So you got a new fish tank Newbie
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John,
You want it pretty fine. Doc Ron, our sand expert, suggests a size range of .05-.20 mm, which is pretty fine stuff. He also says not to wash the sand as it removes valuable fines. Just let the sandstorm abate on its own or at least for a day or so before using something like a polishing filter.
CRITTERS!!!
:fish1:
Giving a description of all the creatures you can add to your tank is beyond the scope of this work. [color=dark green]I always love that line. A nicely worded scholarly cop out.[/color]
As I said earlier, I just haven't had every single organism that people collect in this hobby. To be honest, I've only had a tiny fraction of what is available and that is more toward fish than inverts.
So armed with that knowledge, or lack thereof, I'll talk briefly about stocking for the next few days.
One of the first questions asked by most new reefers is what do I add first---fish or coral? Most people opt for fish thinking they are easier than coral. Nowadays that has pretty much been shown as a myth with many people having great luck with coral tanks but unable to keep fish.
Our coral expert droid, Doc Eric Borneman, suggests that coral should be the first addition to a new tank and, most shockingly, suggests that it be SPS (small polyp stony for those of you that didn't memorize the RC acronym list. :hammer: ). These are considered the most difficult of the corals to maintain in the reef.
Eric's argument for this outrageous statement makes a lot of sense. Eric feels that many new reefers add "easy" corals like leathers and mushrooms to the new tank. They may also add less than reef friendly fish and mobile inverts. After all these things are established the new reefer then adds the SPS. The somewhat fragile SPS now has to compete against a host of established organisms in a hostile environment. It is doomed, or at least made to fight for its life, by all these competing organisms.
Eric reasons that by starting out with the SPS at the git-go allows it to establish its position in the tank before it needs to compete against other corals, inverts and fish. It also allows you to target feed this coral without other critters grabbing up the meal.
That sounds pretty sensible to me. Let the frail stuff gain a foothold when the tank is new.
One thing about using this plan, most SPS species require high circulation rates and high light levels. Many new reefers don't have the money to provide these items on their new tank and plan on getting them later. If that is the case you don't want to start out with SPS until your equipment is up to handling it. However, if you have the light and pumps, then I'd look closely at Eric suggestions.
I am not going to give out a lot of info on coral in this thread because it is not my specialty. I urge you to go to Eric's The Coral Forum. Be sure to look at the links in that forum for his many articles on coral, posted as a sticky thread. Once you've read everything then pester the heck out of him with a never ending stream of questions, such as, "How do you tell a girl coral from a boy coral?"
The other way people, and I think the most popular, start their new tank is with damsels. Well you do get people like Emma who go for the throat and start out with a Triggerfish that grows to close to 2 feet, eating everything in its path to reach that size.
:eek1:
Not picking on ya Emma. I know you plan on a fish only and if that trigger is really aggressive it will be the only fish.
One of the worst mistakes a Newbie can do is add a fish to cycle you tank! Unfortunately, this is still common practice and Damsels, because of their low price and availability, are often the fish selected for this dubious honor.
Don't even THINK about using a damsel or other fish Newbie to check for WMD's in your tank!!!:mad2:
Glad I got that out.
If you did think about doing this then go all the way back to the start of this thread and read about the right way to cycle your tank.
Anyway, you go out and buy a very pretty Jewel Damsel, Parapglyphidon lacrymatus, and, if he survives, your ready for other fish. It so happens that old Jewel is too. This is one mean little son of a gun and on the scale of bad acting damsels probably rates a 9. Often Parapglyphidon lacrymatus, after ripping the fins off more expensive fishy, takes the Nemo route to the sea via the commode.
Not all damsels are terrible actors. You need to read up on what their habits are. For instance, the yellow-tailed damsel, Chrysiptera parasema, has a much better temperament than the Jewel. Especially when kept in a small shoal of 4-6 fish, this species of damsels can be kept in a community tank. WaterKeeper has always suspected that keeping any damsel in a shoal makes them better tank mates as they are busier squabbling among themselves than with the tank's other fish.
While not as calm as the yellow-tail the Princess damsel, Pomacentrus vaiuli, is a beautiful fish and is great for a single species small tank where you need small size with brilliant coloration.
