10g saltwater tank!

[jf228]

Hi,
 
      I'm am planning on starting a 10g mini saltwater aquarium. I've seen many smaller saltwater tanks with about 3 to 4 small fish. I heard that I could use a freshwater filter for this size, but what I want to know is what do I need besides the water and filter?

                Please help! Thanx!

 

[dattack]

Get about 10-15 lbs of live rock for biofiltration.  Remove the biomedia on your power filter and only use it for circulation.  The biomedia will act as nitrate factory.  Also get a small powerhead for increase circulation and be sure to do 10% water change every 1-2 weeks.  If you don't do water changes, you will need a small skimmer.
You could only hold a couple of 2-3" fishes in that tank, otherwise more than that and you might have major problems.

 

[jf228]

What filter should I get? What substrate? Where do I put the filter media? Sorry for so many questions that are probally dumb to you? First time.

 

[dattack]

It it's a nano, then any type of sand will do.  You can get some silica sand at Home Depot for $4 for a 50 lb bag.  I would only use an inch of it because a 10 gallon is already pretty small.

Use no filter media because your live rock will do the biological filtration for you.  That's actually the best way to cycle a new tank.  Just put in the live rock and wait a couple of weeks instead of using fish.

So here is what you need.
1.  Sand (any cheap sand that will just make a ground cover).
2.  Live rock
3.  Power filter without media
4.  Small powerhead for water movement.
5.  Lighting.
6.  Do weekly or biweekly water changes.  If you can't do this, then by a skimmer however a skimmer can cost a lot of money.

 

[jf228]

Is a 15watt bulb ok for the light?

 

[dattack]

[quote author=jf228 link=board=saltwater&num=1017625773&start=0#4 date=03/31/02 at 18:42:18]
Is a 15watt bulb ok for the light?
[/quote]

If it's a fish only system, yes it will be enough.  If you want coral, probably not.

 

[jf228]

ya it's gonna be fish only. How much sand do i need to put? What filter do you recommend? What type of live rock? Again, I am sorry for all the questions.

 

[jf228]

and what fish? can i put true percula clowns?

 

[dattack]

Yes, those true perculas are nice.  I don't know much about perculas because I think you are supposed to get one large one and one small one.  If they are the same size, they will kill each other.  If one is larger, he will be the dominant one and become male.  And the smaller one will become female.

You can put as much sand as you want but since it's only a 10 gallon, too much sand will take up too much space.  

GEt any cheap HOB filter.  Remember these filters are only for circulation and doesn't filter anything.  The live rock does all the biological filtration.  If you don't have live rock, then you are going to need a skimmer to take away waste.  So I suggest you get some live rock.  It might be even cheaper to buy rocks online if your LFS is too expensive.  I paid 2-4$/lb here while some stores can charge up to $10/lb.  Most online stores sell them for $3-$5/lb plus shipping.

 

[jf228]

How many fish do you think I could put? I know for saltwater it's an inch of fish per 5g, is that true? Can you give me some neat fish that I can put?

 

[jf228]

Do I need a pump and heater to? I live in miami

 

[colesea]

You live in Miami? Shards I'm jealous!

Wow, if you live in Miami, you can probably go to a local beach or canal and do a local water tank. They you wouldn't have to mess with all the equipment, and you could snorkle and catch your own fish that way. That's why I used to do when I lived in the Keys. Made having a saltwater tank very easy. I'd grab a bucket of water from the channel in the back yard, throw on my gear, and there was this channel maker about a half hour swim from shore where all sorts of critters would collect about the base. Little baby quarter sized tangs were my favorte keep. Water changes and collecting live rock was easier too.

I would still reccommend a heater to keep temperatures stable, even Miami can have some "cold" nights.  You'll just have to adjust the thermostat on the heater so as not to boil the tank on a hot day. If the day is extreamly hot, you'd probably need to pull the heater altogether. While you're doing a fishless cycle with the liverock, what you could do is monitor the temperature for a week, three times a day (morning/afternoon/night). Write it down. If the temp moves more than 2oF over a 24hr period, you'll probably need a heater to stablize it. I never used a heater when I lived in the Keys, but most of the fish I had were all Caribbean wild caught/released, and used to the environmental changes of the local. If you're doing Pacific fish (ie percula clowns) you might have to adjust your tank to accomodate them.

And airstones and airpumps are also another good way to help with circulation and making sure the temperature is the same throughout the volume of the tank.
~~Colesea

 

[jf228]

Should I put some cleaning fish or shrimps ect? If so, which?

 

[jf228]

dattack, are you sure that a 15watt bulb is okay for this marine tank? It's f/o.

 

[jf228]

Can you give a name of a good power filter and power head? For the power head, I need a pump right? Just asking, because I don't wanna have things wrong and kill the fish or have everything wrong. Thanx for the help.

 

[jf228]

dattack? plz respond

 

[dattack]

A small aquaclear or penguin powerfilter for $12 and a small powerhead (maxijets) for another $10.

If it's a fish only system, you can keep any lighting you want because fishes don't need light for growth.

Pretty cheap at www.bigalsonline.com  or www.thatpetplace.com

 

[jf228]

what type of live rock? Isn't there more than 1

 

[dattack]

Any type you want!  Fiji is the cheapest.

 

[eseow]

As for buying "Fiji" Rock in Miami, I'm pretty sure its not "Fiji" rock, but florida rock. I live In Ft. Lauderdale, and was secretly told by a local wholesaler that most of our LFS's  are selling "phony receipt" Fiji rock. Anyway, as for filters, you could also buy a small canister filter such as a Fluval, I think BigAl'sOnline has them on sale pretty cheap compared to LFS. I think its 40 bucks for a 104 model. You could tee off your output into two lines at opposing corners to get current moving in your tank. As for heaters, I do recommend them. My 20 & 25 gallon tanks do need them, but mainly to keep the tanks temperature from bouncing up and down. Depending on how cool you keep the room, they won't get very cold. My home is kept at about 75 degs, and with all the equipment running, they never go below 77 degs. As for my 6 gallon Eclipse tank, there is no heater, and just with 11-12 hours of light will not drop below 81 DEGREES! It may go to 79 at night, but thats it. So if you keep cool water fish, I do recommend that you set it up, get everthing running & then watch what your temperature is running at. It most likely won't be very cool. My friend's friend has to run a chiller on his 200 gallon reef tank here in Miami. There is also a difference in tanks too. I would recommend a glass tank, which I'm pretty sure you will be running. Glass is more heat conductive, so it will tend to cool down better with a cool room. Acrylic is more insulative, so if its heated by the equipment, it won't cool off to room temperature as quickly and start to build up heat. This is one of the things I've noticed since I getting ready to start on a new small salt water tank. *crazysmiley*