Is 29g too small for reef and fish?

Doug Wright · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 1

Hi this is my first post and I must say that I am new to fish-keeping. I read
books and crawl the web before I made the commitment to go with a marine
tank. After this research I finally bought the biggest setup I could afford.
I know it's not much, but I hope to upgrade in a year if all goes well. Here
is what I have...
29-gallon Eclipse Show Glass aquarium, Eclipse 3 Hood, submersible aquarium
heater, digital thermometer (link to the tank setup below)
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=6&pCatId=9018
Even though this is small, the LFS (learned the acronym for this group) said
that I could put together a very nice setup. I got 2 bags of live sand and
10lbs ornamental rock and 30lbs of live rock. I dropped 2 snails and 10
hermit crabs in to work the rock while the tank cycled. I opted to not put
any fish in to cycle and let the live rock drive the show. Well, just 10
days later salility held at 1.023, ph at 8.2, ammonia was at 0, nitrites
were under .2 (test kit has that as lowest color), and nitrates were 10. I
added 2 perculas and waited for my inexperience to catch up with me and for
ammonia and nitrites to go to 900,000ppm. 3 days later the stats are the
same with the exception of my nitrates which are now at 15. I went back to
the LFS and picked up an orange star and a sand sifting star and 2 turbo
snails. Everything seems to be on track, just taking so much less time that
i thought.
My goal (which was blessed by the LFS) is as follows...
2 percula clowns (which are in there and doing great)
some kind of anemone to love them
regal tang
reef safe wrasse
shrimp
flame scallop
corals
several more inverts.
Now the question part.
After continued reading in the last few weeks as well as posts from this
group I wonder if my goals are too lofty for the cheaper equipment that I
was forced to start off with. Does this seem like too many fish for a reef
tank of this size? is the eclipse floresent light powerfull enought for
this? Do I need a protein skimmer? It is suggested but not required and my
LFS says no. He is suggesting that I put phoshorus strips over the
mechanical filter. Is this OK? Do I need to punt and do a FOWLR (another
acronym I learned for you all)? Even If I do that, I wouldn't be able to put
that many more fish in such a small tank. I want to enjoy this new hobby and
upgrade to a 200g as soon as the wallet allows. I desire grandure but want
to be prudent and not over do it. Please share some experiences. I'll give
up the 2 stars if I have to abandon the reef tank plan.

Archived from group: rec>aquaria>marine>misc

wolfhedd · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 60

sounds like you need a low range nitrate tester, mine testes(lol) from
10-100 in high range, and 1-10 in low range, if you get a 10 in the high
range, you NEED to test in lower range to see actual.
now are you sure that is 15 and not 150ppm? im assuming your tester reads
between 10 and 20? if so, thats kinda high, but not for a new tank.
wolfhedd

"Doug Wright" wrote in message@cache7.usenetserver.com...
>
>
> Hi this is my first post and I must say that I am new to fish-keeping. I
read
> books and crawl the web before I made the commitment to go with a marine
> tank. After this research I finally bought the biggest setup I could
afford.
> I know it's not much, but I hope to upgrade in a year if all goes well.
Here
> is what I have...
> 29-gallon Eclipse Show Glass aquarium, Eclipse 3 Hood, submersible
aquarium
> heater, digital thermometer (link to the tank setup below)
>
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=6&pCatId=9018
> Even though this is small, the LFS (learned the acronym for this group)
said
> that I could put together a very nice setup. I got 2 bags of live sand and
> 10lbs ornamental rock and 30lbs of live rock. I dropped 2 snails and 10
> hermit crabs in to work the rock while the tank cycled. I opted to not put
> any fish in to cycle and let the live rock drive the show. Well, just 10
> days later salility held at 1.023, ph at 8.2, ammonia was at 0, nitrites
> were under .2 (test kit has that as lowest color), and nitrates were 10. I
> added 2 perculas and waited for my inexperience to catch up with me and
for
> ammonia and nitrites to go to 900,000ppm. 3 days later the stats are the
> same with the exception of my nitrates which are now at 15. I went back to
> the LFS and picked up an orange star and a sand sifting star and 2 turbo
> snails. Everything seems to be on track, just taking so much less time
that
> i thought.
> My goal (which was blessed by the LFS) is as follows...
> 2 percula clowns (which are in there and doing great)
> some kind of anemone to love them
> regal tang
> reef safe wrasse
> shrimp
> flame scallop
> corals
> several more inverts.
> Now the question part.
> After continued reading in the last few weeks as well as posts from this
> group I wonder if my goals are too lofty for the cheaper equipment that I
> was forced to start off with. Does this seem like too many fish for a reef
> tank of this size? is the eclipse floresent light powerfull enought for
> this? Do I need a protein skimmer? It is suggested but not required and my
> LFS says no. He is suggesting that I put phoshorus strips over the
> mechanical filter. Is this OK? Do I need to punt and do a FOWLR (another
> acronym I learned for you all)? Even If I do that, I wouldn't be able to
put
> that many more fish in such a small tank. I want to enjoy this new hobby
and
> upgrade to a 200g as soon as the wallet allows. I desire grandure but want
> to be prudent and not over do it. Please share some experiences. I'll give
> up the 2 stars if I have to abandon the reef tank plan.
>
>

