A few questions for my new tank

[H20cooled]

Well I just purchased a used 37 gallon tank, I have not received the tank yet, but it will be here within a week. I have a couple of questions about my new tank setup before I get to the actually setup.

The tank will be fish only for a while (until I get this SW thing down good and get some good lights). I know that I need to get 1 to 2 lbs of LR per gallon and some live sand add to the play sand. My questions are:

1) Would it be better to add the LR and LS at the beginning before I cycle the tank or after the cycling is complete?
2) What Protein skimmer would you recommend for this size of tank?
3) What fish would you recommend and how many? I see that a lot of people recommend clown fish and they would be fine (my daughter would love them too).
4) With the LR and LS how often will I need to do a 20% water change or is it even necessary anymore?
5) If I purchase uncured LR and want to add it after the tank cycling is complete what do I need to do to cure the rock?

Thank you very much for the help and the excellent community!

Rich

[OrionGirl]

If you purchase uncured rock, I would use it to cycle the tank. The die off from uncured rock will spike your tank, so purchasing it after will require setting up a tub of SW, and doing frequent changes on it for several weeks before you can add it to your tank.

Not good on hardware recomendations--there are several threads that have good ideas.

The pair of clowns will really limit your other fish, because they are aggressive. You could go with the clowns, and a pair of firefish, and maybe a small goby. Or, a trio of chalk basslets and the bogy. Shrimp, crabs and mobile inverts will be very happy in there are well--just stay away from anenomes.

Water changes are needed. We do changes every other week, about 20%. The water changes deplete trace nutrients that are needed by marine animals. You will also need to plan on topping the system off with freshwater to compensate for evaporation--we add water every 2-3 days to our system.

HTH

[H20cooled]

Thank you for the reply.

So, you would recommend buying uncured LR and use them to cycle the tank then? Would you also need to through in a couple of jumbo shrimp too?

A maybe 1 clown, 2 Firefish, a small goby would be ok in that size of tank? So, 2 clowns though would cause issues with other fish then? I do plan on adding shrimp, crabs, & etc to help keep everything clean.

I will look around for good info on the skimmers.

Thanx!

Rich

[OrionGirl]

Yep, cycling with live rock is pretty easy. You can still add cocktail shrimp, but there is not need--the die off will provide a large spike, and putting more ammonia in there won't really give you a better cycle, but may result in more die off (meaning, the critters that come on the live rock), and prolong the cycle, since that higher ammonia population can be detrimental to their growth, especially at high pH.

That list would be good. The firefish pair will be less reclusive than a single fish, and the clown will grow into a healthy female. She'll pick out a home (a shell, mushroom, etc), and be happy. A pair isn't really less territorial than a single fish, it's just the nature of these fish to defend their territory fiercely.

[H20cooled]

Cool, thank you for the info. I like the idea of getting the uncured LR better, they seem a lot cheaper.

Rich

[slipknottin]

Id get the Aqua C remora hang-on skimmer.

[H20cooled]

Yeah it seems like alot of people reccomend that unit. Do you know about how much they cost (online stores)? There seems to be a lot of different prices and options. Which would be better Rio800 or MaxiJet1200?

Also would it be ok to have 2 of the Firefish gobys in 1 tank?

Thanx!

Rich

[Shadoe]

Sorry to but in, if I may. :) I heard (saw) you guys talking about the clownfish would be good for this size of tank. Then someone mentioned that he should stay away from anemones. I'm a begginer as well and I understood that clowns need anemones. Is this Fact or Fiction?!:sad

I'm very interested in Clownfish myself and didn't think I had adequate lighting for 'their' anemone.
Please help me understand. :(

Thanks
-Shadoe

[gcvt]

Originally posted by H20cooled
Which would be better Rio800 or MaxiJet1200?


MaxiJet - by a loooooong shot! Rios have a dismal reputation.

[gcvt]

Originally posted by Shadoe
Sorry to but in, if I may. :) I heard (saw) you guys talking about the clownfish would be good for this size of tank. Then someone mentioned that he should stay away from anemones. I'm a begginer as well and I understood that clowns need anemones. Is this Fact or Fiction?!

That is fiction. Clownfish do not require an anemone to thrive in captivity. In fact, many clowns (especially captive bred clowns) will not even live in anemones. Anemones are very delicate creatures and are not recommended for beginners - they require a well established tank, pristine water conditions and intense lighting.

[H20cooled]

gcvt,
Thank you for the answer on the pump, I kind of figured that the Maxi was better.

As far as lighting goes I would like to be able to add coral and such after I get the whole SW thing down good. Generally speeaking how much lighting would I need ? I have seen the recomendations for about 2 to 4 per gallon, I will probably get power compacts. So would 150w be to much power for a 37 gallon tank or just right?

Thank you,

Rich

[Shadoe]

Thanks for the info gcvt. I was kind of disapointed. I didn't think I couls get a Clown because of my lighting. It's good, just not powerful enough. So they need just a 'landmark' to call home then, a nice shroom coral or a big shell?!:confused:

Thanks
-Shadoe

[H20cooled]

From what I have read clowns will rub up with about anything (powerhead, rocks, etc..) so an anemone is not really needed.

Rich

[Shadoe]

Thank you for your information.:D

[H20cooled]

Well, I just placed an order for the needed hardware. How does this all sound?

1 - AQUAC REMORA WITH MJ1200
2 - Maxi-Jet 900 Powerhead
1 - RAINBOW BIG DIGITAL TEMP ALERT
2 - VIA AQUA TITANIUM HEATER 150W
1 - RED SEA MARINE MASTER LAB
1 - AP TAP WATER FILTER

I still need to get the Instant Ocean which I will get locally. Is that going to be enough water flow with those 2 powerheads and the Aqua C Remora w/ maxi jet 1200?

Thank you!

Rich

[H20cooled]

1 other question also. Do you reccomend put some padding under an aquarium and if so what do you reccomend? I put the tank stand myself and it is very stong with full support on the entire surface area.

Rich

[OrionGirl]

I'm not a fan of padding. I'd rather have the tank level and well supported against a solid frame. If the stand you built is not level, shim it! The padding idea works for many, but to me, it's not intuitive, and no substitute for a correctly built and level stand.

[H20cooled]

Thank you, thats kind of what I figured also.

Rich

[jhrivera]

By "Tap Water Filter," do you mean an RO Unit? If so, I've read that the site www.airwaterice.com has some great RO or RO/DI units for sale. Their prices are pretty good. I'm planning on getting an RO Unit (the Mighty Mite) from there in a week.

[H20cooled]

Actually I purchase a "Tap water filter" for my setup. It is a DI unit that cost about $25.00 at Big Al's. The water here in Portland OR is pretty good so from what I have been able to find out that filter should be enough for my setup. I looked at the Mighty Mite unit, the problems with it are 1 gallon per hour output, 3 gallon waste to every 1 gallon on filter water. It would take a REALLY long time to make enough water for most tanks. I called around to a couple local shops to find out what they know about the water in my area and then decided what I would need.



P.S. Here is the

Link (http://www.bigalsonline.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?inCatID=35:Water+Purification&inUID=1071519450.1071519450) to the filter that I purchased (It is listed as Tap Water Filter).

Rich