Please help! Newbie!

[the josey wales]

Hello everyone.
First, let me thank you all for your wonderful contabutions on this forum. I have learned alot,but have a long road ahead .
I have a 40g, 3ft long, that has a 2 ft flourecent, this is insuffecent lighting, yes?
No aeration is nessasary? I.E. air stones?
I got 45lbs caribsea aragonite. Is this fair?
I rinsed the aragonite like a dumb-###, is that O.K.?
As a FW owner I am familier with the testing process, but my fw is 2 yr old and I never test for anything anymore. It's doing fabulous. Will I ever get to that point with SW?
Got 50lbs live rock on the way.
I would like to have the following creatures: Inserted carfuly in this order :
Blue leg hermit
cerith snail
cleaner shrimp
purple urchin
Orange linkia star
percula clownfish
blue hippo tang
Any input would be greatly appreacieted. no detail is too small for me as I am so new to this hobby.
Thanks.

 

[killafins]

[/b]WELCOME TO THE BOARD [/B]
THe hippo tang will not work out for ya... srry... for the hippo you will need a bigger tank for that. Everything else seems okay... but it makes me wonder? is there a dangerous theme here?

 

[karajay]

It's quite risky NOT to test SW. Small changes can make a big impact. Testing is always necessary to catch a problem early on.

 

[the josey wales]

Theme? Um, yes.
But I do have a 2yr old FW and was toying with the notion of SW anyway.
DAMN YOU DISNEY!
20 bucks for the movie....
25 for the DVD....
600 for the tank!!
ARGGGHHHH!!
Are there any tangs I could put in there?

 

[cb]

WELCOME TO THE BOARD..............................
Rinsing the sand won't hurt it it just gets rid of the fine silt that is beneficial to the sadnbed but it will still be okay. 45bs should probably give you about 3 inches. You will have to test all the time with saltwater because things can change rapidly somtimes. The key to saltwater is patience and researching before you stock to make sure that you can provide the essentials for each critter. And not to stock too many things at one time add slowly. I am still adding now and then and mine has been set up for 9 months now. HTH

 

[birdy]

You could put a yellow tailed blue damsel instead of a tang, it has similar coloring to a hippo tang but is much smaller, the problem is that damsels are horribly aggresive and can kill the other fish in your tank. If you go this route put the damsel in last. But do not put a tang in your tank, it will just get sick and die and possibly kill the other fish in your tank. Other than that is sounds like your themed tank is okay, a few other suggestions would be:
Protien skimmer, while you do not want an airstone in the tank you do want oxygen to be exchanged in the water, a protien skimmer will do this (plus take out the nasties in the water). Also put a couple powerheads in the tank to circulate the water.
If you are just planning on a FOWLR (fish only with live rock) and no corals then NO lights are just fine, I would get some good bulbs though like a 10k daylight and a 03actinic.
Welcome to the Board!!

 

[lesa]

Welcome aboard
SW takes TIME and PATIENCE'S and a lot of research.

 

[the josey wales]

When you say "fish only" I assume you mean no corals, clams, or most anenome's?
I'm hoping I can find a low light anenome, in say, 6 months?
Well met, and thanks for the responceses.
Please forgive my phonetical ineptness.

 

[birdy]

or NO anenomes, out of all the things you can keep in a tank, I would tell you not to get an anemone, there really are no low light anemones. There are some mushrooms you can keep under lower light but they still need more light than two NO bulbs.
Just keep researching and go as slow as possible and ask questions and you will be happy in this hobby.
One thing I did not mention was using RO or distilled water, you can run into problems using regular tap water.

 

[poiboy]

Originally posted by Birdy
or NO anenomes, out of all the things you can keep in a tank, I would tell you not to get an anemone, there really are no low light anemones. There are some mushrooms you can keep under lower light but they still need more light than two NO bulbs.