wolfhedd · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 60

NO, not to small for reef, but i hope you get experience about good water
conditions quick, and would not add any fish that needed feeding yet or if
at all(ok i guess 2 perculas would set it jsut right). for now i would add
only stuff like scooter blenny and whatever you can get that doesnt eat much
brine shrimp and stuff. try just a blenny, and hermit. in my tank, i added
no snails, when i cycled they appeared, by the hundreds and hundreds, now
its down to about 500-1000 pre-eraserhead sized snails that are invisible
for the most part because of their camouflage.

sounds like you need a low range nitrate tester, mine testes(lol) from
10-100 in high range, and 1-10 in low range, if you get a 10 in the high
range, you NEED to test in lower range to see actual.
now are you sure that is 15 and not 150ppm? im assuming your tester reads
between 10 and 20? if so, thats kinda high, but not for a new tank.
wolfhedd

"Doug Wright" wrote in message@cache7.usenetserver.com...
>
>
> Hi this is my first post and I must say that I am new to fish-keeping. I
read
> books and crawl the web before I made the commitment to go with a marine
> tank. After this research I finally bought the biggest setup I could
afford.
> I know it's not much, but I hope to upgrade in a year if all goes well.
Here
> is what I have...
> 29-gallon Eclipse Show Glass aquarium, Eclipse 3 Hood, submersible
aquarium
> heater, digital thermometer (link to the tank setup below)
>
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=6&pCatId=9018
> Even though this is small, the LFS (learned the acronym for this group)
said
> that I could put together a very nice setup. I got 2 bags of live sand and
> 10lbs ornamental rock and 30lbs of live rock. I dropped 2 snails and 10
> hermit crabs in to work the rock while the tank cycled. I opted to not put
> any fish in to cycle and let the live rock drive the show. Well, just 10
> days later salility held at 1.023, ph at 8.2, ammonia was at 0, nitrites
> were under .2 (test kit has that as lowest color), and nitrates were 10. I
> added 2 perculas and waited for my inexperience to catch up with me and
for
> ammonia and nitrites to go to 900,000ppm. 3 days later the stats are the
> same with the exception of my nitrates which are now at 15. I went back to
> the LFS and picked up an orange star and a sand sifting star and 2 turbo
> snails. Everything seems to be on track, just taking so much less time
that
> i thought.
> My goal (which was blessed by the LFS) is as follows...
> 2 percula clowns (which are in there and doing great)
> some kind of anemone to love them
> regal tang
> reef safe wrasse
> shrimp
> flame scallop
> corals
> several more inverts.
> Now the question part.
> After continued reading in the last few weeks as well as posts from this
> group I wonder if my goals are too lofty for the cheaper equipment that I
> was forced to start off with. Does this seem like too many fish for a reef
> tank of this size? is the eclipse floresent light powerfull enought for
> this? Do I need a protein skimmer? It is suggested but not required and my
> LFS says no. He is suggesting that I put phoshorus strips over the
> mechanical filter. Is this OK? Do I need to punt and do a FOWLR (another
> acronym I learned for you all)? Even If I do that, I wouldn't be able to
put
> that many more fish in such a small tank. I want to enjoy this new hobby
and
> upgrade to a 200g as soon as the wallet allows. I desire grandure but want
> to be prudent and not over do it. Please share some experiences. I'll give
> up the 2 stars if I have to abandon the reef tank plan.
>
>

