20g tall questions

[zoasguy]

Getting back into saltwater after a brief stent in reefs about 4 years ago. Just consider me a noob. Been doing freshwater for a while and used to have 220g amazon tank. That being said, saltwater is pretty foreign to me.

I am currently setting up a 20g tall.

Stock list:

Fish:
Clownfish pair
Goby (Open to suggestions)
Shrimp (Open to suggestions)
CUC

Coral:
Softies and LPS
GSP


Hardscape:
Live rock undecided (need input)
2 inch sand bed of Ocean Direct Original Grade



Equipment:
Eheim 2215 (135-140 gph)
Tunze 6015 Powerhead (475 gph)
Aqueon 150W Heater

For lights I was thinking of getting this off the Facebook Chinese Blackbox LED Proof Group:

"LIGHT #2 "RAMPING" $185 Shipped
This is a true ramping light with 48 intervals per day. You can adjust intensity through the controller for each 30 minutes. No manual dials. The price is $185 shipped. Compare this ramping light at $185 to the IT2080 or Reef Breeder's Photon."

Does anyone see any problems with this set up? Particularly running only a filter and no sump w/out a skimmer?

 

[leviburns89]

Tip #1 streamline your livestock.

A pair of clowns is great, but if you don't need the goby, don't get it, for a tank that small, your bioload goes up wicked fast.

As far as your CUC, less is more. Remember, they are animals too, and will contribute to added nutrients. I recommend at most, 1 true scarlet hermit (yellow eyes), And one snail (preferably Mexican turbo, or asteria)

Lights: I have seen the specs on the Chinese LEDs, and I have heard testimonials of how people say they look. And it doesn't look good. I would recommend a nice budget t5, and add one or two quality LEDS as money permits.

Remember, your first few months you will want to do as little as possible to let the tank stabilize and start to take care of itself.

 

[zoasguy]

OK I can live without the goby. That goes along with the look I am wanting. From coral to fish, I want as few different species as possible to give the tank a congruent look that does not appear thrown together.

Duly noted about the lights. What have you heard? I was planning on changing some of the whites to 20000 K as I have seen others do.

Furthermore, what online retailer is most reliable when it comes to quality live rock? Not having a sump, I want as much natural filtration as possible.

Thanks

 

[leviburns89]

As far as the lights, I have heard from several sources, that even tho the china leds are rated the same as brand name lights, they look much dimmer, and do not give as good of color.

I too prefer to avoid too much white. I like the spectrum the coral plus, and Blu plus lights give.

As far as live rock, I would avoid ordering online if at all possible. You would be taking the risk of not knowing exactly what you're getting, and the travel time of the rock always has effects on the rock.

That being said, I have heard very good reviews about TampaBaySaltwater. They have a huge rock farm, and have seemed to get the process down.

I personally would rather pick and choose in person from my LFS, and avoid that horrid shipping cost. For a tank your size, your only going to need 20-30lbs, so the higher price of LFS rock, equals out considering the cost of shipping, and then you have the added bonus of avoiding potential pests.

Good luck!

 

[zoasguy]

Yeah Tampa Bay is way out f budget for me. So in guess I'll be headed to my local fish store. Thanks for the advice.

 

[davehead86]

I have the exact tank setup your looking for AND I have the equivlent of your stocking list in the tank with no problems at all. Take a look at my build thread in my sig.

personally I think there is nothing wrong bioload wise having 2 clowns and a goby. Get a skunk shrimp to help clean up, its not as agressive or expensive as the pepermint shrimp that pairs up with gobys. You may have to spot feed the goby if he is too shy and the clowns eat all the food before he does.

As far as a CUC i have two snails and a starfish currently and that is not enough to keep the extra nutrients down. Since you wont have a skimmer youll need the CUC to help get rid of uneaten food and poop. So my recommendation is to get one crab and 5 snails. I like the snails that can right themselves if they fall over, otherwise your constantly having to flip snails / they die upside down.

 

[zoasguy]

Cool davehead. Appreciate the vote of confidence and the skunk shrimp advice.

 

[davehead86]

Cool davehead. Appreciate the vote of confidence and the skunk shrimp advice.

No problem. Let me know if you have any more questions.
Enjoy building the 20 gallon, its a fun little adventure!

 

[zoasguy]

So I just plugged in the Tunze 6015 powerhead... and the first word I would describe it with is, underwhelming.

 

[zoasguy]

Would the 6025 be too much power?

 

[zoasguy]

The plan is for softies, and LPS. Perhaps further down the line, a second 6015 would be nice to have. I know these are good quality powerheads, I was just expecting more output.

 

[davehead86]

You dont want a powerhead thats going to blast everything around. More like slow gentle movements.

Id always go with an extra powerhead or two instead of a huge powerhead. Cant speak for the brand youve purchased though.

 

[andrew.gimlin]

Can't go wrong with good old t5's, 4 bulb fixture only running 3 bulbs as of now 2 blue+ and 1 purple+

 

[zoasguy]

Yeah maybe I'll get two down the road, then again I really dont like all the equipment in the tank.

Andrew.Griffin - I really like your aquascape. I think it could be improved by angling the left corner of the right piece to the front more, that way it looks like a little passage between the two pieces.

Just my two cents!!