lot's of ?'s All help is GREATLY appreciated

rigby

rigby

Member
I have a lot of questions concerning a 65 gallon reef, hope to be successful.
First off, what's the best way to reduce nitrates and other algea feeding substances? I've been told to start a smaller tank for plants that also absorb nitrates. This makes sense to me but if so what are the best plants to use, do they require lighting, how should I set it up (any websites with a gameplan on how to do this out there?) I just don't understand how to set it up and guarentee that it will not overflow. I only have room in my stand for a ten gallon tank, what's best?
Also what are the corals and anemones that require the least amount of lighting? I have 3.5 watts per gallon of compact lights, this should be enough for some of them right? Do they provide any of these inverts at this web-site?
Also, how much water movement should I have in the tank and where should i position them?
What is the best cleaning crew that won't damage corals or anemones?
I really want a powder blue, I realize 65 gal is pretty small but I will upgrade in the future, for now is a powder safe, do they normally survive well in a reef?
Also, I currently have a bicincuts and a bubble tip anemone that will not work together for me. I would really love to have this, are there any guarentees between certain clowns and ane's.
 
banshee

banshee

Member
Ok....first....Welcome to the board!
A refugium is good for reducing nitrates. You can do a search on this board and get many threads on refugiums. There are many ways to do it.
Mushrooms and polyps are good beginner corals that do not require a lot of light. You can probably forget about anemones, though as they require more intense light.
As for water movement....there is a formula for how much turnover you should have, but I forget it. You can also do a search for that.
A powder blue in a 65 is bad IMHO. They need a lot of room to swim and they are prone to ick (bad for a reef tank).
I would do a lot of reading here (the search option is great). Research and patience are the keys to a successful reef.
Good Luck!
 
kzlen

kzlen

Member
hi, think you might be refering to a sump or fuge as the smaller tank. try doing a search on here . lots of info. Some plants do reduce nitrates, one is the caulerpa, do a search on here for that too. take your time and learn as much as you can.. just some advice. I learned the expensive way.
 
kreach

kreach

Active Member
First off... WELCOME TO THE BOARD!!

A refugium is a good idea. Other ways to reduce nitrates are to do water changes (10-25%). Also, using live sand for your substrate will also aid in nitrate removal.
I agree that polyp and mushrooms are great low light corals and several varieties can be purchased from this website. I also vote no on anemones. They need high light light, like metal halides, in order to survive... and even then their survival rate in home aquariums is iffy.
The formula for circulation in your tank is 10x the water volume of your tank. So a 65 gallon would need at least 6500 gph (gallons per hour) circulation. I'd recommend more than that though since it's going to be a reef.
You want to position your powerheads and filter outputs/returns so that the tank is getting water movement from multiple directions. You want to avoid having "dead spots" or areas that have little or no water movement.
As for your clean up crew, I would recommend a variety of snails. Some snails clean the rock and glass, others keep the sand clean. Do a search for a thread called "My Take on Various Snails" by Kipass4130. It has a lot of great info.
I don't recommend hermit crabs (blue legs in particular) because they are known for killing snails in order to take their shells
You could also add some shrimp, like scarlet cleaner shrimp. They help clean up the leftover food your fish leave behind and also will clean parasites off your fish.
A powder blue tang is reef safe, but I agree that your tank is simply too small for one... even a juvenile one. Wait until after you upgrade your tank before purchasing one.
Hope this helps!
 
toddpolish

toddpolish

Member
nassarius and cerith snails are good. mexican turbos are the huge ones - I have 2 in my 90gallon. regular turbo snails work nicely too, but you just need to pick them up and put them right side up if they fall on their back. They can't upright themselves. I also have 2 Fighting Conch for the surface of the sandbed. And I've got 4 emerald crabs.
All of these are reef safe. They are fun to watch too.
 
toddpolish

toddpolish

Member
my clean up crew # is like so...
100 nassarius
50 cerith
4 Emerald
~30 Turbo
2 Mexican Turbo
2 Fighting Conch
I had red leg hermit crabs too, but they killed each other and killed some turbos for their shells. If you do intend to keep crabs, then leave empty shells in the tank for them to hop into. They are fun to watch, but not when they are killing the rest of your crew. I hear even worse things about the blue legged hermit crabs.
 
kreach

kreach

Active Member

Originally posted by Banshee
Oh yeah, 10X your aquarium size....and not to nitpick kreach, but it's 650 GPH....huge difference. :)

Originally posted by toddpolish
10 x 65 = 650 gph :D

*hides face in shame* Thank you. I do understand basic math, I swear!! :D
 
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