Another new guy..... ;)

[jrock4411]

Hello Everyone!

I have never found a hobby that I (we) have as much enthusiasm for. My wife and I decided to invest in a 50g tank last week and found a great deal from someone selling an established tank with the following fish already in.....

Yellow Tang
Clownfish (Percula)
Zebra Damsel (Dascyllus)
Royal Gramma
Yellow Tailed Damsels (2)
Coral Banded Shrimp
Pink Tip Aneonome (Baby, 1)

Since then, we added....

Cleaner Shrimp
Green Saron Shrimp
Firefish Gobie (need another)
Brown Rock Worm w/ Featherdusters
Pink Tip Aneonome (Medium, 2)
Hermit Crabs

Anyone who wants to add a comment or suggestion on what would make a good addition, or if I'm doing anything I shouldn't wit the mix, would be appreciated. We are currently considering a purple lobster or dwarf lionfish. Also interested in eels.

Happy to be part of such a great forum!

J

 

[yote]

Pretty tank.
But it looks like you need more rock.1 to 2 lbs per gallon is the recommended and suggested.The rock is your main and best filtration.
Also watch those anemones.You've moved the tank,so the parameters are going to be unstable for a while,and anemones require mature stable conditions.
Keep in mind too,that you'll eventually have to decide to either upgrade to a bigger tank,or trade the tang.He'll eventually outgrow the 50.
OH and
Welcome to the site AND the hobby.Happy you decided to join us.

 

[Smitty]

Hello and welcome to the site...Yote has you covered.

 

[KidJ57]

My big advice straight out would be SLOW DOWN :shock:. It's cool that the tank was already set-up and all, but it already sounds pretty well packed for a 50g especially since you've already added stuff. Wait a few weeks (at least 3) to see how your latest additions are going to/already have affect(ed) your tank.

As for all the stuff you want to add: lobster, lionfish, and eels...DON'T :death:. Especially no to the lobster (will attack crabs and coral) and eels (not enough room, period, plus will eat, or at least try to eat a lot of stuff that's in there), and 95% sure that you shouldn't add the lionfish, but perhaps, if there was enough room now, you're gonna want to be able to transfer him to a bigger tank later or sell him back to your LFS.

Lastly, I don't know how long you've been in the hobby, so you may very well be more experienced than me, but I wouldn't have added the anemones so soon, especially after a move.

I'm not trying to act like I know a whole bunch, but I have made quite a few mistakes/learned some lessons in this hobby in the short time that I have been a participant. Just trying to help you avoid the mistakes I made.

With that, welcome to the site (the most PHENOMINAL SITE IN THE WORLD...for us fish tank geeks :mrgreen:)

 

[Bifferwine]

Hi and welcome! I actually agree with all the advice so far -- the eel and lionfish will not be compatible with the animals you already have. If you have your heart set on predators, you should set up a second tank for them, as they can't be kept in a setup with fish that they consider food (which is most of the fish you already have).

The lobster is a pretty animal, but is tricky to keep. Not to many people have had success keeping them alive, and they also tend to snack on your other livestock.

It looks like you also have a coral beauty angel in there too? Or am I seeing things?

 

[jrock4411]

Wow, this is great! Thanks sooo much for the feedback. From looking at other tanks, I figured more rock was in order. Any suggestions on what type to get and where is best to get it from. I don;t feel comfortable entirely with the advice from the LPS, but they do sell live rock for around $11/lb.

We already realize that a tank upgrade will have to happen as we are all the way into this and we have some "big tank" tastes. I'm already planning to save up for a 150G.

My dream fish is already an Achilles Tang, so a bigger tank will be in my future.

J

 

[jrock4411]

Oops, left the Coral Beauty off my list. Also have a small orange sea star.

J

 

[Bifferwine]

Since you already have live rock, to save money you should buy dry base rock. Then stack it and aquascape it how you like. Over time, the base rock will become live, colonized by your existing live rock. That's how most people do it. Base rock is much cheaper, usually a buck or two per pound.

Keep in mind that the general rule of thumb for number of fish per tank is around 1 fish for every 10 gallons. So in a 50 gallon tank, you are limited to around 5 fish. Saltwater fish are generally very territorial, so it's not only a water quality issue, but a fighting issue.

It seems like you have a lot of good ideas for a setup, so thinking about upgrading at some point in the future is a good idea.

 

[jrock4411]

Thanks for all of this great advice. One more question before I head back to our tank.... will the firefish gobie be OK solo? I just read they should be paired or grouped.

Is there a "for sale" section of the forum? I feel the need for at least researching pricing on a larger tank. J

 

[Ted]

According to " The Conscientious Marine Aquarist" "They may be kept in a small aggregation ( a few to a dozen) if in a large enough reef system (20 gallons per fish) all at once, and watched" Thats directly from the book. Other research I have done on them is if they arent a matted pair they will fight to the death. So since you have already added one, dont add another in my opion. I had puchased one when I first started and he died in 24 hours. My problem was I went to fast, tank was to new and it was a new fish to the lfs. So I screwed up the whole way around. :frustrat:

 

[jrock4411]

I apologize if this is posted somewhere else, but I'm wondering how much light I should give to my tank? I've been doing 10 hours off and 14 on. Should I be closer to 12 and 12?

Ted, thanks for the answer on the Firefish.

 

[Ted]

Ok Im such a fish geek. When im not at work im at home researching everything. As far as lighting goes most people seem to run it 12 hour cycle. However that depends on the type of lights and how much algae you have. With mh combos the mh part is on 10 hours with 1 hour before and 1 hour after just with the atinics. Kinda a dusk to dawn effect. You can run it however you feel is good for your tank. Kinda have to run it one way write down whats going on then a different way. Compare it do what works for you. Everyones tank is gonna be a little different based on lighting and tank size, placment factors. :D

 

[Bifferwine]

Most people run their lights for 8 to 12 hours a day. If you only have fish, and don't have corals (or have low-light corals like softies), you can run them even less, like 6 hours. I, personally, run my lights for 9 hours a day.

Think about how long the sun shines during the day. It's not natural to have full force light on a tank for longer than 12 hours, I think. In nature, there are cloudy days, and there are stormy days, and there are stretches where there's very little light for days at a time. So I think 8 to 12 hours a day is a good range to shoot for.

If you have algae problems, go even less.