Aussie Starting Up

[Maximus]

Hi All.
New to this forum.
My name is James & I am about to venture into keeping a Fish Only setup.

I have read alot of things about how to setup tanks & cycling & so on.
There seems to be alot of conflicting advice.
Use live rock, dont use live rock. Get a host anemone & dont get one.
At the moment my head is spinning.

The missus & I have decided on a 55gal rectangular tank.
This is pretty affordable & is probally a good place to start.

If I am going a FO setup should I use a Protein Skimmer.

Cheers

[steve1s]

Personally I would recommend the skimmer as they are great for additional filtration. In an FO or FOWLR set up, they are not critical though.

Live rock is a plus and would suggest you at least entertain the idea. Increasing biological filtration is always a good idea. What kind of filtration where you planning on?

Having an anemone is not the greatest idea and your clown fish do not need a host. They can be just as happy without it if not more. In all cases, I find that a mated pair will be quite happy and just as enjoyable without the anemone. Not to mention the extreme care and sometimes high costs of keeping them. They are increadibley sensative animals and would not fair well in this kind of set up.

Good luck in your set up and keep us updated... :D

http://members.shaw.ca/steve-s/welcome.gif To ReerLounge.com

Cheers
Steve

[Maximus]

Steve1s,

I will start off straight away with the skimmer as it seems a good place to spend the money now, and not try to come up with it later.

Not sure about the filtration.

The tank I am looking at has a Glass Divider about 4 inches from the back face & has everything (Skimmer, Filters ect) located in there.
Not sure is you have seen a tank like it before.
It is made by a LFS here in Melbourne called COBURG AQUARIUM.
For the price it is the best way to go I think.

How many power heads are required for good current in a 55gal tank.

A Sea Anemone is out aswell. I think I would find it too hard to get everything right for it to survive & dont want to kill it either.

I will keep posting here until I get my tank.

Doing renovations at home so it shoul dbe about 3 months away.

Cheers & thanks for your help.

[steve1s]

Sounds like you have things in hand for now. I have not seen this kind of tank before, but I have heard of them. Someone I know built a plywood tank like that.

Recommending the powerheads would really depend on the filtration system you use. Keep in mind that with the possible filter return pump, you are looking at 400-600 GPH total for all water moving equipment. Make sure you account for head preassure and any media used, which will lower the flow of any given pumps rating.... Good water flow should be all around the tank as well as rippling the surface water.

Any chance of posting a pic of the tank?

Cheers
Steve

[Maximus]

I am off down the fish shop this weekend.
I want to find out where he gets his fish from & where to by tank raised fish.

I will try to get pics if I can.

Cheers

[Maximus]

Sorry, couldn't get any pics of the tank.

Had a huge discussion with one of the guys down as the shop.
How often SHOULD I do a water change & what percentage of water.

Cheers

[joey182]

I have a 55 gallon and I do gallons every 2 weeks. So you dont do such a big change all at once. If you like sea anenomes you will need strong lighting and a good current. It is not impossible. I would get 3 occelaris clowns and a 3 green chromiss for a 55. Alot of people get a cacnister filter ad a protein skimmer. I have seen those kind of tanks and I like them just make sure it has a protein skimmerand some type of bilogical filtration. If it does not have bio filtration look into live rock live rock is a must if you get a sea anemone.

[Maximus]

Joey,

Exactly how many gallons do you change each week.
The sea Anemones are out all together as they will be to much of a hassle & with what I have read/heard they a quite hard to KEEP ALIVE for a long time, so it is not worth it.

I was hoping for a few more fish for the tank than only 6.
What do you have in your tank.

Also, the filtration in the tank I was reffering to has BioBalls.

I may be getting live rock to start off with but are still unsure.

More reading & waiting I think.

Cheers

[steve1s]

The sea Anemones are out all together as they will be to much of a hassle & with what I have read/heard they a quite hard to KEEP ALIVE for a long time, so it is not worth it.
http://members.shaw.ca/steve-s/thumbsup.gif Excellent choice...


Before changing any amount of water I would step back and determine why you are changing it.

If for niitrate control, I would suggest looking at the current filtration and deciding if it is enough based on the bio load. In many cases, nitrates are more so caused by overstocking and/or over feeding than anything else. Many filtration systems today are touted as the cause when in most cases it's the reflection in the glass... ;)

If purely for trace element and water chemistry maintenance then you should be okay with 10% or less, of the actual water volume. It would really depend on animal load and what amounts are being pulled out or used. In large and sometimes smaller tanks, additives are usually the best method in high coral loaded tanks. You would need to suppliment the chemistry several times a week unless dosing on a drip method or reactor... Water changes in that case would become tiresome as well as overly disruptive to the tank inhabitants

Cheers
Steve.

[Maximus]

Thanks for that steve.

You have clarifies what is a comlex matter.
Wherever I go at the moment I get conflicting advice.
One guy told me that I HAVE TO change 30% of the water EACH WEEK.

I walked out straight away.

I am currently working on a stock list for the tank.
How many fish/Total Length Of Fish can I stock in the 55 gal tank.

What would be the best sort of CLEAN UP CREW for the tank if I am going fish only. If I want to include a Shrimp of some sort at a later date what do they require in the way of feeding & hiding.

Cheers & Thanks for the replies.

James

[steve1s]

If you are going to have decorative shrimps' I would recommend some rock in the tank for appropriate hiding spaces, preferabley porous and not dense rock. Lace rock would be the cheapest and accomlish the goal. Not enough to limit fish stocking, but just enough for the shrimp and astetics.