willis stanley · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 10

In article ,
lone6wolfpak@hotmail.com says...
> NO, not to small for reef, but i hope you get experience about good water
> conditions quick, and would not add any fish that needed feeding yet or if
> at all(ok i guess 2 perculas would set it jsut right). for now i would add
> only stuff like scooter blenny and whatever you can get that doesnt eat much
> brine shrimp and stuff. try just a blenny, and hermit. in my tank, i added
> no snails, when i cycled they appeared, by the hundreds and hundreds, now
> its down to about 500-1000 pre-eraserhead sized snails that are invisible
> for the most part because of their camouflage.
>
>
> sounds like you need a low range nitrate tester, mine testes(lol) from
> 10-100 in high range, and 1-10 in low range, if you get a 10 in the high
> range, you NEED to test in lower range to see actual.
> now are you sure that is 15 and not 150ppm? im assuming your tester reads
> between 10 and 20? if so, thats kinda high, but not for a new tank.
> wolfhedd
>
> "Doug Wright" wrote in message
> @cache7.usenetserver.com...
> >
> >
> > Hi this is my first post and I must say that I am new to fish-keeping. I
> read
> > books and crawl the web before I made the commitment to go with a marine
> > tank. After this research I finally bought the biggest setup I could
> afford.
> > I know it's not much, but I hope to upgrade in a year if all goes well.
> Here
> > is what I have...
> > 29-gallon Eclipse Show Glass aquarium, Eclipse 3 Hood, submersible
> aquarium
> > heater, digital thermometer (link to the tank setup below)
> >
> http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=6&pCatId=9018
> > Even though this is small, the LFS (learned the acronym for this group)
> said
> > that I could put together a very nice setup. I got 2 bags of live sand and
> > 10lbs ornamental rock and 30lbs of live rock. I dropped 2 snails and 10
> > hermit crabs in to work the rock while the tank cycled. I opted to not put
> > any fish in to cycle and let the live rock drive the show. Well, just 10
> > days later salility held at 1.023, ph at 8.2, ammonia was at 0, nitrites
> > were under .2 (test kit has that as lowest color), and nitrates were 10. I
> > added 2 perculas and waited for my inexperience to catch up with me and
> for
> > ammonia and nitrites to go to 900,000ppm. 3 days later the stats are the
> > same with the exception of my nitrates which are now at 15. I went back to
> > the LFS and picked up an orange star and a sand sifting star and 2 turbo
> > snails. Everything seems to be on track, just taking so much less time
> that
> > i thought.
Yep, a 29gal reef is possible. Way too small for a tang, but there are
plenty of reef safe small fish you could add (though with two clowns,
you've probably only got room for 1 more) I've got a 29 w/ about 40lbs
of live rock, HOB refugium with macro algae, CPR bakpak skimmer, 6 line
wrasse (would probably work well in your tank), flame hawk, algae
blenny, misc. snails & crabs, serpent star, asst. soft corals and
130watts of 50/50 PC light. Circulation is driven by a Mag3 running in
a closed loop with a SCWD (though I think this is underpowered). If I
had it to do over, I'd probably set up in a place that would let me put
a proper sized sump/refugium beneath the tank and perhaps use a 175watt
MH pendant.
The bigest pain I've found in working with a reef this small is that you
have to be religious about monitoring water chemistry and making
adjustments promptly. That and algae takes hold SO quickly....

Dragon Slayer · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 440

that is an awful lot of fish in a 29 gallon setup.

kc

Adira · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 44

willis stanley wrote:

