Sea Horse in 10 gallon

N

n_sarno

Guest
Hello, I am thinking about setting up a species tank with just maybe 1 or 2 seahorses.
Will a 10 gallon be sufficient?
Can I just use a biowheel filter, and do weekly water changes?
Do they require special lighting, plain florescent (SP) will work right?
 
celacanthr

celacanthr

Active Member
The answer depends on what species you wanna keep.
All of the species that will have adequate room in a 10 gallon are either
a)rare
b)hard to feed
c)need specialized (EXPENSIVE) equipment
 
corally

corally

Active Member
I have two H. kuda in a 20 gallon and am currently struggling to keep the ammonia down.
Bigger is definetly better because as I've learned on here seahorses create a huge bioload. Their are horses you can keep in a tank smaller than a 10 gallon (dwarves) but as celacanth already stated these require daily feedings of live brine shrimp.
Also, check out seahorsedotorg.
 
N

n_sarno

Guest
What if i put them in a 20. I just realized the tank size I have is 20 anyway not ten

Still though, nobody answered my questions.
Can I just use a biowheel filter, and do weekly water changes?
Do they require special lighting, plain florescent (SP) will work right?
 
corally

corally

Active Member
N_Sarno said:
What if i put them in a 20. I just realized the tank size I have is 20 anyway not ten

A 20 is okay, just be sure to keep the water quality pristine.
I have a biowheel filter but I also have 20 lbs. of LR and 15 lbs. of LS. I also do weekly water changes and check the ammonia every day, and the nitrites, nitrates and ph every week.
No, they do not require any special lighting.I just use the cheapo lights that came in the hood.
If you haven't already checked into feeding, get one that is trained on frozen.
Sorry I missed your questions the first time.
Click to expand...
 
N

n_sarno

Guest
Thanks :)
Sounds great.
This is probably a stupid question but is there any coral that can live w/ just the cheapo lights? Or is there any BULB you can put in the plain cheap lamp that the tanks come with?
 
fedukeford

fedukeford

Active Member
if your new to salt water fish, i wouldnt suggest even ATTEMPTING seahorses, start out with fish to get used to SWF, then mabey get another tank for seahorses
 
corally

corally

Active Member
Originally Posted by N_Sarno
Thanks :)
Sounds great.
This is probably a stupid question but is there any coral that can live w/ just the cheapo lights? Or is there any BULB you can put in the plain cheap lamp that the tanks come with?

Sorry, I can't answer that one. I've only had my reef tank for a few months.
 
darth tang

darth tang

Active Member
Corally on your ammonia problem if it in fact coming from the waste of the seahorses (which I am assuming) I recommend going to your LFS and seeing if the have some small Bristle worms. They feed on the waste of seahorses. They are generally harmless. They are a great addition to the clean up crew in this regard. There is a downside in that they multiply a lot and can get rather large. When the get big there is a risk of the bristle stinging the horse and hurting it, I take them out and put them in my aggressive tank when they get longer than three inches.. This is an option you may want to look into.
As far as horses in a twenty, yes in is do ale, but more work involved. If this is your first saltwater aquarium and you are dead set on doing horses first I recommend a bigger tank till you get the basic understanding down. Horses are time consuming and require a lot of care.
as far as corals under a strip light....no. not possible generally but some mushrooms MAY survive if you get the right bulb. But even this isn't likely. The flow rate for seahorses is much lower than that the requirements to maintain a reef. It would make you experience 100 times more difficult. It can be done, but I will not recommend this to a beginner.
Which kind of horse are you thinking of getting?
 
darth tang

darth tang

Active Member
I would use only the Bio wheel with live rock in a 20. Anything more might cause to much water turbulance for the hoses. Get minimum 10-15 lb.s live rock and a 1-2 inch sand bed. Fake plants as well for them to hitch to since you are going with strip lighting as live plants probably won't survive.
 
grumpygils

grumpygils

Active Member
Originally Posted by N_Sarno
What if i put them in a 20. I just realized the tank size I have is 20 anyway not ten

Still though, nobody answered my questions.
Can I just use a biowheel filter, and do weekly water changes?
Do they require special lighting, plain florescent (SP) will work right?

I have 3 kudas in a 20 g. Several thoughts: You have to feed them 2 to 3 times per day usually with forceps. It is very time consuming as they don't always come out right away. If you buy seahorses, make sure you see the LFS feed them. If they do not eat frozen, you can not keep them alive. They usually eat frozen mysis. NO BRINE SHRIMP. I periodically put in a Calerpa pile from another tanks refugium over night to get amphipods in the 20 g. They can pick at these when I am not feeding them. Bio wheel should be fine but you will need a PH that blows horizonal only. I change about 50% of the water each month in 2-3 gallon increments. Must be RO water. With setting up a new tank, you can not put them in until it is fully cycled and stable. Usually 4-6 weeks. Any lighting is fine. If this is your first tank, the high maitainance of sea horses might detract from the pleasure a newbie has in figuring this gig out. Hope this helps a little.
 
N

n_sarno

Guest
I have a 29 gallon reef tank as well.
Turns out the tank the seahorses will go in is also 29 gallons. Thanks for the input everyone.
I am going to set it up and get it cycling.
How much LR do you think? 20-25 lbs?
thanks
 
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