. Fiji LR is lighter, so it will take up more space.
 
thederek

thederek

Member
I'm just starting a 5 gallon too, so I've been wondering some of the same things....Right now I'm thinking of getting:
1 Percula clown(mainly because this tank is in my dorm and thats what everyone wants me to get)
1 shrimp (either a cleaner, fire, pistol, or peppermint)
1 goby-possibly..2 fish might be too much
1 small starfish, maybe
1 small crab, maybe
2-3 snails
2-3 hermits
as far as inverts go, im gonna get something for the clown to hopefully live in, a coco worm or a large feather duster, and a bunch of other little stuff to make the tank look nice...
 
ams153

ams153

Active Member
i was actually thinkin of doin this same thing does anyone know about what the costs would be
Andrew
 
discusking

discusking

Member
Ok as far as live rock is concerned in such a small nano, there is no need to follow the 1 lb to gallon rule. Just put enough live rock so that the tank looks nice. In my five gallon i have about 2 lbs of live rock an ancor coral, frogspawn coral, red mushroom coral, royal gramma, cleaner shrimp and tomato clown. Mind you this seems like alot, but if you add any macroalgae, calpernia species it helps stabilize the water quality by taking out nitrate, nitrite and amonnia. Basically if you do weekly water changes you could have 1-3 small fish in the aquarium. But remember that i have 12 years of experience so i know how to balance aquariums a little differently than the average aquarium book. When dealing with small tanks its better to have less than more. :happyfish :happy:
 
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