> In article ,
> lone6wolfpak@hotmail.com says...
>> NO, not to small for reef, but i hope you get experience about good
>> water conditions quick, and would not add any fish that needed
>> feeding yet or if at all(ok i guess 2 perculas would set it jsut
>> right). for now i would add only stuff like scooter blenny and
>> whatever you can get that doesnt eat much brine shrimp and stuff.
>> try just a blenny, and hermit. in my tank, i added no snails, when i
>> cycled they appeared, by the hundreds and hundreds, now its down to
>> about 500-1000 pre-eraserhead sized snails that are invisible for the
>> most part because of their camouflage.
>>
>>
>> sounds like you need a low range nitrate tester, mine testes(lol)
>> from 10-100 in high range, and 1-10 in low range, if you get a 10 in
>> the high range, you NEED to test in lower range to see actual.
>> now are you sure that is 15 and not 150ppm? im assuming your tester
>> reads between 10 and 20? if so, thats kinda high, but not for a new
>> tank. wolfhedd
>>
>> "Doug Wright" wrote in message
>> @cache7.usenetserver.com...
>> >
>> >
>> > Hi this is my first post and I must say that I am new to
>> > fish-keeping. I
>> read
>> > books and crawl the web before I made the commitment to go with a
>> > marine tank. After this research I finally bought the biggest setup
>> > I could
>> afford.
>> > I know it's not much, but I hope to upgrade in a year if all goes
>> > well.
>> Here
>> > is what I have...
>> > 29-gallon Eclipse Show Glass aquarium, Eclipse 3 Hood, submersible
>> aquarium
>> > heater, digital thermometer (link to the tank setup below)
>> >
>> http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=6
&pCatId
>> =9018
>> > Even though this is small, the LFS (learned the acronym for this
>> > group)
>> said
>> > that I could put together a very nice setup. I got 2 bags of live
>> > sand and 10lbs ornamental rock and 30lbs of live rock. I dropped 2
>> > snails and 10 hermit crabs in to work the rock while the tank
>> > cycled. I opted to not put any fish in to cycle and let the live
>> > rock drive the show. Well, just 10 days later salility held at
>> > 1.023, ph at 8.2, ammonia was at 0, nitrites were under .2 (test
>> > kit has that as lowest color), and nitrates were 10. I added 2
>> > perculas and waited for my inexperience to catch up with me and
>> for
>> > ammonia and nitrites to go to 900,000ppm. 3 days later the stats
>> > are the same with the exception of my nitrates which are now at 15.
>> > I went back to the LFS and picked up an orange star and a sand
>> > sifting star and 2 turbo snails. Everything seems to be on track,
>> > just taking so much less time
>> that
>> > i thought.
> Yep, a 29gal reef is possible. Way too small for a tang, but there
> are plenty of reef safe small fish you could add (though with two
> clowns, you've probably only got room for 1 more) I've got a 29 w/
> about 40lbs of live rock, HOB refugium with macro algae, CPR bakpak
> skimmer, 6 line wrasse (would probably work well in your tank), flame
> hawk, algae blenny, misc. snails & crabs, serpent star, asst. soft
> corals and 130watts of 50/50 PC light. Circulation is driven by a
> Mag3 running in a closed loop with a SCWD (though I think this is
> underpowered). If I had it to do over, I'd probably set up in a place
> that would let me put a proper sized sump/refugium beneath the tank
> and perhaps use a 175watt MH pendant.
> The bigest pain I've found in working with a reef this small is that
> you have to be religious about monitoring water chemistry and making
> adjustments promptly. That and algae takes hold SO quickly....
>

I have almost the same setup in my 29 gallon, but I am only using the
live rock and a seaclone (modified to work better) protein skimmer, but
I don't have corals. I have a false lemon peel angel, 4 red stripe
hermits, a yellow-tailed blue damsel, and 2 neon gobies. and 7 turbo
snails. I plan to eventually add a royal gramma, and a midas blenny.

--
Remember, wherever you go, there you are.

NanoReef · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 1

In article , Dragon Slayer wrote:
> that is an awful lot of fish in a 29 gallon setup.

Agreed. I think that tank is full already.

You probably could double the number of snails and hermits though.
1 hermit per gallon, 1 snail per 2 gallon is not unheard of.

Adira · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 44

NanoReef wrote:

> In article , Dragon Slayer wrote:
>> that is an awful lot of fish in a 29 gallon setup.
>
> Agreed. I think that tank is full already.
>
> You probably could double the number of snails and hermits though.
> 1 hermit per gallon, 1 snail per 2 gallon is not unheard of.
>

The hermits are very large, about the size of a quarter. If I can catch
the damsel he will go into another tank I have...........but he's mighty
quick.

--
Remember, wherever you go, there you are.

user · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 17

i had a 10 gal reef tank, everything went well with one fish, lots of live
rock, soft corals, mushrooms, several turbo snails and a couple hemits. the
tank was succesful with the soft corals proliferating in the tank, along
with healthy calcerous algae. then i upgraded.
but as long as you can maintain the water quality any size tank can be used.