I have kept a bubble under NO 1.6w going on 8 months but then again thats my tank. DONT TRY THIS AT HOME
ditch the air stone

 

[the josey wales]

I have purchased a 65w 50/50 PC
Anemone now? Mabye coral?
Also, could someone please give me a guide-line on power head size.
3 day old tank is clear and shows ph of 8.6 and alk of 240ppm. This seems high to me . will it be o.k. to put LR in when it gets here thursday?

 

[katara]

The lr will just help move things along.IMO, do not try any linkias for at least one year..they will disintegrate & it's not a pretty sight..even after 1 yr. they need alot "of's"May want to ask "Ophiura"
Good luck..

 

[killafins]

I would not recommend an anenome... for a few reasons.
A) They arn't very hardy at all... it takes right water parameters to do.
B) Even with experts... anenomes only live for a few years but in the wild i think i read that they could live a few hundred... maybe i'm wrong but i gotta check that out.
C) You need very extreme lighting for them to flourish.
D) Your just not ready in general with such a new tank. YEs, even a year old tank is still a juvi...
I would attempt to lower ur ph... recommended around 8.2...
IN your list... ur going to want to get scarlet hermits...they are more docile and won't hurt eachother. for a 40 gallon, ur future about should be around ten....
I would get quite a few snails... ten is a good number again... maybe more.
I would stick to the perc... maybe get another and try to get a breeding set.... stick to a nemo mommy and daddy, lol...
I wouldn't add the starfish, starfish are another expert fish in which those who have been playing with salt water aquariums should have... they are very, what's the word, i guess unhardy will do to water paramter changes. Ask ohpiura about it... but don't do it.
I will wait awhile on the urchin... they are very cool creatures but ocne again they arn't too hardy.
Cleaner shrimp is a good choice... but not now... i would wait a while... say six months maybe more before adding one... u really don't need one right away.
Here is my recommended stocking.
Scarlet hermits
Turbo snails
go for the cerith if u want
1-3 percs
There is a huge change from fresh water to salt water... and the problem is people come into this hobby cocky and screw things up... not going ot name any names... (ME)... so take your time, relaxe... if these things work out then add more fish but patience is in fact the key to having a happy world under the sea or just in ur tanks.
My advice, ur them is not going to work no matter what u do. Your not going to be able to fit the fish from the movie into the aquarium size u have. If u have any more questions, please post... we will be glad to help.

 

[sammystingray]

When I think about all the people that nemo got going on a tank......and only a select few actually take the time to research. Those who don't research will almost surely fail and the number of dead clowns in the mass nemo slaughter is going to be aweful....petstores love it, fish lovers hate it....thank you for researching. Put the liverock in....you have no fish yet right?? The liverock will cycle the tank for you since it will have death on it from being mailed. Airstones aren't used very often in saltwater....most gas exchange (oxygen) takes place at the waters surface, and we use powerheads (pumps) to move the water throughout the tank....several should be used, and atleast one should ripple the surface to force more gas exchange. Linckias? they can NOT be fed by you, and need tons more liverock than a 40 gallon can offer. The nemo... "regal", "morpho", or hippo tang.....whichever common name you use, is very very ich prone....it's not really ich in saltwater, but you get the point..."white spot disease". Full grown they are said to reach twelve inches although 8 is about the biggest I've seen, and would do very poorly in a 40 gallon tank. I think you have been talked out of that one anyway. Get the liverock in there and add some powerheads....RIO brand are quite cheap..not the best, but usually cheapest. I would then just sit and watch the rocks until the cycle is over and nitrites are absolutely zero....ammonia too of course. Since light timers are extremely cheap at regular stores, and almost everything in saltwater does better when on an exact schedule....I would grab one and set the lights on a timer.....I believe in curing rock (waiting for the death to finish decay) with the lights going so as not to kill anything that requires light, but others prefer darkness. I would not add fish at the exact end of the cycle, but since you are sure to go through the normal stages of algaes for a new tank....think about the start of a cleanup crew. Also, remember for the kid....nemo doesn't look like a percula clownfish....lucky for the wallet, but looks exactly like a false perc instead....cheaper.....this site has some of the most colorful I have ever seen....that is the honest truth.... You have made a great decision to seek out info.....the whole nemo and dead fish thing is being talked about all over the internet by marine fish keepers from all over the world.....trouble is......a properly setup "nemo tank" would be atleast 125 gallons in my opinion to work.......not the 5 gallon death tanks the news and media show. Clowns are the ONLY fish in the whole movie that can get by happily in small tanks to be happy, and this is mostly because in nature they host in anemones and rarely stray to far away...they don't have much territory naturally, and they are now mostly becoming tank raised which helps. I personally would not worry as much about the nemo thing....the clown will probably be enough to satisfy the kid, but think more of the fact you may give the kid a hobby that will teach him all about nature, chemistry, lighting, and possibly even responsibility and morality. Best of luck on your new venture.

