Stocking Questions

[SwimminglyFishy]

I know all of you get these posts all the time and you're tired of answering questions, but I'd like some advice and guidance. I tried searching for the answers of many of these questions, but I was unable to find them either on the forum or from a reputable source online.

I am planning a 10 gallon FOWLR tank. I am planning to have the following equipment:
Standard 10 gallon AGA glass tank
Standard 15-watt flourescent hood (no greater lighting is required for just a FOWLR, right)
50-watt submersible heater
Two aquaclear mini filters @ 100 GPH each
A 100 gph powerhead (possibly, I'm going to see if that's too much current)
20 lbs live sand
8-10 pounds live rock
I also have test kits for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH

Does this all sound good or am I missing something...?

In terms of livestock I would like:
1 Tank-bred ocellaris clown (I have heard from some that they are fine in 10 gallon tanks while others say 20 gal minimum. Which is correct?)
1 goby and pistol shrimp combo (which goby are good for 10 gallon tanks?)
Some snails (what species are best for a tank this small?)

Does this sound reasonable or am I totally overdoing it? I plan to do 10-20% water changes weekly.

Finally, what specific gravity would be best for these fish? Right now I have it at 1.023 which I believe is suitable. (please correct me if I'm wrong)

I know these questions are a dime a dozen, but I'm really nervous about going to saltwater tanks. Everything seems much more complicated and I want to avoid the newbie mistakes that I made when I first got into freshwater aquariums.

Thanks soooooo much for the help. All of you here are extremely helpful and everytime I visit I learn something new. :)

[TropicalNorth]

At first glance it looks like a good plan.
Some say clowns are active fish and need at least a 20g whilst others say they will do fine in a 10g, in the end it all comes down to what you think. Can't comment on the goby shrimp combo as I don't know much about them. Turbo and Cerith snails stay fairly small and are good algae eaters / scavengers.

For the turnover you'll probably only need one aquaclear mini and a powerhead, that will give you a turnover around 20 times per hour which is plenty. My personal preference is to have the sg around 1.026, as that's what the ocean is but again everyone has their opinion.

[Grins]

You won't need the filters if you use 10-15#s of live rock

100gph is minimum I'd have in a 10g, so don't worry about that.

You can save a little money and buy aragonite vs. live aragonite. The rock will seed the sand.

I personally shoot for 1.023-1.024 SG

Definitely stay on top of the water changes you described.

The stock you listed should be fine. I agree with TN above that turbos and ceriths should be good in your tank. The ceriths will spend most of their time in the sand and the turbos will spend most of theirs on the glass or rocks.


This thread might help as well:
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=118995