"Doug Wright" wrote in message@cache7.usenetserver.com...
>
>
> Hi this is my first post and I must say that I am new to fish-keeping. I
read
> books and crawl the web before I made the commitment to go with a marine
> tank. After this research I finally bought the biggest setup I could
afford.
> I know it's not much, but I hope to upgrade in a year if all goes well.
Here
> is what I have...
> 29-gallon Eclipse Show Glass aquarium, Eclipse 3 Hood, submersible
aquarium
> heater, digital thermometer (link to the tank setup below)
>
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=6&pCatId=9018
> Even though this is small, the LFS (learned the acronym for this group)
said
> that I could put together a very nice setup. I got 2 bags of live sand and
> 10lbs ornamental rock and 30lbs of live rock. I dropped 2 snails and 10
> hermit crabs in to work the rock while the tank cycled. I opted to not put
> any fish in to cycle and let the live rock drive the show. Well, just 10
> days later salility held at 1.023, ph at 8.2, ammonia was at 0, nitrites
> were under .2 (test kit has that as lowest color), and nitrates were 10. I
> added 2 perculas and waited for my inexperience to catch up with me and
for
> ammonia and nitrites to go to 900,000ppm. 3 days later the stats are the
> same with the exception of my nitrates which are now at 15. I went back to
> the LFS and picked up an orange star and a sand sifting star and 2 turbo
> snails. Everything seems to be on track, just taking so much less time
that
> i thought.
> My goal (which was blessed by the LFS) is as follows...
> 2 percula clowns (which are in there and doing great)
> some kind of anemone to love them
> regal tang
> reef safe wrasse
> shrimp
> flame scallop
> corals
> several more inverts.
> Now the question part.
> After continued reading in the last few weeks as well as posts from this
> group I wonder if my goals are too lofty for the cheaper equipment that I
> was forced to start off with. Does this seem like too many fish for a reef
> tank of this size? is the eclipse floresent light powerfull enought for
> this? Do I need a protein skimmer? It is suggested but not required and my
> LFS says no. He is suggesting that I put phoshorus strips over the
> mechanical filter. Is this OK? Do I need to punt and do a FOWLR (another
> acronym I learned for you all)? Even If I do that, I wouldn't be able to
put
> that many more fish in such a small tank. I want to enjoy this new hobby
and
> upgrade to a 200g as soon as the wallet allows. I desire grandure but want
> to be prudent and not over do it. Please share some experiences. I'll give
> up the 2 stars if I have to abandon the reef tank plan.
>
>

RedForeman ©® · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 339

I'm curious how you did your 10g, if you care to elaborate, I'll take every
bit of wisdom you can pass on, either in a new thread or a personal note by
email... you can send it to me
trx250rider@hotmail.com

Thanks
"...." wrote in message$Lj6.123@bignews3.bellsouth.net...
> i had a 10 gal reef tank, everything went well with one fish, lots of live
> rock, soft corals, mushrooms, several turbo snails and a couple hemits.
the
> tank was succesful with the soft corals proliferating in the tank, along
> with healthy calcerous algae. then i upgraded.
> but as long as you can maintain the water quality any size tank can be
used.
>
> "Doug Wright" wrote in message
> @cache7.usenetserver.com...
> >
> >
> > Hi this is my first post and I must say that I am new to fish-keeping. I
> read
> > books and crawl the web before I made the commitment to go with a marine
> > tank. After this research I finally bought the biggest setup I could
> afford.
> > I know it's not much, but I hope to upgrade in a year if all goes well.
> Here
> > is what I have...
> > 29-gallon Eclipse Show Glass aquarium, Eclipse 3 Hood, submersible
> aquarium
> > heater, digital thermometer (link to the tank setup below)
> >
>
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=6&pCatId=9018
> > Even though this is small, the LFS (learned the acronym for this group)
> said
> > that I could put together a very nice setup. I got 2 bags of live sand
and
> > 10lbs ornamental rock and 30lbs of live rock. I dropped 2 snails and 10
> > hermit crabs in to work the rock while the tank cycled. I opted to not
put
> > any fish in to cycle and let the live rock drive the show. Well, just 10
> > days later salility held at 1.023, ph at 8.2, ammonia was at 0, nitrites
> > were under .2 (test kit has that as lowest color), and nitrates were 10.
I
> > added 2 perculas and waited for my inexperience to catch up with me and
> for
> > ammonia and nitrites to go to 900,000ppm. 3 days later the stats are the
> > same with the exception of my nitrates which are now at 15. I went back
to
> > the LFS and picked up an orange star and a sand sifting star and 2 turbo
> > snails. Everything seems to be on track, just taking so much less time
> that
> > i thought.
> > My goal (which was blessed by the LFS) is as follows...
> > 2 percula clowns (which are in there and doing great)
> > some kind of anemone to love them
> > regal tang
> > reef safe wrasse
> > shrimp
> > flame scallop
> > corals
> > several more inverts.
> > Now the question part.
> > After continued reading in the last few weeks as well as posts from this
> > group I wonder if my goals are too lofty for the cheaper equipment that
I
> > was forced to start off with. Does this seem like too many fish for a
reef
> > tank of this size? is the eclipse floresent light powerfull enought for
> > this? Do I need a protein skimmer? It is suggested but not required and
my
> > LFS says no. He is suggesting that I put phoshorus strips over the
> > mechanical filter. Is this OK? Do I need to punt and do a FOWLR (another
> > acronym I learned for you all)? Even If I do that, I wouldn't be able to
> put
> > that many more fish in such a small tank. I want to enjoy this new hobby
> and
> > upgrade to a 200g as soon as the wallet allows. I desire grandure but
want
> > to be prudent and not over do it. Please share some experiences. I'll
give
> > up the 2 stars if I have to abandon the reef tank plan.
> >
> >
>
>

