Some LFS advice I want to run by you guys/gals

AnemicOak · 12-09-2004, 09:26 PM

Hi all it's me, the pest, again.

At the start of this week I bought some crabs for my 15H setup. The advice given at the time was to add the crabs, watch the tank readings, and if they were doing ok at the end of the week to go ahead and add something else. I don't want to rush things if that's to fast though.

It was recommended I add some Zoo's or some other softy. I was advised to get all of the corals in the tank & then add fish.

What do folks think of this advice? I do plan to add some softies & maybe some LPS to this setup, but don't really want to add it all first. Any reason to add corals first? Seems to me a lot of folks add fish first.

I'm wanting to keep a pair of Perc's or Ocellaris in this setup. That would be it fish wise.

I actually think the LFS guy knows his stuff (I've seen him mentioned here as a good guy), but wanted other opinions.

Here are the specs & parameters of the tank...
15H tank
Regent 5-15 powerfilter (no sponge, currently running carbon)
MaxiJet 600
Corafile 96w PC's
20 lbs. LR
20 lbs. Sand
5 Cortez Hermit Crabs
1 Cerith Snail (I think)
1 ??? Snail

Ammonia = 0
Nitrites = 0
Nitrates = 5
KH/Alk = 9.3 dKH
pH = 8-8.2

I appreciate any advice.

AnemicOak · 12-09-2004, 10:17 PM

Here are pics with my new lights on...

geshields · 12-09-2004, 10:24 PM

I have always added fish first then corals....

Looks like you have the right parameters...and tank is looking good.

No skimmer? Why are you running carbon?

Greg

clownfishcrazy · 12-09-2004, 10:26 PM

Greg I don't have a skimmer for my 20H, are you going to make mini recirculating skimmers?

geshields · 12-09-2004, 10:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by clownfishcrazy

Greg I don't have a skimmer for my 20H, are you going to make mini recirculating skimmers?

I believe in overskimming. A 12"D 48"T 4 pump recirculating skimmer should work nicely on your 20G. You only have to empty it 1X/year...and that is your yearly water change....hehe

AnemicOak · 12-09-2004, 11:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geshields

No skimmer? Why are you running carbon?

Nope, no skimmer. Don't know how I could make one work on this tank the way I have it set up. I'd be open to suggestions if they're quiet. It's on my computer desk in my bedroom.

Why carbon? Rich (Twins Guy) has been helping me figure some things out & he recommended it. Why not run it?

JnS · 12-09-2004, 11:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geshields

I have always added fish first then corals....

dito

Twins Guy · 12-10-2004, 09:46 AM

hey brian-
been way busy lately and never got a chance to respond to your pm...

i have always added fish to my tanks first. i'm not sure what the logic is in adding the corals first-maybe that you then won't select a fish that eats them? zoos are pretty hardy but i see no reason to fully stock the tank with corals then add fish.

in lieu of a skimmer greg-the real trick is finding an appropriate skimmer for a tank this size-i suggested running a lil carbon to pull out some of that extra organic crap and "polish" the water a bit. frequent water changes should keep trace elements up and crap down so i don't see a problem with carbon. why do you ask?

how do you like the light? once you get some algae growing in there might be time for a few more snails. otherwise things look good! get that calcium thing figured out?
tg

AnemicOak · 12-10-2004, 09:55 AM

Hey Rich,

The light is great, brighter than I thought it would be. Haven't figured the Ca thing out really. Randy, the chemistry dude on RC, told me he wouldn't worry about it as long as I can maintain Alk.

I discovered what I think is a tiny baby snail last night. It's crawling around on the glass & looks like a snail except it's only about 4mm long. Watched one of the crabs switch shell too, that was cool. I'm addicted to watching the tank already with almost nothing in it.

FastFish720 · 12-10-2004, 10:31 AM

I am doing the same some fish, then all my corals, then some more fish, then more corals.

David Grigor · 12-10-2004, 11:02 AM

I don't think it matters fish or corals first as long as you just add a little at a time......Generally add at least 1 fish up front just to have something to look at.

AnemicOak · 12-10-2004, 09:21 PM

Fish it is. I got Mysis & Prime to feed, but I think I might have fed too much. Is it normal for the fish to pick some food out of the water & a bunch to fall to the sand bed? When I turn the pumps back on there is a food storm from all the food that fell to the sand bed & rocks. The fish then seems to be chasing food through the water. I guess I'm unsure how much to feed. I keep this food frozen, not refrigerated, right? Should I get some type of flake food too?

The crabs are going to town on food on the bottom. Should I just trust them to take care of it or should I try & suck some of it out of the tank? Anyone know where I can get a 2 foot baster?

I assume Jns is the guy to see for corals? I'm not going to add anything else for a while, but I did notice SF's coral selection didn't seem all that great. The Xenia looked nice, but not sure about paying $50 for some.

Twins Guy · 12-10-2004, 10:03 PM

what type of fish did you get? and how much would you say you fed? like a whole cube? for reference my fish (2 percs and an orchid dottyback) and anemones (a bunch) are pigs and a feeding of frozen (maybe every other day, every third if they're naughty) is about 1 cube total. my fishES can take down about 1/3 of a cube-ish maybe sometimes. it is best to thaw the food in a small plastic (never soaped) container/dixie cup in a small amount of water, vitamins or dry-whatever but you're not gonna want to add it all at once. i add a small amount-let the guys chow all that down. give them a lil more-wait for it too to disappear in their bellies. basically they eat til they can't close their mouths. while they're busy i target feed chunks to the anemones. then you know how much extra food i add including for the cleanup crew? NONE! they'll get theirs-they'll get plenty to eat one way or another. you don't want to add any more food/nutrients to the tank than you need to. i let as little food reach the bottom of my tank as possible-zero is ideal.

in my years in the hobby i have found that overfeeding is the #1 mistake made-and it can have some serious consequences. i probably wouldn't sweat it this time-unless there are chunks sitting around that are easily accessed and removed. test your water a couple times over the weekend and be ready with a 20% w/c if the ammonia or trites creep up.

PS when i give them spirulina flakes (i dunk them just under the water or they get swept into my filters/overflows) or flake whatever the theory holds-zero food reaches the bottom...
tg

AnemicOak · 12-10-2004, 10:10 PM

LOL, all the extra food seems to have settled in one spot. It looks like a hermit crab drive thru right now. Three of them are sitting in this little pile of food just chowing.

I got Ocellaris (sorry, I know the pic isn't great, still figuring things out)...

I kinda wanted Perc's, but they didn't have any at SF. They had some Black Ocellaris that were cool, but I wasn't going to spend $120 for a pair.

I fed a little piece of Mysis & about 2/3rds cube of Prime. Probably a little more than I should have.

geshields · 12-10-2004, 10:42 PM

Way too much food for them....