Seahorse help for a beginner?

[mus1cizmythang]

Hi. I have a 30g tank that was previously set up for saltwater. It has been running for about 4 months. I recently upgraded to a 100g tank and i have nothing in my 30g except a coral banded shrimp (which i know i would need to take out), and I got the idea from my LFS to maybe start a seahorse tank. Do not know much about them except i have heard they are VERY hard to keep, need cold water,some need a tall tank, and probably some type of plant to latch onto. The seahorses at my lfs are tank-raised, so they are most likely on frozens---not sure of the species of seahorse.
Anyways, would love to know what all requirements seahorses need, and would like to see if i could do this!
My tank measurements are 36W X 12D X 16H

 

[teresaq]

Hi and welcome. Your tank size is fine, its a little short, but if you dont plan on breeding it will be fine.
Read thru the threads at the top of this thread, it shoud answer some questions.
Be sure your lfs horses are captive bred, not tank raised. there is a differance. Tank raised are raised in lrg pens in the ocean and are really the same as wild caught, and most dont have a good survival rate. you are better off finding a local breeder or ordering them from a breeder. There are several good breeders out there along with hobbiest that have raised a few like me. lol This site offers captive bred, also sometimes your lfs can order ora horsed which are captive bred.
for your tank. what lights do you have?? What kind of filteration. This is a start. How much live rock??
There are several here with horses that can answer questions.

 

[teresaq]

for hitches, most use macro algae, and gorgians. you can also use plastic, but I like real. lol you can keep non stinging corals like leathers, colts, mushrooms and zoas. There are several small gobies and other fish that can also be kept, I keep at least one to clean up extra food. you can keep peppermint shrimp, but cleaners can annoy the horses. lots of different snails.
Temps need to be kept around 74 degrees to help keep bacteria at bay, which can cause infections.

 

[mus1cizmythang]

I read most of the forums at the top with not much help. Read yours which was really cool about all the different types and breeds, but I didnt see much about specific care, so I thought maybe I could get some more info on here.
My filter is nothing real special-- a pengiun biowheel. I have 4 large pieces of live rock in there (not sure how much lbs, maybe 15?) lights are just regular 20W T(8)s? i think. Do i need special lighting for them?

 

[teresaq]

lighting is fine, though not really enough for macro algae.
as far as care, not sure what your really looking for. They take no more care then any saltwater fish. They need to be fed once or twice a day. frozen mysis. regular water changes - good gentle flow. They can take pretty good flow, just not jet streams. most use spray bars. You may want to up your filter to at least a good sized canister filter ( one rated for about 30 to 60 gal tank). Horses are messy eaters and you need good filtration. You need to be able to keep your tank temps down also. You will need an open air line also (I know it goes against everything you have ever heard about saltwater) but you need the extra oxygen and surface movement

 

[flower]

Hi,
TeresaQ is our seahorse expert. I have the exact same tank you do....it didn't matter at all about breeding, at least for Erectus...I get babies all the time. I would not buy my horses from a fish store.
Also when Teresa says messy eaters, she is not kidding.
I have a dish in my tank...my seahorses come to the feeding dish to eat, (we will explain how to train them later) but they still manage to wiggle in the food bowl and send food out everywhere floating away to pollute the tank. I put three gobies in there to eat the extra food. I strongly suggest you get a phosphate reactor to clean up the extra nutrients....I am now battling hair algae.
Macro algae make awesome hitches and non-stinging corals with branches as well. Feather duster fan worms are also a nice addition. I put a rock wall in my tank so the space can be used for coral and macros.
Here is a good picture of my seahorse tank. A few horses are at the feeding dish in the center of the tank.

 

[mus1cizmythang]

good gosh.. that is a beautiful tank!!
so overall, this will be kind of pricey. i need a new filter, some gobies, the actual seahorses, and some extra waterflow.
could you try to explain the waterflow? dont quite understand that.you say an open airline?
I have alot of waterflow in my tank right now-- i have a pretty good powerhead in there, an airstone at the bottom with bubbles, and my filter creates alot of airflow too.

 

[teresaq]

you dont want an air stone. The macro bubbles can mess with your horses you want the air line only. lrg bubbles.
what kind of powerheads.??? remember anything they can hitch on, they will- so powerheads can be a hazard. they can also send jet streams in your tank. I use maxijets with a piece of pvc with holes drilled for a spray bar. This gives good flow. I also cover the intake with a sponge.
you may not need more then one small powerhead, depending on your biowheel. I have a hob filter on my baby tank, but will be switching to a canister filter soon.
If you have a lfs that sells used equipment have them keep an eye out for things you might need like chiller and filter.
you can also do like flower, and add an overflow and a sump. These things can be added later.
you dont really need to have a gobie, they just help clean up extra food. snails will make up most of your cleanup crew.
horses will be your biggest expence. lol if you lived closer I have a tank full hahaha.
you need to decide on a species. they most avalible are erectus and reidi, though BTL just got ora kuda. if you chose Kuda, be sure they are from ORA only.

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Mus1cizmythang http:///t/387447/seahorse-help-for-a-beginner#post_3409421
good gosh.. that is a beautiful tank!!
so overall, this will be kind of pricey. i need a new filter, some gobies, the actual seahorses, and some extra waterflow.
could you try to explain the waterflow? dont quite understand that.you say an open airline?
I have alot of waterflow in my tank right now-- i have a pretty good powerhead in there, an airstone at the bottom with bubbles, and my filter creates alot of airflow too.
Well I would say thank you, but it no longer looks quite theat nice anymore. ....LOL, that picture is...Pre-hair algae appearance (a mere month ago)....I am in the middle of a big problem with it. We had a power failure for four days, the only way to get the horses to eat was if they knew it was daytime...so I used sunlight. It saved the horses, but crated a whole new problem. Because the horses are messy eaters there was plenty of nutrients to feed the algae, before the black out, macros were flourishing but once the hair algae got a hold it is taking over everything. I ordered a phosphate reactor and an Aquaripure filter....That combo should wipe out all the extra nutrients, so I will loose my macros but regain control of the tank.
Reactors are not expensive (under $50.00), and it only takes 7 tbsps of phosphate remover to treat 60gs of water, you might consider getting one before any messy eaters can even create a problem....I wish I had.
P.S.
I built the tank slow...I started out with fish lights, an air line (no stone) plastic plants and a canister filter. No it was not expensive to start, like all hobbies, if you add up what you have spent over time it is costly...LOL...and no end in sight.