29 gallon seahorse setup?

[t5Nitro]

Is a 29 gallon a big enough tank for a pair of seahorse? (Which kind is good for beginner seahorse keepers?)

I have extra rock that would be fiji shaped, do they need the branching stuff for things to hang on?

Is 7x turnover a decent amount? Should it be 2 powerheads making 7x turnover for random flow or 1 powerhead is good enough?

What types of macro algae should you include? I don't want to monitor calcium/alk too much since I already am in the larger tank.

Are corals like zoos and mushrooms ok for a seahorse tank? What lighting would you buy? I was looking for a cheap light to run and be good enough to keep zoos/mushrooms. How many watts of PC would you run?

Looking to add up costs of this set up, let me know if I would be missing anything:

Bag of sand: $30
Small powerhead: $20
Heater (have)
LR (Have fiji shaped base rock)
Macro algae (have chaeto)
Lights (Anyone know of a cheap PC light that will give a good color to the water and grow zoo/mushrooms?)

Anything else that would need to be in that list?

Thanks.

 

[ReefNutPA]

Erectus, Kuda and Reidi are rather hardy seahorses. Erectus are thought to be a bit more "bullet-proof" than most species and are often recommended as a first seahorse to new hobbyists.

You'll need to add something for the seahorses to hitch on besides rock. Figure two or three fake branching coral ornaments or something. Check out the pic in my gallery to get an idea - I have a 29 gal pic there and you can see the 'hitching posts'.

I don't see you mention any type of filtration....what type are you planning? Personally, on a 29 gal I'd use a canister filter with enough flow to give decent water turnover and forget the powerheads.

Keep in mind seahorses are messy eaters. Water quality can deteriorate quickly if the tank isn't maintained properly - especially in a smallish 29 gal tank. I use skimmers on my tanks to help control that - but you absolutely need to use one that does not throw out microbubbles into the tank. I use AquaC Remora's. I also use open airlines in the tank to keep the surface of the water in motion and prevent oil build-up on the surface caused primarily by the frozen mysis shrimp.

Seahorse tanks are not reef tanks - don't try to set them up as such. Set up a proper seahorse tank, and then, figure out what if any corals/inverts are compatable with that type of tank.

Tom