Although a cousin, chromis, are far more peaceful than the true damsels. The Green Chromis, Chromis viridis, is commonly kept in schools in the community aquarium. They are best in a school, as they tend to hide if left as a single specimen.
It just so happens that we have an article on Chromis in RK magazine which I'll leave you with Friendly Damsels
Till next time. :wavehand:
You want it pretty fine. Doc Ron, our sand expert, suggests a size range of .05-.20 mm, which is pretty fine stuff. He also says not to wash the sand as it removes valuable fines. Just let the sandstorm abate on its own or at least for a day or so before using something like a polishing filter.
CRITTERS!!!
:fish1:
Giving a description of all the creatures you can add to your tank is beyond the scope of this work. [color=dark green]I always love that line. A nicely worded scholarly cop out.[/color]
As I said earlier, I just haven't had every single organism that people collect in this hobby. To be honest, I've only had a tiny fraction of what is available and that is more toward fish than inverts.
So armed with that knowledge, or lack thereof, I'll talk briefly about stocking for the next few days.
One of the first questions asked by most new reefers is what do I add first---fish or coral? Most people opt for fish thinking they are easier than coral. Nowadays that has pretty much been shown as a myth with many people having great luck with coral tanks but unable to keep fish.
Our coral expert droid, Doc Eric Borneman, suggests that coral should be the first addition to a new tank and, most shockingly, suggests that it be SPS (small polyp stony for those of you that didn't memorize the RC acronym list. :hammer: ). These are considered the most difficult of the corals to maintain in the reef.
Eric's argument for this outrageous statement makes a lot of sense. Eric feels that many new reefers add "easy" corals like leathers and mushrooms to the new tank. They may also add less than reef friendly fish and mobile inverts. After all these things are established the new reefer then adds the SPS. The somewhat fragile SPS now has to compete against a host of established organisms in a hostile environment. It is doomed, or at least made to fight for its life, by all these competing organisms.
Eric reasons that by starting out with the SPS at the git-go allows it to establish its position in the tank before it needs to compete against other corals, inverts and fish. It also allows you to target feed this coral without other critters grabbing up the meal.
That sounds pretty sensible to me. Let the frail stuff gain a foothold when the tank is new.
One thing about using this plan, most SPS species require high circulation rates and high light levels. Many new reefers don't have the money to provide these items on their new tank and plan on getting them later. If that is the case you don't want to start out with SPS until your equipment is up to handling it. However, if you have the light and pumps, then I'd look closely at Eric suggestions.
I am not going to give out a lot of info on coral in this thread because it is not my specialty. I urge you to go to Eric's The Coral Forum. Be sure to look at the links in that forum for his many articles on coral, posted as a sticky thread. Once you've read everything then pester the heck out of him with a never ending stream of questions, such as, "How do you tell a girl coral from a boy coral?"
The other way people, and I think the most popular, start their new tank is with damsels. Well you do get people like Emma who go for the throat and start out with a Triggerfish that grows to close to 2 feet, eating everything in its path to reach that size.
:eek1:
Not picking on ya Emma. I know you plan on a fish only and if that trigger is really aggressive it will be the only fish.
One of the worst mistakes a Newbie can do is add a fish to cycle you tank! Unfortunately, this is still common practice and Damsels, because of their low price and availability, are often the fish selected for this dubious honor.
Don't even THINK about using a damsel or other fish Newbie to check for WMD's in your tank!!!:mad2:
Glad I got that out.
If you did think about doing this then go all the way back to the start of this thread and read about the right way to cycle your tank.
Anyway, you go out and buy a very pretty Jewel Damsel, Parapglyphidon lacrymatus, and, if he survives, your ready for other fish. It so happens that old Jewel is too. This is one mean little son of a gun and on the scale of bad acting damsels probably rates a 9. Often Parapglyphidon lacrymatus, after ripping the fins off more expensive fishy, takes the Nemo route to the sea via the commode.
Not all damsels are terrible actors. You need to read up on what their habits are. For instance, the yellow-tailed damsel, Chrysiptera parasema, has a much better temperament than the Jewel. Especially when kept in a small shoal of 4-6 fish, this species of damsels can be kept in a community tank. WaterKeeper has always suspected that keeping any damsel in a shoal makes them better tank mates as they are busier squabbling among themselves than with the tank's other fish.
