Are you running an internal or external filter?
Are you using a protein skimmer?
What are the tank dimensions?
What lights do you have?
What species of cleaner shrimp did you want?
Don't waste your money on live sand. Buy a marine sand or go to the beach. After a couple of months in water it will be alive.
Be wary of snails because lots of them are nocturnal predators that hunt, kill and eat fish and shrimp. Some even eat other snails.
----------------------
When you say Firefish, do you mean Nemateleotris magnifica? If yes, these guys do best in groups rather than on their own. Make sure any fish you buy are feeding well and have nice shaped bodies and are not skinny. Get the shop to feed the fish in front of you so you can tell if they are eating. If the shop is unwilling to do that, ask what time they normally feed the fish and go to the shop then and see them eat. If the fish don't eat, don't buy them.
----------------------
Ocellaris clownfish (aka anemonefish) do best in prs with a sea anemone. The most common and easiest anemone to keep is the bubbletip anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor). Anemonefish do not need an anemone but do prefer to have one to live in, and they act more naturally when they have one.
When anemonefish establish a territory around an anemone, the most dominant fish becomes a female and the next dominant fish becomes a male. All the others remain as subordinates and are not allowed to breed with the female. If the female dies or is removed, the male becomes female and the next dominant juvenile becomes a breeding male to form a new pr.
If you buy a pair of anemonefish, make sure they are a pr. For most species, the females are noticeably bigger than the males. With Amphiprion ocellaris & percula, males & females are similar sized but females are still slightly bigger, but it can be hard to tell. If you can't buy a guaranteed pr, buy a big one and a small one from a group and keep them together at all times. That way the bigger one will become female and dominate the smaller one who will remain male.
----------------------
Sea urchins can be an issue in tanks because they crawl under or behind rocks/ corals and push them over. And they spend most of the day hiding and come out at night to feed on algae or dead animals. Short spined sea urchins are usually better and easier to handle than the long spined urchins.
===
Are you running an internal or external filter? Internal, it is built into the biocube.
Are you using a protein skimmer? Yes, I will be modifying the filtration to add a protein skimmer and heater.
What are the tank dimensions? 20.25" long X 21.875" Wide X 21.5" High
What lights do you have? The LED lights that come with the biocube.
What species of cleaner shrimp did you want? I've been looking at blood red fire shrimp and skunks, I'm still not sure which works better.
I am aware of the clowns gender change and anemones and such, but I plan to get anemones six months-a year into the tank running. I have considered getting a pair of clownfish, but I'm sticking to just one to avoid having them run the tank and dominate all my other fish as clowns are semi-aggressive. Also, what was your experience on live sand to make that opinion? I've heard mixed opinions and would be very interested.
Nemateleotris magnifica, yes I refer to the firefish goby. (both red and purple.) These are also fish that I hear mixed opinions about. Most are telling me they stay in groups when they are young but prefer solitude when they grow older, if that's the case then I'll steer clear of already mated pairs. What's more is that I live in an area where saltwater fish aren't the easiest to come by. My local pet stores don't sell them, if I can't find a marine store that has good fish (I found one that's quite a drive, but I'm not ready to inspect the fish yet.) I'll be stuck with ordering fish and corals online.
I don't plan to do anything too risky with my rocks, but I plan on using aqua safe glue on it for security. (Still waiting.) I currently have a plastic egg tray for extra grip on the rock and sand. I'm a little confident with the Urchin but don't quote me, it's my first tank.
You seem very well informed, thank you so much for taking the time to give me advice. A reply will be greatly appreciated. Am I overstocking by any chance and is there any other coral I can try out other than zoanthids and toadstools? (I already have my heart set on getting them.)