newbie here

F

footballdude2k3

Reefing newb
hey everybody my names paul and im very new to the hobby, i do not have a set up right now, but hopefully very soon i will have a 12 gal nano, im reading as much as i can find and i want to read as much as possible and plan everything before i buy anything, right now im thinking about getting the nano with 2 clowns, and some coral, i know absolutely nothing about coral so i do not know what does well in a smaller tank. any help with anything that you guys think would help is greatly appreciated :)
 
your going to have to be way more specific if you want those kind of answers. otherwise this site is full of articles about set ups and stocking
 
Welcome to Living Reefs. There is a ton of information here and many helpful people. The key to saltwater reefing is PATIENCE! Two clowns are a good start, they are very hardy fish and seem to do well in not-so-perfect conditions.
Start off with your live sand & live rock.
Let it cycle in the tank (could take you several weeks).
Once your parameters have equalized (0 nitrites / 0 nitrates / 0 ammonia) you can add your small cleaner crew. Some snails and some crabs to help with algae. Your clowns can go in shortly after the inverts.
As far as corals, you may want to start with some easier zooanthids, mushrooms, polyps, etc. I have a couple LPS in the tank that are very forgiving. You may want to look at a torch coral, xenia, maybe a small brain. Just add slowly and keep an eye on your parameters.
Remember, the smaller the tank, the more you must watch it.

Good luck!
 
thanks for the help!! right now i am looking at either a 14 or 29 gal oceanic, just trying to figure the costs associated with maintainence between the 2 of them and looking at everything that i might have to upgrade along the way, i am thinking about 2 inch live sand base, at least the number of pounds as gallons for live rock, 2 clowns, a sea cucumber, prolly just snails for cleaners because i have heard a lot of horror stories as far as crabs go, and as much coral as i think my tank can hold. i am going to be very very patient, i want this to be as successful as possible, i understand that the cycle alone can take upwards of 3 months and then i have to qt the fish and coral for 6 weeks before adding them. but anything that sounds really basic to you i might not know so please share everything or as many resources as possible, i think that i am going to go to the book store this weekend to try and get some stuff to read :)
 
well it depends if ur using a QT for ariving fish yes cuz u need the bactria.but if ur medicaing no becuz u will kill every thing. so the answer to ur question is yes and maybe so sand and fake plants make them feel cozie.
 
Skip the sea cucumber. They are dangerous for small tanks because they bury themselves in the sand and if they die, they rot really badly and will crash your tank.

You don't need to quarantine fish and corals for 6 weeks. To prevent pests, you should dip your corals in iodine or freshwater, but it's pointless to quarantine corals. Fish on the other hand, can be quarantined, but usually quarantined animals are medicated, so you do not want to put live sand or rock in a quarantine tank. Go bare bottom, and use a piece of PVC for shelter.

Clowns are compatible with all types of corals.
 
You dont need any rock in the QT. Just use same water from DT to get all the necessary bacteria. Even if the purpose of the QT for new arriving fish, i would still use copper to eliminate the possibility of disease going into the DT. The fish will be ok is copper for a few weeks so having the fish in 10-14 days in copper is not harmful.
 
I like to run a foam filter in the display tank for a week before setting up a quarantine tank. I then use this for filtration in the quarantine tank. I remove it if medication is placed in tank. I do not use preventative medication on quarantined fish. I observe them only and if no problems appear in three weeks I introduce them to the display tank. I do put plastic flower pots and/or tubing in tank for hiding spots. Plus power head and heater. I use just room lighting. I do not quarantine coral for a new tanks initial stocking, however I quarantine later incoming corals. I do not dip an initial coral stocking or preventively dip later coral as I quarantine them before adding them to main tank with other corals. I quarantine new coral for three weeks in a quarantine tank with lighting at 50 percent of main tank lighting with same type and K value of light. I use heavy circulation and a skimmer in a separate sump for coral quarantine. Usually not a viable option for most reefers due to equipment costs. In general I avoid as many chemicals as I can. I do not even regularly use carbon or phosphate remover. I do regularly use Kalkwasser (daily in all make up water), and Selcon. The only trace elements I use are in the marine water mix and from the dissolving deep sand bed. I do adjust alkalinity or pH as needed. Most people do place their original stocking in their tanks without quarantine , but this is not recommended as the most common problems are parasites and an infected tank can take up to six weeks without fish present before all parasites die from a lack of a host. That is two or three imes as long as a normal new fish quarantine average.
 
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thanks for all the help guys, just a quick question, i do not want to go too big with my first tank, but i am hearing that nanos are a bad choice, what would you guys suggest?
 
iu would get a 29g biocube they have t.5 lighting,built in power heads, filter, heater. i think u have to buy a proteain skimmer speratly.you dont really need one tank that small.just have to do more water changes. the guy at LFS haves a display useing a 29g biocube. it looks real nice
 

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