While not as calm as the yellow-tail the Princess damsel, Pomacentrus vaiuli, is a beautiful fish and is great for a single species small tank where you need small size with brilliant coloration.
Although a cousin, chromis, are far more peaceful than the true damsels. The Green Chromis, Chromis viridis, is commonly kept in schools in the community aquarium. They are best in a school, as they tend to hide if left as a single specimen.
It just so happens that we have an article on Chromis in RK magazine which I'll leave you with Friendly Damsels
Till next time. :wavehand:
Last edited:
Radicaljbr
Active member
Thanks Tom
thank you so much for the wealth of information you just showered us Newbie. I'm still trying to collect all the necessary equipment for my 55 gallon tank. Will revisit this thread over and over to follow all your suggestion. :rollface:
Hi Franning
[welcome]
A 55 is a good tank for a damsel school. They are "reef safe" and 5 or 6 will do nicely in that size tank. When placed with some nice corals they are all you need to have a great looking reef.
There is one little drawback with the damsel family. As they age the tend to lose their bright juvenile colors. This may make them less desirable to some reefers. This is true of many fish so you want to purchase as young a specimen as possible.
[welcome]
A 55 is a good tank for a damsel school. They are "reef safe" and 5 or 6 will do nicely in that size tank. When placed with some nice corals they are all you need to have a great looking reef.
There is one little drawback with the damsel family. As they age the tend to lose their bright juvenile colors. This may make them less desirable to some reefers. This is true of many fish so you want to purchase as young a specimen as possible.
One of the other members of the damsel family is the clownfishes which is also a very, very popular group to add to the new aquarium. The new reef keeper is warned that they are damsels and can be very territorial and aggresive.
In this part of the thread I will be constantly referring to articles in RK Magazine written by Heny Schultz. Henry is actually Aquaman in real life and his diet is composed mainly of reef fish, so he knows thier habits intimately.
Since it is the weekend I'll leave you with a ton of reading material.
READ and STUDY it real well Newbies cause there will be a Test on it come Monday!!:reading:
Anyway, for the lowdown on clowns I offer Clowning Around
And, since I know you'll want Nemo to have a home whether he needs it or not!
<a href=http://www.carlosreef.com/AnemoneFAQ.pdf target=_blank>Anemone FAQ</a>
Doc Ron on Anemes
More Doc Ron on Anemes
That should keep you busy till the Pro Bowl
In this part of the thread I will be constantly referring to articles in RK Magazine written by Heny Schultz. Henry is actually Aquaman in real life and his diet is composed mainly of reef fish, so he knows thier habits intimately.
Since it is the weekend I'll leave you with a ton of reading material.
READ and STUDY it real well Newbies cause there will be a Test on it come Monday!!:reading:
Anyway, for the lowdown on clowns I offer Clowning Around
And, since I know you'll want Nemo to have a home whether he needs it or not!
<a href=http://www.carlosreef.com/AnemoneFAQ.pdf target=_blank>Anemone FAQ</a>
Doc Ron on Anemes
More Doc Ron on Anemes
That should keep you busy till the Pro Bowl
Last edited:
Hi, I hear this is the place to come if you're a newbie
I'm only a pseudo-newbie. But I still really feel like a newbie...Anyway I have had my tank for around a year, and because of the fear instilled in me that I will kill things etc there are still very few inhabitants. I just moved into a condo and I am about to (finally) upgrade my lighting. However, because my building is old, I don't have all that many amps and I am forever already blowing fuses when I turn on too many appliances. Will ballasts help alleviate this ? I am still a little baffled at the purpose of a ballast. This may be the only time in my life that I will use the excuse that I'm a girl ; I don't understandthe whole electricity thing
I'm only a pseudo-newbie. But I still really feel like a newbie...Anyway
I have had my tank for around a year, and because of the fear instilled in me that I will kill things etc there are still very few inhabitants. I just moved into a condo and I am about to (finally) upgrade my lighting. However, because my building is old, I don't have all that many amps and I am forever already blowing fuses when I turn on too many appliances. Will ballasts help alleviate this ? I am still a little baffled at the purpose of a ballast. This may be the only time in my life that I will use the excuse that I'm a girl ; I don't understandthe whole electricity thing
Hi miraotter,
With lighting the math is fairly simple. Whatever the watts on your lamps ,that is how much juice you need. Ballasts actually make things slightly worse as they, in themselves, draw a couple of watts in addition to the lights. Electronic ballasts are slightly better than the magnetic coil type in this respect of wasting current in the form of heat. Magnetic coil ballasts also use more amps during the start-up than an electronic. MH ballasts need more current than fluorescents during start-up.