rtk · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 21

Here's what I've done in my 29 gallons:
http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/e/x/exk7/SaltwaterStuff/SW5.html

I kinda went overboard with snails and crabs. Now I worry about their
not getting enough algae to eat. The glass is completely clean, which I
was not hoping for. I only have four fish and that is one more than I
intended. My will power failed when I saw a mandarin.

Ruth Kazez

Adira wrote:

> NanoReef wrote:
>
>
>>In article , Dragon Slayer wrote:
>>
>>>that is an awful lot of fish in a 29 gallon setup.
>>
>>Agreed. I think that tank is full already.
>>
>>You probably could double the number of snails and hermits though.
>>1 hermit per gallon, 1 snail per 2 gallon is not unheard of.
>>
>
>
> The hermits are very large, about the size of a quarter. If I can catch
> the damsel he will go into another tank I have...........but he's mighty
> quick.
>

Dragon Slayer · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 440

you can check out nano-reef.com they used to have lots of info on the 10g
and under sized tanks.

kc

"RedForeman ©®" wrote in message@corp.supernews.com...
> I'm curious how you did your 10g, if you care to elaborate, I'll take
every
> bit of wisdom you can pass on, either in a new thread or a personal note
by
> email... you can send it to me
> trx250rider@hotmail.com
>
> Thanks
> "...." wrote in message
> $Lj6.123@bignews3.bellsouth.net...
> > i had a 10 gal reef tank, everything went well with one fish, lots of
live
> > rock, soft corals, mushrooms, several turbo snails and a couple hemits.
> the
> > tank was succesful with the soft corals proliferating in the tank, along
> > with healthy calcerous algae. then i upgraded.
> > but as long as you can maintain the water quality any size tank can be
> used.
> >
> > "Doug Wright" wrote in message
> > @cache7.usenetserver.com...
> > >
> > >
> > > Hi this is my first post and I must say that I am new to fish-keeping.
I
> > read
> > > books and crawl the web before I made the commitment to go with a
marine
> > > tank. After this research I finally bought the biggest setup I could
> > afford.
> > > I know it's not much, but I hope to upgrade in a year if all goes
well.
> > Here
> > > is what I have...
> > > 29-gallon Eclipse Show Glass aquarium, Eclipse 3 Hood, submersible
> > aquarium
> > > heater, digital thermometer (link to the tank setup below)
> > >
> >
>
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=6&pCatId=9018
> > > Even though this is small, the LFS (learned the acronym for this
group)
> > said
> > > that I could put together a very nice setup. I got 2 bags of live sand
> and
> > > 10lbs ornamental rock and 30lbs of live rock. I dropped 2 snails and
10
> > > hermit crabs in to work the rock while the tank cycled. I opted to not
> put
> > > any fish in to cycle and let the live rock drive the show. Well, just
10
> > > days later salility held at 1.023, ph at 8.2, ammonia was at 0,
nitrites
> > > were under .2 (test kit has that as lowest color), and nitrates were
10.
> I
> > > added 2 perculas and waited for my inexperience to catch up with me
and
> > for
> > > ammonia and nitrites to go to 900,000ppm. 3 days later the stats are
the
> > > same with the exception of my nitrates which are now at 15. I went
back
> to
> > > the LFS and picked up an orange star and a sand sifting star and 2
turbo
> > > snails. Everything seems to be on track, just taking so much less time
> > that
> > > i thought.
> > > My goal (which was blessed by the LFS) is as follows...
> > > 2 percula clowns (which are in there and doing great)
> > > some kind of anemone to love them
> > > regal tang
> > > reef safe wrasse
> > > shrimp
> > > flame scallop
> > > corals
> > > several more inverts.
> > > Now the question part.
> > > After continued reading in the last few weeks as well as posts from
this
> > > group I wonder if my goals are too lofty for the cheaper equipment
that
> I
> > > was forced to start off with. Does this seem like too many fish for a
> reef
> > > tank of this size? is the eclipse floresent light powerfull enought
for
> > > this? Do I need a protein skimmer? It is suggested but not required
and
> my
> > > LFS says no. He is suggesting that I put phoshorus strips over the
> > > mechanical filter. Is this OK? Do I need to punt and do a FOWLR
(another
> > > acronym I learned for you all)? Even If I do that, I wouldn't be able
to
> > put
> > > that many more fish in such a small tank. I want to enjoy this new
hobby
> > and
> > > upgrade to a 200g as soon as the wallet allows. I desire grandure but
> want
> > > to be prudent and not over do it. Please share some experiences. I'll
> give
> > > up the 2 stars if I have to abandon the reef tank plan.
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
>
>

