New Hex tank, need help please

[gil5280]

Hello, so I am starting a reef tank from a Hex tank a friend gave me.
It has a zoo med 50/50 10 watt in it now, I was wondering if someone with the same tank has put in a coralife 20 watt 50/50 in it? I was wondering if it fit.
do you think the 10 watt would be enough?
I have a large pice of rock in the tank with live sand, and a small pice of live rock with purple algae on it already.
It has a Top Fin 20 Filter, think thats enough?
this is my first small reef tank, so all the help would be great!

 

[childress5tyler]

Are you trying to grow coral? I wouldn't think 10 watts would be sufficent enought, but you may be able to get away with getting some beginner polyps (yellow polyps) or mushrooms/ricordeas but that may be a risk. Try, if possible to get a bulb with a little higher wattage. What size tank is it though?

 

[gil5280]

Not 100% sure, was told it is 8 gallons. the wattage of the bulb now is 10 watts. I found the coralife 20 watt which i want to get but not sure if it will length wise, I think that would be a good amount, dont you think?
I also just put in a heater.

 

[childress5tyler]

20 watts in an 8 gallon? yeah, you could get by with some corals that require lower lighting; mushrooms, ricordeas, some zoos and some beginner polyps. Hope this helped

 

[gil5280]

Yes it does thanks, this is the list of what i am planning to put in:
Pulsing Xina
Mushrooms
zoos
green star polyps
small Hammer coral
a feather duster or 2
a fire fish
and a small clown
what do you think?

 

[childress5tyler]

Everything looks fine but you will probably have problems with the hammer coral, just needs a little more watts. Also, if you are planning on getting a pulsing xina, you will need to get a powerhead. And from personal experience, I've fould feather dusters to only live a month or so, I've just read that certain/most feather dusters can be difficult to feed. But everything else looks like it would work.

 

[siptang]

Too much in a small tank.
GSP and xenia will grow like weed suffocating all the other corals and they will have chemical war fare... start slow and don't add too much and take out the hammer.

 

[gil5280]

why wont the hammer work?
And yea, I just got a Power head for the tank, as well as a heater.
What about a blue crocea clam instead of the Feather duster? I saw one at LFS that was really small

 

[gil5280]

Also, I couldnt find a small enough power head for the tank. I have a Duetto 100 I was thinking of just using the top power head on it in the tank. OR do you think i should just put the whole thing in the tank as added filtration?