New to the Forum Need Suggestions for Dwarf Tank

[MarySantos]

:wave:Hello,

I'm new to Reef Central, I have joined different forums, but haven't found any that I really liked. I was referenced to this forum, and so here I am!

I have a few questions, but first a detail about my tank:

I have a 30 gallon tank I am dedicating to dwarf species. I have a HOB filter made safe with sponge, powerhead with sponge filter attached to prevent anyone getting sucked in, 3/4 inch aragonite sand bed, and planning on dividing the tank with tank divider. One side will hold the equipment and red mangroves I will have growing there, and the other will be for the living area. I am doing this for safety reasons and to reduce the area for housing everything. I am placing decorative macroalgae in the tank. My tank is completely cycled and have 5 CUC snails. I am not using LR, but am thinking of using a fake rock decoration. Eventually I am going to add an ORA Mandarin Goby. (I have 2 heaters; one on each side of the tank)

My questions:

~What other CUC would be okay for this tank?

~I am introducing a Copepod/Amphipod colony, would it be better to separate on the equipment side or have them on the living area side?

~Would the colony eat all of my decorative algae if kept on the "living" side of the tank?

~How should I divide the tank, in half or just use 1/4 for the equipment side?

~Could/Should I use a 5 gallon tank for my BBS hatchery?

~How many pairs of Zots would be a good starting point? (I will not be ordering them until I have everything set up and ready for them to be comfortable and happy)

Thank you everyone for your help, and any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[rayjay]

A 30g tank is not really suitable for dwarfs unless you want 30 to 40 of them in the tank. It WILL however be suitable for a pair of seahorses like reidi or erectus.
The copepod/amphipod colonies would have to be kept on the non seahorse side as the seahorses will decimate any populations remaining on their side. copepods and amphipods will not eat your decorative algae.
I use 2 litre inverted pop bottles for hatching my decapped artemia cysts, and for the grow out stage as well as the enrichment of the grown out nauplii.
I can't see the need for using 5g as basically you need multiple containers on the go for ongoing hatching, growout and enrichment.
I can't advise on CUC as I don't use any in any of my tanks.

 

[MarySantos]

A 30g tank is not really suitable for dwarfs unless you want 30 to 40 of them in the tank. It WILL however be suitable for a pair of seahorses like reidi or erectus.
The copepod/amphipod colonies would have to be kept on the non seahorse side as the seahorses will decimate any populations remaining on their side. copepods and amphipods will not eat your decorative algae.
I use 2 litre inverted pop bottles for hatching my decapped artemia cysts, and for the grow out stage as well as the enrichment of the grown out nauplii.
I can't see the need for using 5g as basically you need multiple containers on the go for ongoing hatching, growout and enrichment.
I can't advise on CUC as I don't use any in any of my tanks.

Thank you for answering my questions.

I would like my herd to grow, and that's why the big set up. I will keep the copepods on the non seahorse side.

 

[rayjay]

The biggest obstacle I see for you is when feeding.
As many dwarf seahorses don't hunt down their food, but wait for it to pass them by while hitched, you need a dense supply of the enriched ongrown bbs at feeding time. After feeding the uneaten nauplii need to be removed.
This would be an extremely tough chore and I suggest starting with a small container and working up as the herd increases in size.
Copepods will naturally migrate from the breeding side to the show tank side but shouldn't survive long as they get eaten by the dwarfs.
It is only an "add on" to the feeding procedure because the copepod production would be far less than what the dwarfs need for feeding.
The main feeding is still recommended to be artemia nauplii, decapped, hatched, grown out for a day, and then enriched with Dan's Food in two 12 hour stages with new water and enrichment for each 12 hour period.
How many dwarfs are you planning to start with?

 

[Kay Tickle]

A 30g tank is not really suitable for dwarfs unless you want 30 to 40 of them in the tank.

Hey rayjay, wouldn't the size be cut down, since she's using the divider and could possibly cut the size to 15-20 g, or would food still escape to the other side? Just curious....

 

[Elysia]

The newly hatched brine would be able to get through any divider used on the tank, so that would not really help. Also, a mandarin wouldn't be a suitable tankmate for dwarf horses, wouldn't be happy in half of a 30 gallon tank, and wouldn't be happy with no live rock in its tank. While I hate to the barer of bad news, I don't think your 30 gallon tank is going to be appropriate for either on of the species you want to keep. You could likely keep 30 dwarves in a 10 gallon tank without issues; they are amazingly small and quite lazy.

