Going To Get A Tank Going

[-Nemo-]

at the moment i have a 10 gallon freshwater tank, which has been going great, so of course i've fallen for the beautiful saltwater fish.

I have a 20g US tank which i'm getting a top and light for and am going to use for saltwater. I've already picked out a great heater and filter from http/www.liveaquaria.com (i've fallen in love with that site, great prices. )
First question: is a skimmer needed? i'd rather do without and save the money if its not necessary

for stock, i want a pair of clownfish, a firefish, and a clown goby. (and maybe a couple shrimp for clean up?)(not overkill right?)
They seem to all be rather docile, hardy fish

i'm planning on getting 22lbs of this LR here: http/www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Di....cfm?pCatId=397
and they have a guide on how to cure it here: http/www.liveaquaria.com/general/general...eral_pagesid=59
Is that basically it for curing it? Seems rather simple.

I was also reading some other topics and a hydrometer was mentioned, what is that exactly? and will I be needing one?

Thanks for all help i'm totally excited

 

[SkiFletch]

For a 20g tank which is generally considered a "Nano", a skimmer is not needed.

Your stock list sounds great for a tank like that, as does your LR.

Hydrometers and/or refractometers are used to measure salinity/specific gravity in marine systems. You need one or the other instruments to know how much salt is in your water . Too much or too little and various things in your aquarium can suffer. A hydrometer is the cheaper method by far but WILL drift over time and needs to be checked against a refractometer to see how far off it drifts. For example, my hydrometer reads 1.023sg but in reality, my sg is 1.026 when measured by a refractometer. If you're dilligent about having yours checked and verified by a known working source, then go ahead, if not, get a refractometer

Also, if I were you, I'd read through the pinned topics in the nano section, lots of great startup info there

 

[-Nemo-]

Thanks a ton Ski