1st salt tank!!!! my name is Garrett, HI!

[Irishman]

Garrett did you still want me to come by? I'm in Breck now and will be leaving Friday

 

[rjl45]

Here's 2 great posts that are worth your time. 1st is discussing various substrates.
[video]http://www.reef2reef.com/index.php?threads/72528/[/video]
The other is probably the best guide to aqua-scaping I have seen. He describes how to approach it from an artistic perspective and helps guide you to creating an incredible look for your aquarium.
http://www.reef2reef.com/index.php?threads/97209/

 

[legendracer79]

So little update on the tank, still having a massive algea problem, i phsically removed all the algea from the live rocks, did a good vacumming of the sand and scrubbed all my component, with in 2 days the algea is back growning strong, im waiting for my 2 little fishies phosban reactor to get here to help, i also removed my t5 light for now till i get the correct bulbs for it, tomorrow depending on how much snow we get i plan on headed down to elite reef, im looking at picking up a dwarf flame angel and a blue hippo tang, and some other hard goods for the tank. Yes i know those fish will out grow this tank, i am planning on upgrading to a larger tank with in the year, pending my future home purchase. Im hoping the additions and changes to the tank will solve this algea problem.

 

[Irishman]

I would suggest adding more peaceful fish first. Your blue hippo will claim your whole tank and will terrorize any fish you add after him

 

[legendracer79]

Im looking for fish that eat algea pretty regularly hence the hippo tang and flame angel, what peaceful fish eat algea on the regular? That and i really want those fish lol.

 

[SkyShark]

Lawnmower Benny. I wouldn't add the hippo or flame.

 

[legendracer79]

And to be a lil more specific i have green hair algea and green slime algea

 

[neil82]

I would steer clear of those fish for now. Even a fish that does like to graze algae won't make a dent if you are dealing with an outbreak. Do you have any clean up crew in there?

 

[legendracer79]

Yes, emerald crab, 3 large blue legged hermits, 7-9 snails, 4-5 small blue legged hermits, if i got to elite reef tomorrow i might pick up some more cleaning crew

 

[neil82]

That's a good cleanup crew. Any fish in there currently? It might be easier to get the algae in check without the fish. Adding fish food and then fish waste into the equation will just help fuel the algae. I think you are on the right track with cutting the t5s until you get the new bulbs. Adding the reactor and running gfo will help too.

 

[legendracer79]

There are only 3 very small fish in the tank currently, 1 common clown1.5", 2 firefish 2.5" and 3", they are fed very lightly small pinch of food 1 time a day, and they usually eat all the food i put in. So i know there is no exact rule on how many fish can go in a tank, cause there are alot a variables that go into it but what is a safe rule or thumb?. Cause my wish list for fish is hippo tang, flame angel, dwarf fu manchu lion, yellowheaded sleeper goby, 2 black ice snowflake clowns, and the 3 lil guys in the tank alrdy. I know that whole list in this small 30g tank is prolly way to much, and like i said before i do plan to upgrade to a larger tank this year some time and the turn this 30g into a quarentine tank once i have all the peices, just looking for a route to pick the correct # of fish and still have a good variety.

 

[neil82]

You are right, no exact rule on how many fish to keep. It's going to depend on the temperament of the fish, how territorial and aggressive etc. Also much depends on the bioload your system can support. I have seen a general rule of 1 inch of fish per 5 gallons.

 

[Texco]

UV sterilizer for excess nutrients, install, sit back, watch fish swim in crystal clear water

+1 to letting the tank really stabilize and mature before adding more fish