 

[killafins]

Wow, after reading that i kind of wanted to say "Amen"... lol...

 

[cb]

Well said

[hr]
Sammy

 

[bheron]

I just saw Nemo a few weeks ago and feared the same thing. The only thing, however, was that they really did not promote the idea of keeping fish in a tank. For anyone who saw it, one of the storylines was the idea that the fish in the tank were prisoners and had to get out. I guess I'm saying that I was happy that it glorify aquariums.

 

[the josey wales]

You folks are the greatest!
I would like you all to know that I am a patient man, and will not be counted in the "massive clown slaughter".
Nothing will be going in my SW tank, until I get a general concensus from you kind people on this board.
Death is a tragaty, not a learning experiance, and I mean to be extremly cautious in my first year.
That being said, I have modified origanal set up to be as follows..
40 g tank
65 w PC
2 rio 200 power heads facing each other
Tetra tec 150 PF without charcoal (heater capsule is in the filter)
DSB 2" to 6" in back
45 lbs live rock.
protien skimmer in future when funds allow
I am concerned about bio-foam in the tetra tec 150. For those of you unfamilier with this item, it kinda fills up then empties out. almost like a lung. Should I leave it in,(the biofoam) or take it out?
Also, I am still unsure of where my alklinity shound be.
I am looking forward to continuing my SW education with all of you, and as always, am very greatful for your time and expertise.
I PROMISE YOU, I WILL NOT BE A DUMB-***, DISNEY SPAWNED, AQUA-MARINE MURDERING SHMUK!
Thanks.

 

[the josey wales]

any suggestions for the modified set up?

 

[lesleybird]

Hi, I have a 40 gallon tank....soon to get a bigger one. I am constantly looking for fish that are tiny....3 to 4 inches max, and are beautiful, fairly reef safe, and peaceful.
I only keep 4 fish in my tiny tank with a dozen microhermit crabs, two scarlet skunk cleaner shrimp, and some large turbo snails and brissle worms to stir the sand. I have two damsels, a six line wrasse, and a flame angel. Also have an open brain coral, moon brain coral, sun polyps (not recommended for a beginner as they are very hard to feed), and some hairy mushrooms that kinda look like small anemones...only a lot easier to keep.
Options of little 3 to 4 inch fish include:
1. all of the pygme angles....but only one per tank or they will not get along.
2. Some damsels are not too agressive, but some are. My two are different kinds and get along ok with the other fish.
3. Bicolor blenny, some other blennies ...can't think of their names
4. Some of the smaller wrasses like the six line, carpenters, and a few others
5. The Nemo fish.....various clownfish
6. Yellow candy hogfish
7. Royal gamma basslet
8. Firefish goby
9. some of the Anthinas
10. Blue green reef chromis
I am sure there are some that I have missed, but from what I have read most of these are reef safe and fairly peaceful.
Don't over stock....in saltwater one can only keep about one 3 to 4 inch fish per 10 gallons of water after the tank is fully mature with good filtration and pleny of hiding places. I know that in fresh water one can keep two to three times as many fish per gallon. I think in saltwater one needs at least 4 gallons per inch of fish....some say more water per inch than this.
Never buy any creature or fish for your tank on impulse at the fish store without fully reasearching it's feeding habits, temperment,
compatibility with others in the tank and final full grown size.
Good luck, Lesley