Setting up a ten gallon tank?

[thestratomaster]

Im planning on putting a ten gallon tank in my dorm room but I really dont know where to start, or even if its possible in that size tank. What do I need to get started? What kind of fish could I put in the tank? How much money am I looking at?

 

[Blown 346]

You can do a 10 gallon. Money all depends on what type of equipment you buy.

On average say a HOB filter, heater, salt mix, base sand and Liverock to get you started.

I would say no m0re than than $130 at the most.

A HOB for a 10 gallon $30
Heater $15
Salt mix in a 20 lb Bag $25
Rock $25
Sand $20
Hydrometer to read the salinity of the water $10

That is using the stock light, if you want to upgrade to a aftermarket light in which to keep corals, the price will reflect on the type of light you choose and its wattage.

Fish are going to be really limited due to the size of the tank. Wait until the tank cycles before you add anylivestock.

 

[ScarletReef]

Check out aquatraders.com, you can get a hob refugium/skimmer for about $50, and a PC 20" light for about $25, it is basic stuff, but it is cheap and it would make your tank more stable then a HOB, you may be able to get someone in a local reef club to donate some stuff like live sand for seeding base rock and dry sand, and chaeto (I actually got my first batch of chaeto for free from petco by asking pretty please, if you see it in the tank, and they don't sell it, they will sometimes rip of a bit and give it to you. It grows fast). If you can find someone local to give you a cup or two of established sand and some chaeto, you're golden, just buy base rock and dry sand and save yourself the money. I got great base rock from marcorocks.com, and you can get 15lbs of rubble for $25, which would work great for a small tank like that. As for fish, there is a decent variety of nano sized fish, not to mention shrimp and such, that would be happy in a 10gal. Good luck!

 

[Blown 346]

A HOB fuge isnt going to replace a filter.

Lets get him started first before he gets confused on all this Fuge and Macro algae talk.

 

[KarlBob]

My advice would be to start with a 20 gallon tank, if you have room, rather than a 10 gallon. The smaller a saltwater tank gets, the less stable it becomes.

Whether or not it's combined with a refugium, a protein skimmer would be a good idea. A Hang On Back (HOB) filter may be cheaper, but it can't replace a good protein skimmer.

As for fish in a small tank, try searching the Web for "lgreen's Ultimate Guide To Nano Fish", which lists fish by suitable tank size. At the 10 gallon level, the list consists mainly of selected species of gobies, blennies, damsels, psuedochromis, and clownfish, plus a few oddballs like frogfish. No matter what type of fish you choose, remember that a 10 gallon tank won't support very many fish.

Edit: Please note that not all species of the above groups will thrive in a 10 gallon tank. Some damsels, for instance, get far too big for a 10 gallon by the time they're full-grown.

 

[thestratomaster]

I guess the next logical question is will it be much harder to take care of a saltwater tank than a freshwater tank. How long will a cycle be before adding livestock? About a month? I was considering clown fish and maybe a fire shrimp. Decent idea?

 

[joeychitwood]

I'd recommend spending some time reading the sticky threads at the top of this forum. Almost every topic you can imagine regarding tank start-up can be found there.

 

[KarlBob]

Saltwater isn't all that much harder than freshwater, these days. In fact, I've been told that planted freshwater tanks (the ones with riotous plant growth and CO2 bubblers) can be more demanding than a reef tank. Is a saltwater tank more involved than an old-style freshwater tank with an undergravel filter? Yes, but it doesn't require a degree in Marine Biology. If you already have some experience with freshwater tanks, you'll be way ahead of the people who've never kept a tank at all.

A month sounds like a reasonable estimate to me. Some people advocate very rapid cycles, using liquid ammonia to simulate fish waste. Others will tell you to run the tank for 90 days before adding fish. What you really need to do is test for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate while the tank is cycling. When ammonia and nitrite dwindle away to 0, and nitrate starts to rise, you can add at least one fish.

I'm not real familiar with fire shrimp, but I think a clownfish and a peppermint shrimp would be a good match. While we're talking about clownfish, keep in mind that they can live without anenomes. Keeping an anenome in a 10 gallon tank is probably not something you want to attempt on your first foray into saltwater tanks. There are many hardy soft corals and Large-polyped Stony corals (LPS) that clownfish can use as surrogate anenomes.

joeychitwood has a good point. Read, read, read, read some more, then start spending $$. Most of us don't have money to burn these days, and the more you know before you buy, the happier you'll be.

 

[thestratomaster]

Unfortunately all i have room for is a ten gallon. I will do some reading.

 

[ScarletReef]

"A HOB fuge isnt going to replace a filter. "

It is actually a protein skimmer and a refugium, and IMO a skimmer is generally better then a HOB, but I agree that a refugium alone would not be enough.

I would definitely just keep reading up on the forums, especially the nano forum and the beginner stickies on this forum, you will get a lot of help. Good luck!

 

[lordofthereef]

As long as he is doing water changes regularly there isn't even a need for a fuge or a filter. Check out IPSFDOTCOM on youtube (that is his actual username, do not replace "DOT" with "." when doing the search). He inspired me to set my own up after having to leave my other tanks behind having moved cross country for school. Better yet, here is a link to his page: http://www.youtube.com/user/ipsfdotcom?blend=2&ob=1 Great way to start a system. If you want to see what I have added I have my own youtube channel in my comment.

 

[KarlBob]

I've heard of systems like that before, lordofthereef. how well has it worked out for you?

 

[coralreefer80]

Strato - I am going to tell you about the 10 that I run with the understanding that it takes daily attention. Most people woudln't recommend it, but if you pay enough attention and take your time, you can make it work. I have a 10 gallon with 10 pounds of live rock, 3 inch substrate, a royal gramma, false perc clown hosting a (small) green bubble tip anemone and several soft corals. For lighting I use the Coralife 50/50 mini compacts because they fit in the standard screw-in light sockets.

I used a HOB filter in the beginning, but don't anymore because they can become a cesspool for nitrates. They help in a tank that small but you need to use only the carbon and rinse/change it pretty often. That and keep up with water changes, and you can make it work.