new tank

[redreef]

any suggestions for equipment for a 29 gallon reef

[Geoff]

what would you like to put in it? is this your first tank? are you looking for ideas? i nice frogfish tank would be pretty cool. maybe even are sargassum tank.

G~

[ruhspolostar]

Your equipment will depend solely on the specimens

for example what type of corals you want will decide if you use bottom line flourescent lighting or metal hallides...

-tell us what u want

[redreef]

fish will be a yellow tang and a pink skunk anemone fish corals are bubbles green and blue clams

[redreef]

thanks for any help i have fish only tanks right now

[Reefdude5]

Nice to meet you Redreef, are you planning on keeping the tang through maturity, cause I think a 29 is too small for a tang, but if it is(lets see what some other people say) there're some really kool fish that will do just great in a 29! If your planning on keeping clams, especially "blue" ones which are most often Tridacna Maxima, then you will need some strong lights, although i'm clueless on exact wattage.

[ruhspolostar]

-If your going to keep clams and bubble coral (which are a stony coral) then you will need metal hallides, I just killed a bubble coral figurring that out-

- im an ideot

[Reefdude5]

Well, i dunno, maybe something really powerful, like 4 200+ watt VHOs. Wait... Are there such a thing?

[Geoff]

uh, ohh, you said the C word. they require very strong lighting. on a 29 you could prolly get away with a 175w MH, but a 250 would be better. the reflections off the glass will help a lot, that i why i think a 175 could be borderline.

i also agree about the tang being to big for a 29. what do you like about the tang. maybe we can help you pick a smaller fish.

G~

[Reefdude5]

Hey Geoff, Does that mean I'm screwed(did I say that! ) with a 120(24" tall) with 2 175watt, 296watt full spectrums, and 2 96watt Actintic!

[ruhspolostar]

do you have clams reefdude???

[reiple]

Bubble corals grow big and have stinger tentacles which can sweep and damage other corals in a small tank.
Yellow (in fact any) tang gets too big. swim space is an issue (not tank depth)
clams are very big creatures.
Unless you intend to migrate to a bigger tank as your specimens get big, these are not good choices. Try smaller crits like polyps, mushrooms, etc.

[JennM]

You do not *need* metal halide for a bubble coral. They do fine under compacts. You will need intense light and proper parameters for a clam - I'm still very much in the learning stage about clams, but I'd suggest not to try one until your system has matured. We lost a couple of clams early on in our commercial system, we waited a good long while to add them again and now they thrive and grow - I've become rather fond of some that we've had for several months now. I've got mine under a total of 1600 watts in a 110 g tank which is 12" deep, lights are about 12"-16" off the top.

Yellow tangs do get big. If you get a tiny specimen, it might be OK for a while but you MUST have an exit plan for it - either you get a larger tank, or be willing/able to trade it in so it can take a larger home.

Same applies for clams and bubble corals - I've got a bubble coral that started as big as a fist (or a bit smaller) a year and a half ago, and when it's feeling "happy" it's almost as big as a basketball now - it's the centerpiece of my 120.

Tonight I saw a video made by Dr. Bruce Carlson, and they showed Charles Delbeek and another staffer at the Waikiki Aquarium, weighing a giant clam at about 160 lbs - Dr. Carlson had collected the clam some 10 years before, when it fit in his hand I had major tank envy after watching that presentation... *sigh*

Jenn