Depending on the fish types you choose there could be a few restrictions on inverts but for the most part here are some good choices....

Nassarius (http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=23&pCatId=1133) Which are great for detritus and the sand bed.
Nerite (http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=23&pCatId=1472) Which are especially good at film algaes..
Cerith (http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=23&pCatId=1159) Which will clean both the glass and the sand bed..
Bumblebees (http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=23&pCatId=565) Which love to clean up the uneaten food bits as well as detritus... looks cool too.
Margarita (http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=23&pCatId=569) Which are another excellent algae eater..

If you want to keep hermit crabs or aggressive fish I highly recommend Turbo Snails (http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=23&pCatId=571), they are one of the few snails that actually have a closable door that can defend them against attacks from crabs and fish when tipped.

The better choices for hermits are scarlet hermit (http://www.marinedepotlive.com/1173814.html) (make sure they have yellow eyestalks) and zebra hermits (http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=23&pCatId=613). Although with a decent amount and varieties of snails, hermits are not really necessary.

Cheers
Steve

[Maximus]

Steve Thanks for the reply on the Clean Up Crew.

I am also at the point where I am trying to work out what fish are compatible & so on.

So far the list goes like this & will have to cut it down a bit as I am not sure on excatly what I want yet.

- 2 Ocellaris or Percula clowns
- 1 Flame Angel
- 1 Blue Tang (Regal Tang)
- 1 Harlequin Tuskfish
- 2 Yellow Wrasse
- 1 Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp

can you tell me what will & wont go together & also how many fish I can keep safely in a 55 gal tank.

cheers

[steve1s]

If you want the wrasses, you may not have much success with decorative shrimp of anykind. You may have some success with a small yellow coris or banana as they may become accustom over time. You could also consider carpenter or flasher wrasses. It would still be somewhat risky but worth the chance...

I would steer clear of the tusk and the regal. They would not fair well in a smaller environment for long and would greatly limit available tank mates. The tusk can be extremely aggressive as it gets older.

For the clownes I would personally choose tank raised oscellaris. Much hardier and would fair much better in a captive system. Perc's are indeed much more colorful, but their success rate is much lower and they are more prone to health problems.

You may also want to consider skunk clowns. I have a mated pair and they are the least aggressive clown I have ever kept and just as interesting.

The angel would be a good choice, but try waiting until the tank is a bit more mature. Also make sure the flame is not cyanide caught. Many dwarf angels caught this way usually don't last more than a few months. The one I have is coming up on three years soon...

Your choices don't really have compatability issues, just size restrictions based on a 55g.

Cheers
Steve

[Maximus]

Thanks again for the reply.

The clowns will have to be Ocellaris or Percula's.
I have only ever seen one place that stocked tank raised clowns, not sure if there are any other places. Will look into it though.

Have another dilemma at the moment.

One of my mates had a tank at his place.
It has been sitting unused in his garage for about 2 years I think.
He has now decided to sell it for $800 (Australian Dollar)
It is 2 foot wide X 2 foot long X 3 foot high.
The tank has also been drilled in the base for the plumbing
The price includes all pumps, heaters, sump, BERLIN Skimmer & other stuff.

What problems could be associated with a tank like this.
I am not sure even if my arm would reach the bottom of the tank when it is full.

Are these appropriate for Fish Only Tanks or should I just stick to my initial plan.

Cheers

[Maximus]

Here are is an email I got from him.
Does it sound good or should I pass on it.

Tank size is in feet 2W x 2Lx 2.5H 10mm thick clear glass mdf cabinet
in clear coat (BTW lower cabinet will be brand new ½ done already in
steel frame)
2 EHIM 1020 pumps around $300 each brand new (i think this is the
number) pumps about 30 litres per minute each
1 pump for protein skimmer 1 for filter return.
2x1 foot sump tank with bio balls
tank overflow column in grey tinted glass filled with bio balls (spare
bio balls thrown in if you want them)

Berlin protein skimmer with overflow bottle. around $500 brand new

200W metal halide lamp (the bright one) with holder and transformer.

2 ft long blue moon fluro tube (blue light)

60 W 300mm long heater with thermostat (i think is 60W, more than
adequate to heat tank)

Any othe miscelaneous shit that goes with it ill replace the clamps and
pipes as well ok!
theres probably more stuff to go with it but i cant exactly remember
what

Oh yeah ill throw in 6 20 litre water drums as well.

[steve1s]

All that for about $550.00 USD, SWEET DEAL. Not a bad savings and a 75g would also reduce some of your restrictions as far as fish are concerned from the original 55g. You would be able to put a tang back on that fwish list.. 8) Probably a zebrasoma sp.

Have you tried bidding him back to see if he'll budge or is it a take it or leave it price?

The only real concern is to make sure any equipment with moving parts are not worn out and the tank itself shows no signs of stress or cracks.

If possible, ask if the tank can be plugged and then filled with fresh water for obvious leaks.

I would also ask why it's in the garage and not full of fish??

Cheers
Steve

EDIT* BTW a 60w heater will be no good for that size tank you will need a 200w.

§

[Maximus]

He hasn't got fish in it because they just had a baby & were about to move house & all the things combined made it hard to look after and he didn't want everything to die off because of neglect.

I will get him to fill it for me & will check all the pumps & stuff aswell.
The price is pretty firm as he doesn't want to give it away.
All up I ill save heaps so I really cant say no to the price.

He will also finish of the cabintet & give us a hand moving & setting it up which also helps out alot.

He had the tank for a while & I think he made a mistake in saying a 60W heater as it needs alot bigger to suit that size. Will confirm what size it is though.

I will keep you informed.

Cheers

James