Simple setup

[verucaproduce]

Hello everyone. I am hoping you can help with my questions. I have been keeping fw tanks for quite some time, but in my efforts to learn about sw I have become, well... daunted.

What is the most simple setup you would recommend for a beginner in sw? I have an empty 20 gallon tank and specifically I would like to know about equipment, substrate, livestock and lighting.

Also, what are your feelings about using tap water instead of RO water? Is it doable or a disaster waiting to happen?

I would like to take a moment to complement all of your beautiful tanks. How many of you have hospital/quarantine tanks set up at all times?

Any other surprises that I might run into while getting into sw?

Thank you all for your time.

 

[skipm]

:welcome to Nanotank!

You need to decide first off if you want to keep corals or not. If not the a fish only with live rock (FOWLR) will be the simplest set-up. You don't really need any special lighting but I would still go with a PC set-up with a 50/50 bulb to get the best coloration from your fish. Plan to stay away from aggressive fish because the tend to make bigger messes and you will need more filtration to compensate for their messes. You can use a hang on filter for circulation, this also gives you a place to run carbon or other media as desired. A skimmer is something you can get by without if you do regualr maintenance. Thats one other advantage to a FOWLR, fish only can tolerate higher nitrates so you have a little more room for mistakes. If you want to keep inverts though you will need to stay on top of your tank maintenance because the need to have their nitrate levels <20. IMO using tapwater is a major disaster waiting to happen, either buy RO water or get your own RO unit. An RO/DI unit is better than a plain RO unit but you can get by with a plain RO unit (a DI add on kit is available to add later if you want to).
My advice is to keep reading and posting your questions, information is one of the best tools a reefer can have. HTH, Skip

 

[reefman23]

I agree with skip on everything...except to point out that if you want inverts, I would recommend a protein skimmer. these things are one of the best inventions for reef tanks that have allowed us to keep corals that were previously thought to be impossible to keep in a home reef. I also strongly agree that tap water is a time bomb. you will notice MUCh more algae and other negative side effects of tap water. With a 20g tank it is probably a good suggestion to get a RO/DI or at least an RO system. I think that many of us purchase premade saltwater, but that is because most of us have nano tanks that are 12g or smaller. I have a 16g and I have always purchased my water premade...it doesnt break the bank...usually around $7 for 15 gallons once every 6 weeks or so.

WELCOME and good luck..the best thing you can do is continue with the questions.

Jesse

 

[verucaproduce]

Thanks for the warm welcome guys. I am glad I asked about the RO thing. You are right Jesse that it wouldn't break the bank for a nano, whereas at the rate I do water changes it could get expensive and I just can't bear the thought of lugging all that water up the stairs where I live. lol

And Skip, I was thinking no on the corals. I wanted to keep it as basic as possible in the beginning. I was going to do the protein skimmer though, because according to the book I was reading (I thought) it said that you could get away with tap water if you had a skimmer. Maybe I misunderstood and that was for a FO tank? Or maybe you guys just know more about it because everything you do has to be so precise in a tiny system. (The author also says that under NO circumstances should you try to keep sw in anything smaller than a 40 gal :fu ). On second thought...what does that guy know anyway? hehe

What sort of fish would you consider less agressive that would do well in a 20? No damsels of course.

 

[sadielynn]

What sort of fish would you consider less agressive that would do well in a 20? No damsels of course.

there are several fish that would suit a 20 gallon
you have clown fish , percs or Ocellaris , sebae
the tomatos , gold stripe maroon , and maroons in genral get to big and should be tanked in 30 gallon or larger .
gobies are good nano choices.
As are fire fish (you will need a cover for the tank as they are known jumpers )
pseudochromises are good choices as well but may eat shrimp (an expensive snack)and can be agressive.
And of course the damsels mean lil boogers but I admit very pretty.
And one last sugestion is for the long nose hawk fish pretty but may also eat ornamental shrimps again can get to be expensive .

(The author also says that under NO circumstances should you try to keep sw in anything smaller than a 40 gal

I disagree here as we have a 2.5 with a fish in it . Tho you must be religious with the h20 changes . Hope this helps some
BTW :welcome

 

[skipm]

There are quite a few nice fish for small tanks, here is a list that has quite a few good choices with the exception of the catalina goby (it needs a tank temp of around 70 degrees): http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/scat ... CatId=2124 . This is not an exhaustive list by any means but it can give you some ideas. I personally like a goby/pistol shrimp paired up, they have a neat symbiotic relationship when paired properly. HTH, Skip