Double Wammy

[GAB99]

my dad has always wanted a salt water fish tank, and the reason to why i cant keep both my 20 and 55 gallons is because he wants me to turn the 20 into a saltwater... yay? i did use to want one but when i realized i would be hard pressed to be allowed to get one i deleted any files relating to it, however i remeber one fish that at first glance i knew i needed to have so heres the things ill need

cycling? wewentto 2 lfs andthey said we needed 20lbs of both live sand and rock and they said we wont need a filter because the live rock is the filter, but other than that we need details!!

coral and lighting? i saw bubble and tree coral, can they go together? they lfs said we would need a 50/50 bulb of white and blue light for any coral we get, and we need 2 power heads for ciculation, again details!!

stocking? the fish mentioned above is a mandarin gobybut i hea they only eat certain things (which my lfs has) so i need more info on them and a stocking around them if its possible or stocking if its not so you'll need 2 lists for now.

and if i posted in the wrong section then move it please!

 

[erk628]

Youll want to post this in the saltwater section!

 

[-Nemo-]

Marine section probably would have been better, but I found you here regardless

ok first off live rock and live sand.
Live sand will just be a waste of money. Skip it and instead buy 20lbs of aragonite sand, it'll turn into live sand after a couple of months in your tank.

Live rock, necessary, and yes, 20lbs would be an ideal amount. While you may not necessarily need an external filtration, I highly recommended one and I consider it almost necessary when you start to add some fish. Look at protein skimmers for a filter.

The live rock is alive because it is filled will thousands of little bugs and crustaceans and algae and God knows what else. The growth and waste production and die-off of these organisms will cause your tank to cycle. If you get cured rock (cured rock is very colorful, purple and red and orange colored), your tank will usually cycle in about a week.




Lighting and corals - Different types of corals require different types of lighting. Corals are generally seperated into three categories: Soft Corals, LPS (large polyp stony) and SPS (Small polyp stony). Most soft corals will have low light requirements, while LPS and SPS will have higher light requirements. Depending on which corals you want/plan to keep, will be the lighting you will want. CF (compact Flourescent) lights are very good for softies, but T5s and MH (metal halides) are best for SPS and LPS. If you want to keep soft and hard corals, I'd look at a 2 bulb T5, they'll most likely be better for you, especially cost wise.

A tree coral could have been many things... My guess might be some kind of leather coral which is a soft coral. Bubble coral is a LPS.

Circulation, I would aim for about 10-20x turn over an hour, so you want a couple powerheads which will together equal about 200-400 GPH (gallons per hour). Flow is essential for coral.





Fish... Mandarin gobies are a very tough species. Most will NOT eat frozen foods and end up starving to death after a few months. Their natural prey are little bugs called copepods. Most people have copepods in their tanks naturally, but the mandarin constantly hunts these bugs and soon (and QUICKLY) depletes their whole copepod population. Even with those who are trained to eat frozen foods, they should still be given copepods and it's recommended to have your own copepod culture started in a seperate tank previous to purchasing a mandarin. Even under the best circumstances, a 20G is borderline too small for a mandarin. I would look into some other species and wait until you have a larger tank or more experience inorder to conquer mandarins. They are absolutely beautiful fish, but so very difficult.

There are plenty of other intriguing fish that would do well in that tank. Clownfish have some of the most interesting behavior i've witnessed. Check out some smaller clownfish species (example: percula, ocellaris, naked, skunk, black and white, onyx - and many more!), some gobies, some smaller blennies, firefish, cardinals and others!

 

[-Nemo-]

Oh and I'd like to add that the most important thing is to RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH!!

Also, take a look at the marine tank journals and read through some of them, they're a great place to start learning and getting ideas from!
Found here: http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/forum/105-marine-aquarium-journals/

 

[GAB99]

Oh and I'd like to add that the most important thing is to RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH!!

Also, take a look at the marine tank journals and read through some of them, they're a great place to start learning and getting ideas from!
Found here: http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/forum/105-marine-aquarium-journals/

as i said earlier i did alittle bit of resaerch, but it wasnt enough, i always use this forum f i have any questins at all, so you'lll probably see some of my topics heding to the marine sectionsoon! in fact, in 2 inutes