Newbie seeking advice

[zerwas]

Hello EveryoneI am a newbie that has been reading for a few weeks now and wanted to get some productive criticism and or feedback on the following (1. Equipment, 2. Proper tank setup 3. Fish selections.)
1.I have already purchased a 20 gallon clear acrylic in-wall aquarium (Dimensions: 48" L x 6" W x 16" H ). I have read through filtration system posts on this forum and others but have not yet run across a setup that would be ideal for this tank. I don’t mind spending the extra money for quality. What would everyone suggest?
2.Through the reading have found out the following
•Live sand / 1.5 to 2 inches (1.45 inches per gallon)
•RO water
•Proper test kit (suggestions?)
•Live Rock / 1 pound per gallon (narrow tank / how to arrange rock?)
•Proper lighting suggestions (according to possible rock/anemone selections below?) Considering metal halides.
3.I selected these fish mainly due to meeting these criterias
Size: 1-2 inches (have small tank)
Care Level: Easy
Temperament: Peaceful
Diet: Pellet, Flake
Minimum Tank Size: 10 gallons
What combination below can I use in order to not overstock the small tank. All of these should be compatible.
1x Black & White Percula Clownfish – Aquacultured
1x Clarkii Clownfish – Aquacultured
1x Percula Clownfish – Aquacultured
1x 4-Wheel Drive Goby
1x Shrimpgoby - Yellow Watchman
1x Pistol Shrimp - Randalli
1x Sixline Wrasse
1x Strawberry Crab - Hawaiian
1x Neon Dottyback – Aquacultured
*Now the descriptions of the clownfish all read that you can have these with other clowns and that these particular ones do not require Anemones. The Anemones I did pick where the smallest ones.
1x Pink tip Haitian Anemones
1x Rock Anemone
Any small friendly flake eating crabs or crallers that can be recommended? I am open to any and all suggestions and or items that you may feel I may have overlooked.

 

[fedukeford]

for the clowns: only 1 species per tank and no more then 2 clowns per tank, you could have around 2-3 mabey 4 fish, no clowns require anemones
sailfert are good tests kits
if it was my tank id do 1 black and white percula, 1 goby, 1 sixline wrasse, and mabey a small clown goby, inverts dont add much of a bioload so you can add a good amount of them

 

[teviesfish]

i agree with fedukeford... you can only have one species per tank. However we have four clowns and they are doing fine but they are all fake perc clowns.
Clowns dont "require" anemones... however you can get something very close that is not as much money or maitence and that is a frogspawn... i have one and the clowns love it.
For testing supplies.. sailfert are good but cost alot in my opintion and so we went with the hagen from sw.com and it works great easy to use and has been extreamly accurite.
I have a sand sifting goby and he is doing a great job of keeping my tank clean. For shrimp i have two cleaners and one fire. Just remember that its your tank and what works for some people doesnt for others. Good luck and post some pictures of your progress as we all love to see pics here. Keep me posted!

 

[zerwas]

thanks for the helpful tips. Took a look at the Frogspawn which looks very nice. A question that it raises (havent totally researched yet) is how big does the frog spawn get? I do have a small tank and the description reads that it should have an inch on either side of it. Would definately want to incorporate if possible.

 

[zerwas]

Hello EveryoneThinking of the following after futher reading and research for my in-wall tank. Looking for any feedback regarding the livestock and mainly equipment for this tank.
Live Stock
1x Sixline Wrasse
2x Percula Aquacultured
1x Neon Goby
Cleaner Crew
2x Blue Leg Hermit
2x Scarlet Hermit
1x Cleaner Shrimp
1x Fire Shrimp
Equipment
Rio Powerhead 400
Sachem Pinnacle RO 140
Setup
Ultra Premium Fiji Live Rock
Premium Keys Live Sand
1x Green Frog Spawn
Lighting
Looking for suggestions (Brand and Model) that would fit Dimensions: 48" L x 6" W x 16" H.
Concerns
Will I need a skimmer? Was thinking about Prizim Skimmer Deluxe.
Could I have potential issues with mixing Blue Leg and Scarlet Crabs?
Any additional crawlers or clean up crew changes that will play nice with each other?
Also considering the Mushroom Polyp - 1x Green Ricordea + 1x Orange instead of the Frog Spawn due to the small size and size of the tank.

 

[ice4ice]

As far as your clean up crew goes, you'll need alot more hermits and snails than that ! Buy a clean up crew pak instead. One shrimp is plenty for a 20 gallon but it's better to get a larger tank instead - maybe 38 gallons.
Powerheads : I'd recommend 2 SEIO m620s
Water purification system : Best to get a RO/DI system instead.
Skimmer : Prizm skimmer are garbage. Get Coralife Super Skimmer Needle Wheel w/ pump (up to 65 gallons)
Lighting : Current Orbit PowerCompact lighting fixture
You won't have issues with blue hermits and red hermits at all. Just make sure you gets some extra empty shells for them. Otherwise they will kill the snails when it's time for them to look for a bigger "house".
Any beginner corals would do fine. Consider looking at Beginner Coral Paks.