Adira · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 44

rtk wrote:

> Here's what I've done in my 29 gallons:
> http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/e/x/exk7/SaltwaterStuff/SW5.html
>
> I kinda went overboard with snails and crabs. Now I worry about their
> not getting enough algae to eat. The glass is completely clean, which
> I was not hoping for. I only have four fish and that is one more than
> I intended. My will power failed when I saw a mandarin.
>
> Ruth Kazez
>
> Adira wrote:
>
>> NanoReef wrote:
>>
>>
>>>In article , Dragon Slayer wrote:
>>>
>>>>that is an awful lot of fish in a 29 gallon setup.
>>>
>>>Agreed. I think that tank is full already.
>>>
>>>You probably could double the number of snails and hermits though.
>>>1 hermit per gallon, 1 snail per 2 gallon is not unheard of.
>>>
>>
>>
>> The hermits are very large, about the size of a quarter. If I can
>> catch the damsel he will go into another tank I have...........but
>> he's mighty quick.
>>
>
>

Those are pretty...............when I get a bigger tank I want one too.

--
Remember, wherever you go, there you are.

willis stanley · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 10

In article ,
edavisnospam@midsouth.rr.com says...
> rtk wrote:
>
> > Here's what I've done in my 29 gallons:
> > http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/e/x/exk7/SaltwaterStuff/SW5.html
> >
> > I kinda went overboard with snails and crabs. Now I worry about their
> > not getting enough algae to eat. The glass is completely clean, which
> > I was not hoping for. I only have four fish and that is one more than
> > I intended. My will power failed when I saw a mandarin.
> >
> > Ruth Kazez
> >
> > Adira wrote:
> >
> >> NanoReef wrote:
> >>
> >>
> >>>In article , Dragon Slayer wrote:
> >>>
> >>>>that is an awful lot of fish in a 29 gallon setup.
> >>>
> >>>Agreed. I think that tank is full already.
> >>>
> >>>You probably could double the number of snails and hermits though.
> >>>1 hermit per gallon, 1 snail per 2 gallon is not unheard of.
> >>>
> >>
> >>
> >> The hermits are very large, about the size of a quarter. If I can
> >> catch the damsel he will go into another tank I have...........but
> >> he's mighty quick.
> >>
> >
> >
>
> Those are pretty...............when I get a bigger tank I want one too.
>
>

