Big Eyes, Little Wallet

[aninafish]

Hi guys!
As you can tell by the subject line my eyes were bigger than my wallet. 8 Months ago I took my 55g fw and attempted a sw tank. At this time I only have the plain lights and only around 30lbs of lr. I am considering taking it down to a 20gal long and using my current filter and powerheads in it. My question is would the tank be big enough for my fish? I currently have:
1 firefish goby
1 purple goby
1 strawberry pseudochromis
1 scooter blenny
1 royal gramma
The filter I have is only a Penguin 350 bio-wheel. I have crushed coral in there now but would be putting ls in the 20gal as I have seen the errors i my ways

Also I will soon be able to afford the spiffy lighting I would like to get so I can start to play with some beginner corals and anemones
Any advise or comments would be appreciated!

 

[aztec reef]

, I think you could probably do it. But it is this 20g going to be a Fish only tank? if yes then you can do it..
But it would not be a good idea to put 5 fish in a New 20g tank,(at once) you're gonna have to take your time with each fish and let your tank get acustome to each new bioload.
first you have to cycle that 20g, it all depends on how much your ecosystem handles your bioload..but 5 fish in a 20g is pretty much the maximun..

 

[craig_08]

Also, make sure that you add the strawberry psuedocromis last. They are very territorial and aggressive.

 

[aninafish]

You don't think the strawberry will cause problems do you? I am not looking to create a 20gal fishy mosh pit.

 

[robdog696]

I'm kind of in the same boat... big eyes, little wallet that is. But I was just wondering exactly why you want to go to a smaller tank? Because of the cost of lighting?

 

[aztec reef]

yeah i would keep the 55g.

 

[aninafish]

At this point it is something I am just tossing around to see if it will work. Lighting is a big factor, the spouse is the other. He doesn't "understand" my addiction and I am running out of ideas to explain mid triple digit cost lights for "a bunch of fish".
I don't think anyone actually "wants" to downgrade. I am just being impatient and peaceful.

 

[robdog696]

If the problem is the price of lighting, here's what I did. Knowing that I'm going to spend several months on beginner corals, I bought an inexpensive light. The best light I could find in my price range was a Odyssea 96w compact florescent for $99. That is a 36", though. I have a 58 gallon. You have a 55, so you probably need a 48" light. Then again, all of the "recommendations" I have read say don't skimp on lighting, because you'll end up getting the expensive ones eventually anyways. Tough choice, just thought I might offer ya an option that helps ya keep your 55 running.