Putting together a 45g Seahorse tank...

[jaydubh11]

I am slowly putting together plans for my first Seahorse tank. The tank will be a 45g (24x18x24) and will be an in-wall display so I will have plenty of room for my equipment/sump/fuge/etc.

I figured my first priority should be selecting a species; I have heard that kuda, erectus, and reidi are all good beginner species. I am aiming for a natural looking set-up with branching LR, a shallow sand bed, macro algae, and maybe some corals suitable for a coldwater reef.

I am still in the learning stages but I decided to go ahead and start this thread hoping to get some info and direct help in selecting my equipment and livestock.

Here is my plan:

1. Pick species
2. Decide on livestock (including type of LR, plants, inverts, etc.)
3. Choose lighting
4. Plan filtration and water circulation
5. Get chiller and other controlling equipment

So far I am leaning towards the Hippocampus erectus species. I am planning on using Tonga Branch LR and a 1-2" sandbed. I guess my next step is to figure out what macro algae and invertebrates to keep, then I can choose the lighting. Any input would be appreciated!

 

[fishymann]

Erectus are awesome little guys. I love mine and couldn't be happier with them. Tank should be great for them, but if you want to make it as natural as possible you may not want any corals, but maybe a few gorgians. anywhere from 30+lbs of rock would be great, lighting could be anything you want, just don't go to strong, seahorses have no eyelids so they are sensitive to intense light, plus intense light heats water.

Good luck man glad your taking it slow and doing your research

 

[ann83]

If you aren't sure where to start on tankmates, inverts, and coral, this list is really helpful http://www.seahorse.org/library/articles/tankmates.shtml
I keep a yellow clown goby, nassarius snails, astrea snails, peppermint shrimp, featherdusters, and kenya trees with my seahorses.
For macro algae, if there is some you really love, you can pick the lighting after, but what I've done is to try several species and see what grows best in my aquarium environment. I'm a fan of codium, b/c it grows well for me and provides a good hitch for the SH. Other popular macros are various species of caulerpa (for the sandbed), red grape kelp, red feather kelp, and halimeda. Blue ochtodes and dragons tongue are both beautiful but harder to keep.
PC lighting or T5 lighting is going to be your best bet because it will give you enough lighting for your macros without overheating your tank.
For flow control, spraybars are your best friend, and refugiums are great for seahorse tanks.

 

[jaydubh11]

What kind of CUC do you recommend to keep with those various macros? I had initially thought it would be a good idea to get some Margarita snails since they do well in coldwater. Maybe Nerites as well. I suppose I also will need some hermits or Nassarius if I go with a sandbed.

I have an extra 24" 2x65w PC fixture that seems to be suitable for the macros you mentioned.

A couple quick questions on filtration:

In my Reef tanks I solely keep Chaeto in the refugium, what would be a good plan for a SH refugium? Would it even be beneficial to skim with all those macros and LR? The stock list is going to be very low; 2 horses (unless advised otherwise) and CUC. I don't plan on adding anything else unless it will be beneficial to the system.

 

[ann83]

How cool do you plan on keeping your erectus tank? I'd keep it between 70-74 degrees. Its not really a coldwater setup, so I think you would still risk losing the margarita snails. Peppermint shrimp do fine in that temperature range, and even colder. So do most tropical snails. I'd stear clear of hermits. There have been reports of even blue leg and scarlet reef hermits getting an SH tail between their claws. Micro brittle stars are a good addition to the CUC, and you could probably add a small sand sifting goby as well. I think nassarius are invaluable for cleaning up after the SH as well. Nothing that I've suggested should bother the macros.
Chaeto would be great in the refugium. Its good for nitrate export and its also good for culturing pods and small shrimp. Some LR rubble for the purpose of pod culturing might not be a bad idea either.

 

[jaydubh11]

So the typical Reef snails such as Ceriths, Astraeas, and Nassarius would be good choices? I plan on keeping the tank in the 70-72 range.

What are your thoughts on mechanical filtration such as protein skimming and uv sterilization? Any other ideas for the sump/refugium?

Thanks for the help!

 

[fishymann]

Yes, those snails will do fine. cold water is usually like 60s.

Protein skimmer is sort of a depends who you ask type of thing. Some say yes, other say no. You dont need one, you dont have a large bioload. Same with UV some say yes, some say no. UV is more of a, it'll kill the bad, but also some of the good.