The ballast, be it fluorescent or metal halide, serves two purposes. It provides the initial kick to get the bulb to light; this can be around 6 kilovolts for an MH lamp. Next, once the bulb is fired, it limits the amount of current that the lamp can draw. Without the ballast the current going to the lamp would keep increasing till the bulb burned itself up.
One solution amp strapped reefers sometimes use is to find to separate circuits to operate their tanks. This sometimes can allow running higher wattages without needing a new circuit.
With lighting the math is fairly simple. Whatever the watts on your lamps ,that is how much juice you need. Ballasts actually make things slightly worse as they, in themselves, draw a couple of watts in addition to the lights. Electronic ballasts are slightly better than the magnetic coil type in this respect of wasting current in the form of heat. Magnetic coil ballasts also use more amps during the start-up than an electronic. MH ballasts need more current than fluorescents during start-up.
The ballast, be it fluorescent or metal halide, serves two purposes. It provides the initial kick to get the bulb to light; this can be around 6 kilovolts for an MH lamp. Next, once the bulb is fired, it limits the amount of current that the lamp can draw. Without the ballast the current going to the lamp would keep increasing till the bulb burned itself up.
One solution amp strapped reefers sometimes use is to find to separate circuits to operate their tanks. This sometimes can allow running higher wattages without needing a new circuit.
I sure hope you Newbies are studying for that test. I think I'll make it an essay exam.
Even non-reefers can learn stuff from this thread. If they had read the part on repairing a leaking tank where I said that silicone glue wouldn't stick to fully cured silicone; the people gluing Janet J's costume before the Super Bowl could have saved a lot of embarrassment.
Even non-reefers can learn stuff from this thread. If they had read the part on repairing a leaking tank where I said that silicone glue wouldn't stick to fully cured silicone; the people gluing Janet J's costume before the Super Bowl could have saved a lot of embarrassment.
I thnk a vet should be able to pull that off. I'd be inclined not to try to add Bruce to anything under a 29 (tall).
JohnM99
Premium Member
Dear Professor WaterKeeper
Perhaps one topic to touch on would be "how much food" - it is a little hard to tell some times - and most of us clowns give way too much food. But I heard a LFS person say 1 flake of flake food every day or so is enough. Perhaps not. And with that advice, they will be unlikely to be able to retire on the fish food sales.
Just how much do these guys want to eat anyway?
Your fingers must be tired from all the typing.
Perhaps one topic to touch on would be "how much food" - it is a little hard to tell some times - and most of us clowns give way too much food. But I heard a LFS person say 1 flake of flake food every day or so is enough. Perhaps not. And with that advice, they will be unlikely to be able to retire on the fish food sales.
Just how much do these guys want to eat anyway?
Your fingers must be tired from all the typing.
200GsofSpecies
New member
What a great thread, and though it is long, your sense of humor got me thru it! Amazing that someone is willing to take the time, and answer questions that have probably been asked 10,000 times before, and put them in one easy place for reference. Your patience and knowledge is an inspiration.
I have been planning a tank for a while now, and hoped to do it the correct way....by not jumping into it like I do most things, but by research, research, research.
While your thread has given me alot to sort thru, make sense of, and remember, it is leading me to believe I wil never have a tank set-up; rather I'll be researching until the end of time. Who knows, that may be a good thing.
In all seriousness, I want to personally(however "personal" you can over the internet) thank you for the time, energy(I know you old folks dont have much), and wisdom you have put into helping those in need. It does NOT go unappreciated!
I am certain that once I'm finally ready to start my tank, that I will put this thread to good use....and of course have 10,000,000 questions to monopolize your time with.
Again, Thankyou!
Brian
::::It baffles me why my blue whale doesnt enjoy his 2.5G nano::::
I have been planning a tank for a while now, and hoped to do it the correct way....by not jumping into it like I do most things, but by research, research, research.
