My Wish List

[Blue-Wolf]

So I am getting my 120G Saltwater setup on May 1st, and have been figuring out what I Want to stock it with. Was hoping that some of the other more experienced Saltwater people could look over my list and see what they thought...

Tank is a 4 x 2 with 2 250 MH lights with actinic and lunars in it. about 4 inches of live sand, 120 lbs of live rock in tank, and about 30 in a 50G Refugium with 2 inches of live sand in it with 24 hour lighting on the refugium. Also, 2 Koralia 4's on a wavemaker, with protien skimmer, heater, and bubbler in sump for maintaining O2 levels.

Anyhow, here is the list...

40 Blue Knuckle Hermit Crabs

40 Nasser Snails

1 Coral banded shrimp

2 peppermint shrimp

2 Fire cleaner shrimp

1 Arrow crab

1 Magnificent anemonie

1 rice bubble coral

1 flowerpot coral

4 blue-green chromis

2 clarke's anemonie fish

2 yellowtail blue damsel fish

1 blue neon goby

1 purple firefish

1 strawberry dottyback

1 yellow sailfin tang

1 psychedelic mandarin dragonet

Any feedback or conflicts I have missed would be appreciated.

[rED O]

Hey Jason

I know nothing about salt, but to take care of that wish list all you need is a visa :w00t:

[Blue-Wolf]

Hey Jason

I know nothing about salt, but to take care of that wish list all you need is a visa :w00t:

ROFL, yeah, or insurance money to replace to what I lost in the flood.

[bignose]

Don't know everything but I know this:

40 Blue Knuckle Hermit Crabs - will kill snails

40 Nasser Snails

1 Coral banded shrimp

2 peppermint shrimp

2 Fire cleaner shrimp

1 Arrow crab

1 Magnificent anemonie - these get big, move and can sting other coral in it's path

1 rice bubble coral

1 flowerpot coral - Hard to care for, aggressive and short lifespan

4 blue-green chromis

2 clarke's anemonie fish

2 yellowtail blue damsel fish - aggressive

1 blue neon goby

1 purple firefish

1 strawberry dottyback

1 yellow sailfin tang

1 psychedelic mandarin dragonet - wait for your tank to mature for at least 6 months because these feed off pods

If someone else know better please update this. Oh and don't add all this at one time!!!

[Wingin' It]

Today I visited RED CORAL and he says, "Bad things happen Fast!" So SW tanks are supposed to be grown slowly apparently...It's a complete learning experience for me, and I don't even have a SW tank yet!

[2manytanks]

So I am getting my 120G Saltwater setup on May 1st, and have been figuring out what I Want to stock it with. Was hoping that some of the other more experienced Saltwater people could look over my list and see what they thought...

Tank is a 4 x 2 with 2 250 MH lights with actinic and lunars in it. about 4 inches of live sand, 120 lbs of live rock in tank, and about 30 in a 50G Refugium with 2 inches of live sand in it with 24 hour lighting on the refugium. Also, 2 Koralia 4's on a wavemaker, with protien skimmer, heater, and bubbler in sump for maintaining O2 levels.

Anyhow, here is the list...

40 Blue Knuckle Hermit Crabs

40 Nasser Snails

1 Coral banded shrimp

2 peppermint shrimp

2 Fire cleaner shrimp

1 Arrow crab

1 Magnificent anemonie

1 rice bubble coral

1 flowerpot coral

4 blue-green chromis

2 clarke's anemonie fish

2 yellowtail blue damsel fish

1 blue neon goby

1 purple firefish

1 strawberry dottyback

1 yellow sailfin tang

1 psychedelic mandarin dragonet

Any feedback or conflicts I have missed would be appreciated.

OK, first two items that jump to mind are - you don't need a bubbler in the sump - good water flow and the protein skimmer will take care of aerating the water. Also, if you're going to use a wavemaker I'd suggest staying away from the Koralia's. When you fire up the Koralia's the armature bounces around a bit before settling in to position - no problem if it's getting turned on and staying on, but horribly noisy and annoying (and probably hard on the pump) when it's constantly being cycled on and off. I've been playing around with spacers on the armature shaft to prevent it from bouncing out but discovered that if it isn't allowed that movement, it will, more often than not, wind up turning backwards and pushing the water the wrong direction. I'm going to hunt around on the internet to see if someone else has come up with a cure.

If you're going to use live sand you don't really need as much live rock - it's still a good idea, but it does use up real estate that you may find you want for swimming room for the fish.

I'm not up on hermit crabs but I know that many will eat coral, and even if they don't, many corals do not take kindly to the hermits crawling around on them.

Don't get a mandarin until you're tank has been up for 6 months to a year, you need to build up a good population of 'pods for them to eat.

Crabs and shrimp don't mix too well - shrimp are good food.

You may want to stay away from Damsel's, they're such mean little beasts that almost everyone of us who has had them has wound up looking for new homes for them. If you do get some, make sure they are the last fish in the tank, let the other fish have at least a few months to settle in and establish their territories and pecking order before you add the damsels.

If you're going for a sand substrate I would highly suggest a good clean-up crew for it. Some sand sifting stars and dragon gobies, maybe even sand dollars to keep it mixed up and clean.

Good luck.

Edited April 14, 2009 by 2manytanks

[Blue-Wolf]

Thanks for the information everyone. I will say I wasn't planning on adding everything all at once. Going to be about a year before I get to the end of the list.