 

[MarySantos]

I could possibly start the herd off in a smaller tank, I've heard that 20 gallons work well, and I understand the divider issue with the bbs, it's a kink I'm going to have to figure out. I will not let my ponies starve, that's for sure. I could keep the copepod colony in the 5 gallon tank I have on hand, and feed the seahorses them as a snack at least once a week. I just want to supply more nutrients than the BBS. I'd still like to divide the tank, maybe not keeping the copepods in the main tank will make it easier for feeding. I like the divider idea to prevent them from having any accidents with the filters and such. And I would like to keep my mangrove on that side as well. Are sea urchins safe with the Zots?

If I decide not to go with the Zots, would reidi or erectus need a different set up? And how big of a erectus herd could I have in my 30 gallon?

 

[con999]

a 30 gallon is the perfect size tank for a pair or erectus. and not sorry but no urchin would be safe with any horses. just make sure the tank is a tall not long. horses like hight, but dont have much use for width

 

[DanU]

All the literature and peer reviewed papers emphasize the height, but my experience as a breeder contradicts this somewhat. I have found that width is very important, as important as the height and in some cases more important. They end up using all the space. I have better results with breeding in the typical 29 gal tank than with the 30 xtall, 40 tall or 110 tall.

Dan

 

[MarySantos]

Well, theoretically, if I feed more for a larger "snow" of BBS, then the dwarf seahorses would get enough to eat. And if the BBS flee to the other side I can usher them to the other side... and I will be adding copepods for the Zots feedings. I'm dedicated enough to make sure they are eating. I want to test it to see if it'll work, I can start a 10 gallon in a cycle just in case the 30 gallon doesn't work. I want to start out with 10-20 seahorses, so 5-10 pairs. If the 30 gallon doesn't work, I'll have the 10 gallon, then possibly use the 30 for erectus. I just don't know what I would do with the babies of the erectus...

 

[rayjay]

Erectus fry can be easily placed with hobbyists that rear them. They can be overnighted to someone who will look after them.
Alternative would be to house two of the same sex.

 

[MarySantos]

Would I have to get LR for the Erectus? I had my heart set on a large herd of dwarf seahorses, but maybe the 10 gallon will be better for them... Which means the cycle is going to take a while again. Oh well, better do it right the first time right?

 

[MarySantos]

I have the 10 gallon set up, I used 5 gallons of the main tanks water, so will it have to be cycled again? i.e the shrimp in the tank? I may let it run for a couple weeks before I add any Zots if it doesn't need to be cycled via shrimp anyways. Any suggestions/comments?

 

[Elysia]

Have you hatched out any brine shrimp yet? If not, it may help to put things into perspective if you do. Newly hatched baby brine are incredibly small, and although they move, they don't move quickly. And they are difficult to see. We are talking about something that is smaller than the period on the key of your keyboard.

The bacteria that processes waste from food and animals mostly lives on substrate, not freely in the water itself, so just using water from the main tank will not completely, instantly cycle a new tank. Now, if you are putting holdfasts and other physical items that were in the cycled tank into the new tank, that will help, but remember that you have to continue to feed the tank while it is empty so that the bacteria has a continuous supply of nutrients to break down and thus can continue to live.

 

[MarySantos]

I haven't hatched any of the brine... I think I'll wait a while. I set up the 10 gallon, and I've decided just to keep the Zots in that tank. I put the macro in the nano tank, a fake coral decoration, a heater and a filter.

I guess I'll buy some LR and buy fish for the 30 gallon.

 

[con999]

i would take the heater out not only for burns but manily because the horses will need lower temps. i keep my tank at 68 right now

 

[Peka]

Keeping Dwarfs is a lot of work. I'm not trying to discourage you but make sure you understand what you are getting into. I have used 20 long tanks with dividers and it works if you keep a light near the front so the brine stay there. I also used to turn a night light on overnight at the back of the tank so the brine would swim that way and get caught by the HOB filter. If you put a brine net positioned under the outflow to catch uneaten brine it helps. Also, keeping live mysids in with the dwarfs helps as a clean up crew for leftover brine. The only really problem that I had with this set up was the divider cleaning. It will get nasty dirty, cyano and diatoms, so I had to break the tank down every couple of months and really scrub it clean.

For the erectus, you can avoid the fry problem by getting two horses of the same sex. If you choose to get a male and female and have babies, I am always happy to take babies. Good luck.

 

[MarySantos]

I set up the 10 gallon for the Zots.

I'm just going make the 30 gallon for different species that I find interesting like urchins, starts, but no seahorses.

I've been doing research on the Zots for about 4 months now, and will probably be 5+ before I decide to order them. I also want my macro to grow before I get them.

 

[MarySantos]

If anyone needs a sponge filter or divider let me know. I won't be needing the ones I ordered. I have a up to 50 gallon sponge filter and a 29-55 gallon divider. I'll give em away, just ask you pay for shipping. Or maybe trade for some macro or other marine plants?

 

[rayjay]

Once you give them away, you'll find down the road you wished you had kept them. Systems never stay the same as time goes on and you just might find a need for them again.