new to salt (starting a 10g)

nvsbandit

nvsbandit

Member
i know i know i shouldnt start my first SW tank with a 10g. but im basically making a nice quarentine tank for when i get a 75 or 90g with an overflow.
and for my birthday i SHOULD be getting a 29g biocube :):):)

the lights im gonna order are 40w (2x20w CF one actinic light and one 10k) with LED night lights.
or should i go to a T-5 saltwater setup for 10 dollars more.
and also how good would 4 wpg be? what could i keep as far as corals go.
a fission nano skimmer (NEED advice on this one i like it cus its 30 bucks)
50w heater, thermometer/hydrometer
id be getting about 15 or 16 pounds of live rock eventually.
what im gonna end up doing is getting a couple of snails or whatever to throw in whilst its cycling and even after its done cycling i think it would be a while before i put anything in there.
im new to SW but i have a couple books and pretty much understand the whole thing
i have a 40g tall planted with a bunch of stuff and my mom has my old ten with a few neon danios, 2 guppies, 2 dwarf frogs, 1 ramshorn snail...hes huge.
sound like a good start?
thanks in advance
Drew
 
phelpz

phelpz

Member
I wouldnt recommend that skimmer.
I dont know what might be better since I'm still stuck with that one, but I have seen ones by Oceanic for the same price for nano tanks.
 
nvsbandit

nvsbandit

Member
link by any chance?
im so excited to start this sw gig. fw is nice..but i like COLOR lol
if this ten goes well i will get the 29 biocube for my birthday (april 30th)
and then move WAY up from there.
 
phelpz

phelpz

Member
We're not really suppose to post links to other retailers sites....
Just google Oceanic BioCube skimmer....
SOmetimes you can find nice used equipment too. Save some money.
 
beenbag497

beenbag497

Member
4 watts a gallon is good
you could keep quite a few corals in that lighting

i only have 3 watts a gallon and all my corals are really healthy
 
nvsbandit

nvsbandit

Member
current USA Nova extreme 18" ...my 10 is 20" long
40 watts tho.
going to the LFS in a few probably gonna pick up lighting some water and a skimmer...and if money permits today some LR.
ill probably just have my lfs guru set me up
 
condyman

condyman

Member
You can't get this color in freshwater!! If you really like fresh water tanks you will rrrrreally like your SW tank. Only advice is take your time cycling the tank, research research and reresearch before you buy. Dont add too much live stock at once ( by this i mean one fish or coral at a time). Observe the tanks behavior for a few weeks and then ad more. Start with small hardy fish and work your way up to more sensitive fish or corals. make up your mind if you want a predator, community, passive or coral tank?
keep water super clean 25% water change atleast every 2 weeks.
def get a good skimmer, it's worth it. Remember TAKE YOUR TIME, don't rush, we all want to rush in to it.
some hardy fish:
- Clowns
- Damsels
- Gobies
all good to start
some hardy corals
- leather stool
- bubble coral
- candy canes
- most zoos and mushrooms

 
nvsbandit

nvsbandit

Member
well IM OFF!
i got a pretty darned big peice of LR (7lbs) heater aquaclear 20 (which really suprised me i like the way it is set up...)
i ended up getting a 28w coralife CF fixture. it was on sale so it was a better price than the T-5's by a bit. will probably eventually spend the extra to get t-5's
the lr has a tunnel that goes all the way through to the backside.
im gonna get another...i dunno 7-8 lbs of lr on saturday as well as live sand
would it be a good idea to get a small fish at the same time?
probably a clown (my sister wants a nemo...lol)
or should i go get the live sand tomorrow let it settle then get the LR saturday as well as a little clown?
my plans are basically mushroom polyps...green ricodreas are so sweet looking, a clown a dottyback and a handful of cleaner inverts.
the LR was cured when i put it in my tank. theres a couple little peices on the bottom.ive seen people put them in filter baskets good idea or no?
any other ideas please throw me suggestions as im pretty much crash coursin it :)
 
condyman

condyman

Member
I hate to kill you high but NO FISH yet! lol
Have you heard about the nitrification cycle?? (you need 2-3 weeks of down time) this is the most important and toughest part about starting in salt water. please read all you can about it.
When did you get the LR ?? make sure you test the parameters by monday or tuesday again. if the rock is not fully cured, it will most likely start cycling your tank again!! and kill the fish. word of advise... no store LR is fully cured. they usually sell all before they can fully cure it for a month or so.
if you think the tank is cycled, go ahead and start with a cleaner crew, some hermits, snails, maybe a cool crab? wait a couple of days and test the water again, if the parameters are 0 ammonia,0 nitrite,0 nitrate, get yourself 1 fish. let him acclimate for a week or so and go for the next addition.
 
nvsbandit

nvsbandit

Member
well today i got 5.23 more pounds of LR. i think my giant peice is TOO giant (pics later) and how would i go about makin this peice smaller. hammer and screwdriver across the middle of it?
i also got a nano powerhead to get more circulation throughout the tank.
i got live sand as well. looks really nice to me.
so i shouldnt even get a hardy fish this weekend? maybe a shrimp or some snails?
::Edit::
plans for fish 1 clown 1 pink & blue shrimpgoby and 1 domino damsel
i want a pistol shrimp for the shrimpgoby as well...can i stock more fish than that?
inverts 1 pistol shrimp 1 emerald crab a couple of snails and 1 hermit crab
 
beenbag497

beenbag497

Member
Originally Posted by nvsbandit
http:///forum/post/2516539
well today i got 5.23 more pounds of LR. i think my giant peice is TOO giant (pics later) and how would i go about makin this peice smaller. hammer and screwdriver across the middle of it?
i also got a nano powerhead to get more circulation throughout the tank.
i got live sand as well. looks really nice to me.
so i shouldnt even get a hardy fish this weekend? maybe a shrimp or some snails?
your gonna need to wait like a month before you get anything
 
condyman

condyman

Member
Originally Posted by beenbag497
http:///forum/post/2516577
your gonna need to wait like a month before you get anything

Don't say we didn't tell you sooo. your gonna waste your money and kill some fish
if you really wanna kill the fever, get some hermit crabs for now
 
nvsbandit

nvsbandit

Member
k
hermit crabs it is.
the clowns in my lfs are 25.00 and i dont wanna have to spend a ton of money replacing them because im antsy.
 
kholla12

kholla12

Member
Originally Posted by nvsbandit
http:///forum/post/2516539
well today i got 5.23 more pounds of LR. i think my giant peice is TOO giant (pics later) and how would i go about makin this peice smaller. hammer and screwdriver across the middle of it?
i also got a nano powerhead to get more circulation throughout the tank.
i got live sand as well. looks really nice to me.
so i shouldnt even get a hardy fish this weekend? maybe a shrimp or some snails?
::Edit::
plans for fish 1 clown 1 pink & blue shrimpgoby and 1 domino damsel
i want a pistol shrimp for the shrimpgoby as well...can i stock more fish than that?
inverts 1 pistol shrimp 1 emerald crab a couple of snails and 1 hermit crab
What ever you do dont get a domino damsel.They are mean little fish.If i were you i would go with 2 clowns.And maybe the shrimpgoby.
 
nvsbandit

nvsbandit

Member
dang it i really like the dominos...are the chromis any different as far as temperment
i just found out my one buddy has a nano 12g and he never told me he was into fish so now i have in person help lol
will hermit crabs make it through the cycle process?
 
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