Converting Back To Sw

[danb_1985]

I've just decided to convert back to SW with the tank in my signature. once been with marine FW no longer has the draw to me it once did. i've decided on a FOWLR and inverts tank (basically everythink except coral).

Going to have about 9-10 kilos of live rock in total is this enough?

stocking ideas are from the following list

fish
- black or orange clown(not sure which yet)
- sixline/pjama wrasse
- royal gramma
- firefish
- watchman goby(with pistol shrimp)
any comments and ideas from that on how many and which from the list?

inverts
- pistol shrimp(with watchman goby)
- blood/skunk cleaner shrimp
- boxing shrimp
- harlequin shrimp (can somebody answer the obvious feeding question of how much it costs to feed these)
- maldive/elegant starfish (obviously if i dont get harlequin shrimp)
- emerald crab
again any comments and ideas from that on how many and which from the list?

cuc
- 3-4 turbo snails
- 6 blue legged/blue knuckle hermit crabs
- 2 red legged hermit crabs

how does all that sound?

any comments welcome?

 

[youngfisher]

Make sure you get pictures and start a journal.

 

[danb_1985]

Make sure you get pictures and start a journal.

will do. no one bothered replyin last time i did it. dont know when i'll be starting this venture but prob august? want some questions answerin first

 

[xxBarneyxx]

9-10KG of LR should be about right. My comments below in bold

fish
- black or orange clown(not sure which yet)
- sixline/pjama wrasse
- royal gramma
- firefish
- watchman goby(with pistol shrimp)
any comments and ideas from that on how many and which from the list?

Tank is too small for all of these. I would say a firefish and pair of clowns would be fine. maybe a watchman goby/pistol shrimp combo but I have heard of pistol shrimp killing and eating other shrimp and smaller fish when they get bigger

inverts
- pistol shrimp(with watchman goby) See above, I have heard of these killing and eating shrimp and small fish
- blood/skunk cleaner shrimp would be fine, the skunk shrimps are more active and less shy then the blood shrimp
- boxing shrimp I wouldnt. espeically if you have other inverts
- harlequin shrimp (can somebody answer the obvious feeding question of how much it costs to feed these) very difficult to keep feed unless you can culture starfish yourself, wouldnt recommend
- maldive/elegant starfish (obviously if i dont get harlequin shrimp) would say definetly not
- emerald crab should be fine but personally I dont trust any crabs

I would go for something like:
Skunk cleaner shrimp
2 or 3 peppermint shrimp
couple of "sexy shrimp"
Maybe a pompom crab

cuc
- 3-4 turbo snails
- 6 blue legged/blue knuckle hermit crabs Personally I wouldnt recommend hermit crabs. They tend to just kill each other and the snails (even when you provide them with plenty of shells) and they dont actually do much. I would just go for snails.
- 2 red legged hermit crabs
I would go for something like 2-3 turbo snails, 2-3 cerith snails and a few nassarius snails. The turbos tend to stay on the glass, the ceriths take care of the rockwork and the nassarius barrow in the sand

 

[danb_1985]

thanks for the feedback.

i have kept hermits before and really enjoyed watching them go about their business so i would stick with these but will consider everything you said about the shrimps and fish stocking.

would like the idea of a pistol shrimp with goby as i enjoyed watching them in my lfs so i would have to keep an eye on it as it got older.

how about for fish-
- 1 clown
- 1 watchman goby
- 1 firefish
- 1 royal gramma


does anybody have any other comments about original post?


also are ther any corals that would be ok under a single t8 white bulb? eg chilli coral, mushrooms?

 

[Truck]

63 litres after displacement isnt enough for 4 fish! your looking at 2 maybe 3 at a push.
you may get a few mushrooms or feather dusters going under that light...might

if you want hermits go for red legs, they tend to behave better. pistol shrimp will probably kill the crabs and maybe a few snails, it would definitely kill other shrimp.

 

[danb_1985]

63 litres after displacement isnt enough for 4 fish! your looking at 2 maybe 3 at a push.
you may get a few mushrooms or feather dusters going under that light...might

if you want hermits go for red legs, they tend to behave better. pistol shrimp will probably kill the crabs and maybe a few snails, it would definitely kill other shrimp.

so what stocking would you suggest?

would chilli coral b ok as they are non photosynthesetic?

 

[Truck]

2 clowns and a fire fish OR gramma something like that.

A clown a firefish and a goby etc. you dont want anymore than 3 fish to begin with, there is very little room for error in a 70 litre tank.

dont know about the coral, do you have a scientific name?

 

[danb_1985]

erm yeah in my book it has... nephthyigorgia spp. ( not sure what spp. is short for )

 

[danb_1985]

are there anymore views of others? as some of this hobby is to do with opinions i like as many replies as possible ha

 

[Trod]

For your fish I would agree with Truck a Juvie clown pair and a purple firefish would be great.
I have 2 skunk shrimps and they are very active, always out and about.
I have never had a problem with my hermit crabs and I think they are funny to watch, especially when they are changing shells, very good to watch, none of mine have killed any snails, maybe I've been lucky.
I would go for some nassarius and cerith snails also a couple of turbo snails, they are good glass cleaners
Personally I would steer clear of the emerald crab, I have one that has caused me no end of problems, but again others have them with no problem, so it really depends on the individual.

Is this the coral you mean http/www.freshmarine.com/chili-coral.html if it is then I can't see a problem

 

[xxBarneyxx]

I would say no to the coral. As its non-photosynthtic you will have to be feeding it regularly, as such it would be very easy to overfeed and in a tank of that size you could quickly polute the water.

I doubt many corals will really do well under that light to be honest. If you want corals though then you can pick up cheap power compact units that would be fine for most soft corals.

 

[danb_1985]

Is this the coral you mean [URL="http/www.freshmarine.com/chili-coral.html"]http/www.freshmarine.com/chili-coral.html[/URL] if it is then I can't see a problem

yeah thats the coral.

thanks for your reply

are there any more interesting inverts that could maybe be added to my tank??

 

[xxBarneyxx]

You could skip all the other inverts and fish and go for a mantis shrimp. Very interesting critter to keep but has to be kept by itself.

 

[danb_1985]

i had a look at that option. it looks ok but out of all the shrimps i like the harlequins most. are they really hard to keep and feed?