29g Seahorse/Zoa Tank?

[TMF89]

Hey guys, I'm setting up two tanks, one 75g reef tank with fish, and I want to set up a second smaller tank in my room. I've been struggling on deciding what I'd like, all I've determined is that I'd like a "zen" set up, a much more relaxed "chill" tank. I think a zoa garden would be a wonderful base, but stocking has been a little more difficult. I was thinking a pair or two of seahorses along with maybe a couple catalina gobies? Can seahorses get along with zoas or do they just irritate each other by the seahorse trying to grab at their polyps all day?

 

[scadsobees]

Seahorses are cool with zoas, although keep in mind that with the cooler temps the horses need the zoas are going to grow a bit slower. Zoas are a bit to small for the most part to make good hitching posts.

I'd also recommend throwing in some gorgs and maybe leathers, they like the hitching posts and they will bother the other corals less.

 

[namxas]

Gorgs are tuff to keep, and generally require direct flow to keep them free of algae. Also, they are often stressed by SH hitching to them repeatedly.

You might consider some slow-growing live macro and branch rock if you can find some. Also, as mentioned, leathers do well in SH setups, altho some get pretty large, so you'd need to keep them fragged back.

We had a male erectus that LOVED hitching in the branches of a colt frag that fell off of the mother coral:

 

[TMF89]

Thanks for the tips guys. I guess I'll have to look around for larger colonies of zoas since their growth will be slowed down as you said. What kind of seahorses would you recommend for a 29g, with a few other small fish.

 

[rayjay]

From the guidelines, a 29 is NOT suitable for anything more than one pair of seahorses with no other fish in the tank.

 

[TMF89]

You think so? I'd be fine with a single pair of horses, but I'd like at least a couple fish.

http://www.seahorse.org/library/articles/careguide/careguide.pdf says that nearly all tropical horses could be put two pairs to a tank for a 29.

 

[rayjay]

If you are going to quote a source, it's best that you READ the whole piece, not just select the portions you want to use.
At the bottom left of that page it tells you how to use the table.

The recommended minimum tank size per pair of adult seahorses, as well as the 'additional' tank space required by each subsequent pair
is listed in the table below.
For example, H. erectus, allow the first pair 29 gallons then 15 gallons per pair thereafter.

I admit it is confusing to just look at the chart, but once you read "how to" read it, there should be no confusion.