 

[zerwas]

Great. Thanks for the info. Unfortunately, I already have purchased the in-wall aquarium and will need to make do with it for now. I have a feeling that an upgrade will be planned sooner than later. Will check in to the recomended equipment and beginner corals and clean up crew pack. Thanks again.....

 

[hatessushi]

It looks like you left the pink tip and rock anenome's of the final list. That's a good thing because the pink tip can get real big and I've never heard of a clown hosting one. I have a pink tip and it is big and my clown doesn't go near it. It would probably eat him. My maroon clown hosted a Green Star polyp nicely and the gsp is easy to care for. The frogspawn is nice but for experts mostly from what I read. Ice has a good list of equipment there for you to consider. Good luck

 

[1journeyman]

Welcome to the boards.
Are the dimensions to the tank correct? 6" wide is going to seriously restrict your fish selection. Even the smallest clowns get 3 inches long. I can't imagine any of them being comfortable in a tank only wide enough for them to turn around.
Water flow and lighting are going to be issues as well. Many corals need strong flow, but you're going to get a strong "direct" flow in a tank that narrow instead of the diffused laminar flow that corals need. Lighting is going to be difficult to contain a light fixture good enoug hto house corals in a fixture 6" wide.
Sounds like an interesting setup, but I think you'd be best to go with a 4' VHO or PC fixture, ditch the high light requiring corals and inverts (like anemones) and go with an invert tank. I just don't think any fish is going to be comfortable living in a hallway.

 

[dejaco]

Not to be devils advocate but here goes. 20 gallon tank - live sand bed -
live rock - and equipment - all takes up volume. If you are luck you will
10 to 12 gallons of water in there. Extreme care should be taken when thinking about this small an aquarium. A few inverts, like snails and dwarf hermits, maybe a feather duster, a shrimp, and a fish. If you have a death
the subsiquent change in water parameters can be catastrophic.

 

[rainmaker6]

IMHO, with this tank, think Guppies, not Gobies.

 

[zerwas]

That’s right. I didn’t even think about the water volume being that much lower after having put in the live rock and sand. I believe the next size up would be a 75 gallon tank Dimensions: 60" L x 8" W x 24" H. I am not able to find something that is a size smaller for an in-wall tank. Can anyone recommend a manufacturer or site that has reasonably priced in-wall tanks that would cover the 20 gallon to 75 gallon range? This would have to be an in-wall tank.

 

[cjworkman]

Just a note to add...
I would go with a deeper sand bed. 3+" of fine argonite to help keep your nitrates under control. I promise you it will be a source of constant headache if you don't

 

[zerwas]

It appears (I kind of feel stupid) that there doesnt really seem to be an aquarium really just made for in-wall use. It appears that in-wall is really just referring to the setup or placement of the aquarium. I guess this now really opens up the choices of brands and manufactures to choose from. If I am looking at getting an acrylic tank does it really matter what manufacturer I get it from other from? Are there any out there that are better than others?

 

[zerwas]

Thanks for the tip. Will definately keep that in mind once it's time for the setup.

 

[zerwas]

Originally Posted by Ice4Ice
As far as your clean up crew goes, you'll need alot more hermits and snails than that ! Buy a clean up crew pak instead. One shrimp is plenty for a 20 gallon but it's better to get a larger tank instead - maybe 38 gallons.
Powerheads : I'd recommend 2 SEIO m620s
Water purification system : Best to get a RO/DI system instead.
Skimmer : Prizm skimmer are garbage. Get Coralife Super Skimmer Needle Wheel w/ pump (up to 65 gallons)
Lighting : Current Orbit PowerCompact lighting fixture
You won't have issues with blue hermits and red hermits at all. Just make sure you gets some extra empty shells for them. Otherwise they will kill the snails when it's time for them to look for a bigger "house".
Any beginner corals would do fine. Consider looking at Beginner Coral Paks.
Hello Ice4Ice
I am following your recomendations and adding all of these to my shopping list. I take it that these would also be good for my 55 gallon tank that has similar dimensions of my original tank. One thing I did have a question on equipment wise is what do you think about the Kent Marine Maxxima Full Size RO/DI Filters with Hi-S Membrane? The reason I ask is that in your previous post I did not see a make or model and thought I would get your opinion. Thanks again for your help and advice.

 

[zerwas]

Hello 1journeyman
Its funny that I am alreay upgrading a tank that I have never used. Talking about fast track. Looking at the following dimensions now for the 45 gallon tank will be 48"x 13"x 20 instead of the original 20 gallon 48"x 6"x 16. Now with this in mind and after having added LR and LS can I somewhat expand on the number of fish that I was considering? I think I should be able to add another one or two tops I would think. With what I have in mind would you consider a nice addition to the tank that would play peacefully with my original choices and would added some additonal color?