Seeking Guidance/Advices (Very new to this hobby)

[orionnebular]

Hi everyone. Posted in FOWLR thread previously and realised this should be more appropriate here. Mods, please delete the other thread, sorry for inconvenience caused.

Hi everyone.

I am pretty new to this hobby (3 weeks) and found this website just days ago. Just managed to find some time to read some of the threads in detail and found out that i probably had done many wrong things right from the start though mostly are from advices from LFS.

Some details of my setup are as follow:

1) Wrong tank type(fresh water tank) 63 X 37 X 45cm (L X W X H, abt 100Litres) with overflow filter system and inbuilt light system with closed lid. I was told by LFS that the close lid with light system will increase the temperature of the tank and is not advisable. Currently, I had improvised and kept the lid half closed and with fan blowing at it whenever the lights are on. Temperature are usually 29-30 degree celsius.

2) Added a wavemaker to increase flow in the tank as advised by LFS due to overflow system.

3) 5kg of live rocks (cycled in LFS) added to my newly mixed saltwater on the second day after the filter is being run for 1 full day. Live rocks came with 3 tube/pipe worms as LFS called it (I saw the pics online calling it feather duster). Some life forms noticed during the "cycling" period like a small transparent shrimp and 2 centripedes like worms (bristleworms most likely). Gf said she saw a white crab before too.

4)Added coral chips in my filter system and used a filter material supposedly reducing nitrate/nitrite level.

5)On the 10th day, spoke to another LFS and he said that I could go ahead and buy fish as there's no point cycling my tank since it is started with cycled live rock. After reading, i believe what he meant is that i got no bio load in my tank hence pointless. Anyway, added two percula clownfish of similar size on that day. Added another 2 damsels(yellow belly), 2 turbo snails, 2 gobies and 1 boxer shrimp(impulse buy with no research) along the way. Good news is that till now all fishes are looking to do well except the 2 gobies that hides in one of the rock most of the time unless during feeding. The clowns always push against them when they comes out. There are also a little chasing here and there between the 2 clowns and 2 damsels.

6) Salinity is thus far stable at 1.022-1.026, temperature 29-30 degree celcisu as previous mentioned. change 10% water once a week. Wanted to get other kits to do the PH, ammonia, etc testing but LFS said not required.

[orionnebular]

Sorry about the lengthy description. Above are the description of my tank as of now. Below are some questions and restriction i have:

1) Due to space constraint, I do not intent to have skimmer and chiller if i have the choice to. I have spoken to the LFS and he said skimmer is good to have but not a must. True or not?

2) As mentioned earlier, LFS said there's no need for me to monitor other parameters, is that true? Currently, my tank will be FOWLR though gf wanted to add coral/anemonia to it. Without chiller, i do not want to kill them, especially the corals.

3) I read that Tangs need large swimming space and obviously my tank aint big enough. Saw some real juvenile Tangs in LFS and asked LFS if it is ok to keep in my tank. LFS said that if the tank is small, it will restrict their growth and grow slower but it's ok to keep. I have intention to upgrade my tank in future when my new house comes in 4-5 yrs time which is why i am starting something small and simple now first to get a hang of it. So the question is if it is advisable to keep Tang in my relatively small tank even if it is just juvenile Tangs.

Actually there are more questions in my head but i believe i need to do more reading first rather than being spoonfed. Will appreciate if someone can advise on my questions or any other things that i need to take note.

Left out one more item, currently only feeding pellets. Read about frozen food, nori and stuff in other threads as food source. Yet to find out where to get them or if they are suitable for my tank.

Another left out detail is that i had also add micro bacteria during the cycling period as advised by LFS. This shld pretty sum up the details of my tank.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks everyone.

Zack

[Solo77]

1. Skimmer not a must but good to have. True. If without skimmer, must chge water more often.

2. Still must monitor SG for basic. The rest, depends on wat u keep. For anemone, chiller might be required, gd lighting and regular feeding.

3. For tang, yes cos they grow fast.

4. Food, go to fish shop. Seaweed can buy fr daiso but those plain one.

[chiya]

Hi Zackt,

Welcome to the hobby..

Your tank sounds like the typical 2ft ones..

Let's look at your water chemistry first..

You mentioned that your salinity is 1.022-1.026, the fluctuation is probably due to evaporation.

Because the salinity fluctuates, you will be restricted in the livestock that you want.

It's a good choice to go fish only as fishes are not affected too adversely by fluctuating water parameters.

Secondly, your water temperature is 29-30 degrees.. This is actually not too advisable and I'm sure many of us will recommend that you either get a chiller or a fan to aid in cooling the water off. You will want to have your water temperature at 27-28 degrees max.. However, a fan will increase evaporation and change your salinity further, so do take note of that..

The live rock should probably be enough and coupled with your current filter system and frequent water changes, you should be able to keep your nitrates low.

Unfortunately, the fishes that you bought are almost the limit for a 2ft-er and if possible, try to resist the temptation to buy more.. A tang (whichever breed) is seriously not too suitable for a tank this size. They eat and poop a lot, so keeping up with the water quality will probably take a toll on you if you are serious about it.

A skimmer will be helpful, but most hang-on skimmers do not work very well (not to mention noisy). If possible, try to incorporate a sump and you can get a good 2nd hand in-sump skimmer (most brothers/sisters here will be able to recommend)

Anemone - I've been misinformed into getting an anemone when I first started with my 2ft and although it's still alive now, I have had a lot of issues with it.. Lighting, water quality and so on.. If you really want a host for your clownfishes, you can ask your LFS for a leather coral / hammer coral.. Clowns will host in them fairly readily.

Food - The usual pellets that you see being sold for marine fishes are very good.. Not too sure if I can mention brands here.. Or even get Henry's mix.. If you choose to get a tang (I'm guessing probably Hippo Tang), Nori can be bought from NTUC.. Just get those used for making handrolls, they are quite cheap and can feed for a long time..

Hope that helps!