Be sure you have a nice pod population before you add seahorses, basically you wanna look at the sides of the tank and see agood mount

 

[toastii_reef]

woohooo more seahorse ppl! 'have fun and RESEARCH!!!

i know some of these ppl from another website (seahorse.org) and they are wonderful

(btw this is pygmy_dwarf_hzosterae on the org.)
but seahorses are amazing and just well AMAZING

 

[Brock Fluharty]

Fishymann, what fish do have eyelids?

A few people have seahorses with MH's, and corals. Just no LPS, or SPS.

I'd go with a pile of rock on one side of the tank slanting downawards, and then have big macro beds. For macro, i'd go with caulerpa prolifera, chaeto for a fuge (if you'll have one) and maybe some halymenia, or shaving brush.

Gorgonians can be hard to care for. I'd steer clear of them...

 

[jaydubh11]

Thanks for all the input so far!

I have spent a good bit of time researching on Seahorse.org and other informative SH sites and I think I am ready to start putting things together.

I plan on getting a tank tomorrow and I would like to go ahead and get some equipment as well. I am having a hard time picking a skimmer and chiller. I would like to get a skimmer with a small footprint, so I am leaning towards the Tunze 9005 or the Tunze 9002. It is basically about whether I should over or under skim (or not skim at all?). I will be keeping a small fuge full of chaeto for nutrient export and pod production. I may even tee off the drains seperately to the fuge and sump. Any skimming suggestions?

I need help picking out a good chiller. Any recommendations? The tank is 45g and I believe the total system will fall somewhere under 75g. Room temperature should be about 75° and I would like to keep the tank at 71°-72°. For lighting I am leaning towards 130 watt PCs, which add about 1.5° to my 20g nano; they shouldn't have too much of an impact.

What spectrum should I aim for? Do I even need to use actinics? I will be keeping these macros: Caulerpa, Halimeda, Red Kelp, Ogo. I will not be keeping any corals.

The livestock plan as of right now is:

2 Hippocampus erectus
1 Peppermint shrimp
Various Cerith snails
Various Nassarius snails
Various Macros

 

[Condiman]

That sounds good to me

 

[jaydubh11]

Well, I wasn't able to get the tank. I was under the impression AGA made a 45 "tall" that was the dimensions I was looking for, but it is 3' long. Not sure what to do now, I am thinking about going with a 60g cube (2'x2'x2') and using a false wall for overflow, but I am having a hard time finding one of those as well.

I am going to wait on the skimmer until I find a tank.

I would like to go ahead and get a chiller though. Here are a couple I am looking at:

1/15hp Current USA Prime Inline

1/10hp Current USA Prime Inline

DFS has them for $254.99 and $331.49.

Open to other suggestions, again:

I believe the total system will fall somewhere under 60g. Room temperature 75° and I would like to keep the tank at 70°-72°. For lighting I am leaning towards 130 watt PCs, which add about 1.5° to my 20g nano; they shouldn't have too much of an impact. Circulation equipment will be small and shouldn't add much heat.

Will the ones I am looking at do the job? I like the idea of a drop-in chiller, but couldn't find one suitable.

 

[DiverDown80]

I'm also setting up a s/h tank - 60 gal hex is what I've decided on - hoping to plumb it this weekend.

I've got a 1/10th h/p prime that I'll be using on it - it's been on my 90 gal reef (120 gal ttl) and keeping the temp at 77 with m/h running - but it seems to run a lot - so I'm going to use it on the s/h tank that although will be running cooler - won't have the m/h issues and is a smaller volume. Upgrading the reef's chiller.

imo - even on the 40 you're planning - I'd go with the 1/10 hp rather than the 1/15th - it would be more energy efficient and have less impact on your home temp.

 

[jaydubh11]

Thanks for the tip, DiverDown80. I will go with a 1/10 then, I might take a look at the JBJ Arctica as well.

Here is a quick SketchUp of what I would do with a 60g Cube:

The visible area would be the dimensions of the 45g that I was originally looking for (24"x18"x24") and I think I would be able to fit all my equipment behind the false wall.

It would be nice if I could use acrylic for the wall but I am afraid I won't be able to create a strong enough bond. Or I could just go with an acrylic tank...



So many decisions!

:rollface: