Newbie seeking Advice...

[Noon]

from those of you with more experience in this stuff. =)

I recently got a 75 gallon saltwater tank started, i have about 80ish lbs of live rock with pre wet sand as the starter. I have let my tank cycle and have had my water tested and approved from the local marine store. Right now im running an emperor 400 filter.

I have already put a couple new fish in, a Yellow Tang and a Spotted Sweetlips to start, i did have a few damsels for the cycle period they are still alive, plan on taking them back for in store credit for bigger fish. I want to add a Black Lion and Flame Angel soon, and i am lookin around to see what ele id like to add.


My questions are :


1. Should i, or do i need to have a Skimmer?

2. How many fish would you recommend in a 75gallon tank?

3. What would you recommend as something to help keep the sand clean, fish wise if there are any?


Those are the main things i have been wondering, i have asked the folks here but ive always been one to get as many opinions as possible to help me make my decisions.


Thanks!

[OrionGirl]

I wouldn't add the angel. Eventually, the lion or the sweetlips will be big enough to eat it, and then it will just be a pricy snack.

I think that if you add the lion, you will be fully stocked. You have to remember that you need to stock based on the adult size of the fish, and a sweetlips and a lion will both be substantial fish, with a heavy bio-load.

I would definitely add a skimmer. It will help you maintain good water quality, which will increase the general health of the tank, and help prevent the tang from being stressed.

What needs cleaning off of the sand? There really aren't too many fish that will clean up the sand, and you should cut back feeding if you're having a lot of food go uneaten. Look into a large hermit crab--it will be able to tolerate the attentions of the sweetlips, and will help clean up. The other great detrivore would be some bristle worms. They're fantastic cleaners, and will help keep the sand bed stirred up as well.

[Noon]

My sand has spots in it, algae looking it spreads over the sand if i dont clean it out. Although i think my problem from algae was because i wasnt informed until oh about the 7th week that i shouldnt leave the light on alot, =/.

[OrionGirl]

You should make sure that you're getting enough water movement on the sand. This will help keep the algae growth down. It's actually fairly normal for a new tank to suffer an algae bloom. Usually, it takes over the tank, then dies off over the course of a few weeks. The photo period makes a difference, but usually that isn't what causes an algae bloom. A combination of too many nutrients in the water, high silicates (usually from tap water) and phosphates (once more, usually from tap water, or from certain chemicals like pH up) can cause problems as well.

Once your tank has matured and stabillized, there are a few choices for substrate fish, such as scooter blennies, gurnards, and some gobies and jaw fish. However, I'd really wait until the tank is stable before adding anything else. Maybe even cut back on feeding--it's really hard to underfeed, but over feeding is incredibly easy.

GL!