Marine newby

[hypancistrus]

Hi folks,
I just joined up here after prompting from a friend of mine. I am 100% new to the marine hobby (AKA the dark side) but have 16 years of experience in keeping freshwater aquariums. I have been in the planning and acquisition stages of setting up my first marine tank for about 18 months now.
Just in the past two weeks, I set up an old 5 gallon with salt water and some liverock, just to play around with some of my new toys (a new SW master test kit and my refractometer that I've had since this time last year and never used). I saw a star fish on the liverock the first day and was thrilled!

I am hoping to move ahead with my planned marine system late this spring or early this summer. It will be a 50 gallon tank (36" x 18" x 18") without a sump. I already have a 36" T5 light, a Coralife Needlewheep 65 protein skimmer, two SEIO 620 powerheads/pumps, and a few other miscellaneous pieces of equipment. I am planning on keeping small, reef safe fish, shrimp, easy corals and someday I'd like a clam. But I realize I'll have to "work up to that."
Anyway, just wanted to introduce myself. I will be doing a lot of reading of old threads around here, trying to increase my knowlege base!

 

[lecithin]

glad to hear you've found an interest and welcome to the boards!!! I have a of those pieces of equipment myself and am also running a 50g and will be glad to help you through anything I can.

 

[mcbdz]

Welcome to SWF
You have found a good place to come. Sounds like you are close to setting up. There are several good threads at the top of this board to start with that will give you more info then a lot of us had when we started. Have fun and keep us posted.

 

[azul1994]

Welcome to the boards, good luck with the tank.
Ask any questions you have.

 

[bs21]

welcome! sounds like your off to a good start. I researched for two years before i began my tank and i can't stress how important it is to have a plan of what you want to do when it comes to tank modifications and also livestock. It sounds like you have a pretty good idea which is good. enjoy the boards....there is tons of information to be had here. Also check out the archives!

 

[hypancistrus]

I have a general idea of fish I would like to stock, but I am not sure if they will all "fit" and if they would, in what order to put them in. Fish I'd like to keep:

• Blue Neon Goby
• Fridmani pseudochromis
• Red striped goby
• Firefish
  Ocellaris (false percula) clownfish
  Six-line wrasse
  Either a coral beauty or a flame angel

I know, for sure, 100% that I want a clownfish, a six-line and the fridmani. The rest are fish I like with nice colors. I am not certain that the angels are a good idea for a reef, especially if someday I'd like to have a clam.

 

[lion_crazz]

Welcome to the Saltwaterfish.com!!

Your stock list looks great, with the exception of the angels. I am never a big fan of adding them to a reef.
If you need a thread with a ton of info, I just posted my 101 tips to beginning and maintaining a marine aquarium. Check it out if you have any questions on anything or just want to do some reading.

 

[hypancistrus]

If the angels won't work, is there anything that is a dark blueish color, maybe with a bit of size to it, that I can add that would?? Or just stick with the midgets?

 

[lion_crazz]

I am positive you can find a fairy wrasse that is larger that has a nice blue color to it that will be safe with coral. Something like a nice blueside, Scott's Fairy, Lubbock's, or solar.

 

[hypancistrus]

Originally Posted by lion_crazz
I am positive you can find a fairy wrasse that is larger that has a nice blue color to it that will be safe with coral. Something like a nice blueside, Scott's Fairy, Lubbock's, or solar.
Will two wrasse in the same tank fight? I really want a six-line. I have a thing for weird eyes on animals... and theirs are stellar.

 

[lion_crazz]

If you put the fairy in first, you will be fine. Fairies are not aggressive at all, whereas, six lines are a bit territorial. If you make the six line last, you should not see any aggression.

 

[hypancistrus]

Okay, so what order should I put the others in?

 

[keri]

Sounds like you've got a lot of patience (18 months of planning!) so you're allready off to a great start in this hobby! Welcome to the boards
edit: seen the eyes on a cuttlefish? no, don't look, set up your reef tank peacefully lol

 

[hypancistrus]

Originally Posted by Keri
Sounds like you've got a lot of patience (18 months of planning!) so you're allready off to a great start in this hobby! Welcome to the boards
edit: seen the eyes on a cuttlefish? no, don't look, set up your reef tank peacefully lol
I have, actually!! (I collect eye images... have a whole folder on my PC! I know, weird right?)
And as for the patience... well, if I had more money, more space and more time, I am sure I'd be less patient!!!

 

[howardj]

Welcome to the boards, Hyp!
keep us posted on how everything is going

 

[hypancistrus]

Thanks Josh!

 

[mcbdz]

Originally Posted by Hypancistrus
I have a general idea of fish I would like to stock, but I am not sure if they will all "fit" and if they would, in what order to put them in. Fish I'd like to keep:

• Blue Neon Goby
• Fridmani pseudochromis
• Red striped goby
• Firefish
  Ocellaris (false percula) clownfish
  Six-line wrasse
  Either a coral beauty or a flame angel

I know, for sure, 100% that I want a clownfish, a six-line and the fridmani. The rest are fish I like with nice colors. I am not certain that the angels are a good idea for a reef, especially if someday I'd like to have a clam.

I would start with your clown, some people don't but they are the most hardy and fun to watch.
Then your firefish, gobies, Fairywrasse, Pseudo., and make the 6 line last. Remember to only add one at a time and give them 2-3 weeks before you add another. QT is very important and that way you feel like your not going so slow. You get to get a new fish for QT as soon as you add the previous one to the DT.

 

[gbfan41649]

it has taken me 18 months to get my tank started. and now I read I need a QT.... please tell me what this consist of.

 

[mcbdz]

A QT is a quarentine tank. It's just a bare tank that you put your fish in for a few weeks before introducing them into your DT. You will beable to see if they are healthy, get them eating without stress, and if they are sick you can treat them so you don't infect your DT and other inhabitants. If you need to treat your fish then you can hypo or medicate in this tank without risk to inverts or other fish. You can either look at some of the stickied posts at the top of this thread or the disease forum to get more info and direction on setting one up.

 

[hypancistrus]

Can I use this 5.5 gallon I have set up as a QT tank? It has sand and liverock....