First Marine Tank

by **BurgerKing7704** » Mon Nov 24, 2008 9:24 pm

So, i have a 28 gallon Euro (bowfront) that is currently a community/ram tank. Its kinda boring and im really looking for a challenge! So i was looking into turining this into a marine tank.

I've been in the hobby for a little over a year, playing with SA/CA cichlids, community fish, African cichlids, and brackish water(short time). So im not fish retarded but i do have a lot to learn about saltwater before i put anything in this tank. I know that smaller tanks are harder to keep prestine water, so i plan on overfiltering like crazy.

So i'm wondering:

Can protein skimmers be used solo, or would i need to add another filter like a cannister? I read to have six times the tank volume in GPH, if this is true what should i get? Has anyone used a sSupreme Skilter Power filter? its like aHOB filter and a wet/dry mixed.

Howoften do you feed saltwater fish? I read every three days but I was wondering when you guys feed yours.

I've read up on the easier fish to keep so i'd probably start with some blue/green chromis or damsels.

BTW this tank will be a FOWLR to start, once i have a little more experience i'll add inverts and corals.

by **andre3983** » Mon Nov 24, 2008 9:35 pm

you should try a canister! lik a fluval 405, that should keep you good but i think you should ad it with the skimmer!

by **saltwaterpimp** » Mon Nov 24, 2008 9:57 pm

if you plan on corals/ inverts skip the damsels they are the devil....and use a skimmer, never used the one you stated but ther are some good hob skimmers out there...even some good diy skimmers on the net.

by **BurgerKing7704** » Mon Nov 24, 2008 10:39 pm

The Supreme skilter comes in two different models, the 250GPH one for like 50 bucks, and the 400GPH one for like 60. So i think im going to go with the big boy. I was thinking of Fluval, but for a better price I'm going to with the Supreme Skilter.

I was looking at some charts on water chemistry and was wondering how to get a few of these into the water, or if the water already contains these.

Like: Calcium, magnesium, and strontium. How do you get these into the water?

As i love the look of inverts and corals, what would be a good substitute for damsels? Chromis are in the same family as damsels, so do they kill corals/inverts as well as damsels?

by **Deltasigpony3648** » Mon Nov 24, 2008 10:48 pm

well if you want to move on to a reef keep in mind when buying fish that they should be reef safe

by **saltwaterpimp** » Mon Nov 24, 2008 11:12 pm

"Like: Calcium, magnesium, and strontium. How do you get these into the water? "
Water Changes...until you learn..

chromis are a good reef fish, damsels will harm other lowtemperd fish,try dartfish,blennies,suedochromis,some wrass

by **BurgerKing7704** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 12:41 am

I've been researching fish since I made my first post pretty much. I've found quite a few that I liked, are relatively peaceful, stay 3" max, and are easy to care for. I want a good balance of color, so i picked out:
Green Chromis (Chromis Viridis)
Red Firefish (Nemateleotris Magnifica)
Purple Firefish (Nemateleotris Decora)
Six Line Wrasse (Pseudochilinus Hexataenia)
Blue an Gold Blenny (Enchelyurus Flavipes)

What do you think about the fish above? Are they easy to care for? What kind of numbers can I stock in my 28g? I'd like at least a few different species listed above as i know i cant have all of them.

Also: can two types of firefish be kept together? I'm used to african cichlids where you usually cant keep two species of the same genus together.

Thanks.

by **Deltasigpony3648** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 1:01 am

i just got the blue green chromis is great in a school, red firefish is cool. six line wrasse is my favorite fish, golbys are fun i love my diamond back

by **BurgerKing7704** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 1:05 am

I kinda want the Wrasse to be my center piece. The one's i've seen in real life are absolutely stunning, pictures on the web just dont cut it.

by **Snowboss4492** » Tue Nov 25, 2008 1:14 am

one of each of those is getting pretty full in a 28 ...........don't forget live rock takes up quit a bit of space....................

i have no expierience with a skilter but have talked to a couple people who have them, they said they would never buy another one.........it's a mid range filter with a low end skimmer - - - - that just what i've heard

a couple fire would be nice in a 28 with good rock and some verts to clean, maybe a goby or blenny after things get established

as far as feeding goes.............sta away from flakes even though they are cheap, pellets are a little better but natural food {mysis, plankton etc} is the best, feed only what they can eat in a minute or so, after that you'll get the hang of what they need.........my clowns are pigs and will eat as often as i will feed them, so i feed a few pellets each day and a mysis cube once a week

welcome............you wanted a challenge, lol........i think you found one bud......but oh so rewarding

Boss

First Marine Tank

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