Got a 29 w about 2" live sand, 40lbs live rock assorted softies, 1
sixline wrasse, 1 flame hawk, 1 algae blenny, misc. crabs (includes 1
mythrax) & snails, a peppermint shrimp that continues to surprise me be
living and a red serpentstar. Don't know why I seem to loose snails and
crabs with a disturbing frequency--maybe fratricide amongst the crabs?
There's an orange sponge that isn't surviving the hair algae breakout as
easily as I'd hoped. There's also a HOB refugium 12" from acryliccity
via ebay with mucho macro algae and pods. Skimmed with a cpr bak pak
with bio bale removed. Sometimes run with an aquaclear 150 power filter
to help clean up detritus and use the phosphate sponge that is part of
the fight against hair algae (ultimately hope to shift that function
over to the empty chamber in the bak pak) Water movement is a closed
loop run through a SCWD. I think that whilst I'm at the fish limit for
this size tank, more snails and soft corals could take up some of the
empty spaces. With limited lighting 165w PC, can't get too exotic.
Pluse it's already reached the "hey cool, what's that?" stage with
various strange worms, anenomies, and other critters popping up out of
nowhere.
If I had advice to give, it would be to establish a larger more
elaborate sump/refugium system possibly in the cabinet below the tank.
Working with such small water volume, the extra means a lot in terms of
stability and a refugium can provide nifty amounts of nutrient export
via its macroalgae.

Dragon Slayer · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 440

what do you mean by "hurt the tank"??

my 29 has close to 60x total turnover in the tank, then another 15 on the
skimmer in the sump. and the current in the tank isn't all you'd think it
would be at that amount.

kc

"chris" wrote in message%nb.10431$X22.2482@newsread2.news.atl.earthlink.net...
> How much could you turn this water over and not hurt the tank
>
> "willis stanley" wrote in message
> @news.starpower.net...
> > In article ,
> > edavisnospam@midsouth.rr.com says...
> > > rtk wrote:
> > >
> > > > Here's what I've done in my 29 gallons:
> > > > http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/e/x/exk7/SaltwaterStuff/SW5.html
> > > >
> > > > I kinda went overboard with snails and crabs. Now I worry about
their
> > > > not getting enough algae to eat. The glass is completely clean,
which
> > > > I was not hoping for. I only have four fish and that is one more
than
> > > > I intended. My will power failed when I saw a mandarin.
> > > >
> > > > Ruth Kazez
> > > >
> > > > Adira wrote:
> > > >
> > > >> NanoReef wrote:
> > > >>
> > > >>
> > > >>>In article , Dragon Slayer wrote:
> > > >>>
> > > >>>>that is an awful lot of fish in a 29 gallon setup.
> > > >>>
> > > >>>Agreed. I think that tank is full already.
> > > >>>
> > > >>>You probably could double the number of snails and hermits though.
> > > >>>1 hermit per gallon, 1 snail per 2 gallon is not unheard of.
> > > >>>
> > > >>
> > > >>
> > > >> The hermits are very large, about the size of a quarter. If I can
> > > >> catch the damsel he will go into another tank I have...........but
> > > >> he's mighty quick.
> > > >>
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> > > Those are pretty...............when I get a bigger tank I want one
too.
> > >
> > >
> >
> > Got a 29 w about 2" live sand, 40lbs live rock assorted softies, 1
> > sixline wrasse, 1 flame hawk, 1 algae blenny, misc. crabs (includes 1
> > mythrax) & snails, a peppermint shrimp that continues to surprise me be
> > living and a red serpentstar. Don't know why I seem to loose snails and
> > crabs with a disturbing frequency--maybe fratricide amongst the crabs?
> > There's an orange sponge that isn't surviving the hair algae breakout as
> > easily as I'd hoped. There's also a HOB refugium 12" from acryliccity
> > via ebay with mucho macro algae and pods. Skimmed with a cpr bak pak
> > with bio bale removed. Sometimes run with an aquaclear 150 power filter
> > to help clean up detritus and use the phosphate sponge that is part of
> > the fight against hair algae (ultimately hope to shift that function
> > over to the empty chamber in the bak pak) Water movement is a closed
> > loop run through a SCWD. I think that whilst I'm at the fish limit for
> > this size tank, more snails and soft corals could take up some of the
> > empty spaces. With limited lighting 165w PC, can't get too exotic.
> > Pluse it's already reached the "hey cool, what's that?" stage with
> > various strange worms, anenomies, and other critters popping up out of
> > nowhere.
> > If I had advice to give, it would be to establish a larger more
> > elaborate sump/refugium system possibly in the cabinet below the tank.
> > Working with such small water volume, the extra means a lot in terms of
> > stability and a refugium can provide nifty amounts of nutrient export
> > via its macroalgae.
>
>