While your thread has given me alot to sort thru, make sense of, and remember, it is leading me to believe I wil never have a tank set-up; rather I'll be researching until the end of time. Who knows, that may be a good thing.
In all seriousness, I want to personally(however "personal" you can over the internet) thank you for the time, energy(I know you old folks dont have much), and wisdom you have put into helping those in need. It does NOT go unappreciated!
I am certain that once I'm finally ready to start my tank, that I will put this thread to good use....and of course have 10,000,000 questions to monopolize your time with.
Again, Thankyou!
Brian
::::It baffles me why my blue whale doesnt enjoy his 2.5G nano::::
How do you set-up a sump with refuge? and do I really need one for my 55 gallon tank? Sorry for this newbie is really confuse...
One Flake of Food per Day!!! Yikes, what does the guy at the LFS think your feeding--The Golden Child?
In the article on clowns I linked to earlier in this thread it says-
It is best to feed moderate amounts of any food several times each day rather than one big meal. If it is a new fish then watch it the first few times you feed it. When it becomes full it will tend to go about its business but may occasionally sneak in another bite. After awhile you'll get a feel for how much to give it each sitting. In a tank with other fish it is always wise to watch the new arrivals at feeding time. Many fish refuse to eat when first introduced into the tank. You want to make sure that they eat before they starve and that other fish are not bullying them away from the food.
I know that Henry can get a bit deep for the Newbie in his articles but how else are you going to learn what a protandric hermaphrodite is unless you read his stuff.
In the article on clowns I linked to earlier in this thread it says-
It is best to feed moderate amounts of any food several times each day rather than one big meal. If it is a new fish then watch it the first few times you feed it. When it becomes full it will tend to go about its business but may occasionally sneak in another bite. After awhile you'll get a feel for how much to give it each sitting. In a tank with other fish it is always wise to watch the new arrivals at feeding time. Many fish refuse to eat when first introduced into the tank. You want to make sure that they eat before they starve and that other fish are not bullying them away from the food.
I know that Henry can get a bit deep for the Newbie in his articles but how else are you going to learn what a protandric hermaphrodite is unless you read his stuff.
I see a few posts snuck in while I was writing the above reply.
Hi Brain,
<img src="/images/welcome.gif" width="500" height="62"><br><b><i><big><big>To Reef Central</b></i></big></big>
Glad you like the thread and thank you for your kind comments.
Hi Franning,
:lol: Everyone here is jumping the gun. I was going to stock those tanks before I fed them.
I'll be getting to refugiums as they are part of the solution in feeding your fish. In the thread I just posted Henry says, "pods' are a major part of a clown's diet. "Pods" are a major part of many fishes diets. The refugium is mainly come into use to provide a safe haven when these tiny little critters can reproduce without fear of being eaten. A refugium is any low flow, lighted, and protected area where conditions are favorable for the reproduction of small invertebrates. It usually has LR, LS and may be planted with macro algae. Turf type algae are also usually allowed to accumulate on the sides of the tank. All these things create a macro environment where these wee critters can flourish.
I direct you over to the DIY Forum where a search will show many types of in the sump refugiums.
Hi Brain,
<img src="/images/welcome.gif" width="500" height="62"><br><b><i><big><big>To Reef Central</b></i></big></big>
Glad you like the thread and thank you for your kind comments.
Hi Franning,
:lol: Everyone here is jumping the gun. I was going to stock those tanks before I fed them.
I'll be getting to refugiums as they are part of the solution in feeding your fish. In the thread I just posted Henry says, "pods' are a major part of a clown's diet. "Pods" are a major part of many fishes diets. The refugium is mainly come into use to provide a safe haven when these tiny little critters can reproduce without fear of being eaten. A refugium is any low flow, lighted, and protected area where conditions are favorable for the reproduction of small invertebrates. It usually has LR, LS and may be planted with macro algae. Turf type algae are also usually allowed to accumulate on the sides of the tank. All these things create a macro environment where these wee critters can flourish.
I direct you over to the DIY Forum where a search will show many types of in the sump refugiums.
Good old John as in M99 went over to the coral forum and asked about the wisdom of putting more difficult corals in the tank first. I've been telling you all to ask questions on other forums and John obtained a very good responce. I'll post it for all to see-
I'll talk more about this in the next day of two.
I'll talk more about this in the next day of two.
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