A couple of easy questions

[PaoloPazzo]

Hi all, Im brand new here, and to SW in general. I am considering putting up a small SW aquarium in my bedroom this coming May (its now Mid-april-ish).
The tank will most probably be somewhere in the 10-20 gallon region. I believe this qualifies me as a NANO REEF.

Anyhoo, I've been reading about this for days now, and am ademant about starting up. Here are my questions I've got for y'all:

-Where does one find LS in CANADA? Is LS definetly needed?

-When do I add everything? The ingredients would be SALTWATER, LS, LR, PUMP, LIGHTING. In what sequence does this happen? I know all about cycling and stuff, and realise that any new item i add will most likely cause my tank to cycle. But when do I get to add individual things? Or do i simply add everything at once?

-Once i get my LS and LR going with the salt water (see previous question) and the thing has cycled (weeks later), do I need a skimmer? I was told on one of those ABOUT.com websites, that nanos could be run without skimmers by simply doing 10-20% water changes each week, and by having a pump used for water circulation, along with proper lighting and maybe a cleanup crew of sorts. Is this accurate?

-Lastly, presuming all of the above is accurate, and I can go ahead and start myself up as previously described, would I be able to add some clownfish? Like 2 or 3 of them at most.

Thank you all so much for taking the time to help me out!
I CANT WAIT TO GET STARTED!!!!
-Paolo

 

[Anonymous]

:mrgreen:

-Where does one find LS in CANADA? Is LS definetly needed?

Maybe some Canadians will chime in. Other than that, your best bet is to put in 'dead' sand and innoculate it with a cup or two of sand from some other local reefers tanks - or from an LFS. 'Dead' sand will also become 'live' sand over time if you also use live rock. LS is not necessary - some people go bare bottom, but thats a whole discussion on its own.

-When do I add everything? The ingredients would be SALTWATER, LS, LR, PUMP, LIGHTING. In what sequence does this happen? I know all about cycling and stuff, and realise that any new item i add will most likely cause my tank to cycle. But when do I get to add individual things? Or do i simply add everything at once?

Pump and water first. Sand and rock next. Light after. A simplified answer but a workable one I hope.

-Once i get my LS and LR going with the salt water (see previous question) and the thing has cycled (weeks later), do I need a skimmer? I was told on one of those ABOUT.com websites, that nanos could be run without skimmers by simply doing 10-20% water changes each week, and by having a pump used for water circulation, along with proper lighting and maybe a cleanup crew of sorts. Is this accurate?

There are many people who run without a skimmer, and the waterchanges are a good substitute. There is lots more to this question as well, but the short answer should help.

-Lastly, presuming all of the above is accurate, and I can go ahead and start myself up as previously described, would I be able to add some clownfish? Like 2 or 3 of them at most.

Testing the quality of your water will tell you when you can add livestock. You want your ammonia, nitrate, and nitrate to be zeroish and stable, as well as your ph, temp and salinity.

Thank you all so much for taking the time to help me out!
I CANT WAIT TO GET STARTED!!!!
-Paolo

Its what we are here for!
I gave you quickie answers because I don't know how much you have read, but if you need more detail let us know.

 

[PaoloPazzo]

ok, so I add the water, then wait how long? Also, is there a specific type of pump (filter like Freshwater Aquariums?), or anything that will circulate water will do?

 

[Anonymous]

Theres more to it than that.

I would go to this thread:

http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t ... eekly+book

And pick one of the books, one that sounds good to you, settle in and read it. I know it sounds silly, but reading one of those books will prepare you pretty well for this hobby, and it will also serve as a reference book. RDO is great, but a good book will learn ya quicker!
:mrgreen:

 

[Baianotang]

the ingredients are SALTWATER, LS what is LS live sushi?.
well Paolo try 3 things
Read read read ok, the bedroom is not the best place to put a SW( its quite noisy) 10-20 gallon In my opinion is not good for newbees but if you insist...its ok (i started like that but soon moved up to 350 gallon + (I dont like (hate) nanos (is the ocean small?-(sorry to the nanos guys))) 8) This is a great hobby I had freshwater for 5 years (it dosent come close) the number of species you can have in a small volumen is astounding :lol:.
well you do have to start. good luck and welcome to the hobby.
Skimmer is the heart of the sistem.

 

[ded08221]

i would seriously advice going slightly larger tank. the larger the tank the less errors have an impact on the livestock, and this also saves on your pocket in the longrun

 

[Ira]

Re setting up - use live rock(1.5 - 2 lbs/gal) and live sand. Use r/o or distilled water - Cycle the tank with it for 3-4 weeks then add clean up crew - then 4 or more weeks later start adding corals ( get adequate lighting i.e for a 20 gal high- light system for 20 high
This one... 24" ORBIT 2X65W SUNPAQ W/LUNAR & FAN
Or this one... Current USA Orbit Compact Fluorescent Light Fixture 24", 2x65W
Use a skimmer - best are aqua c remora or euro-reef
Salinity - 1.023-1.025. Use a refractometer.
Use salifert test kits. During cycling - watch ammonia and if too high - do water change. Later, monitor ph (a ph meter best) ; calcium. alk, nitrate; phosphate