Starting saltwater, need help!

[Aquarium guy person]

Sorry but could you put scientific names for the angel, the blenny, and the wrasses? I want to make sure I get the right ones and not a different species that’s more aggressive or something. Also, what do you mean by some rocks over the sand?

 

[Colin_T]

Pygmy angels are in the Genus Centropyge. Google that and look for a species you like.

Fairy wrasses are in the Genus Cirrhilabrus
Cleaner wrasse scientific name is Labroides dimidiatus​

Just Google Blennies and look for one you like.

Pygmy angels are all kept the same way, as are fairy wrasses, cleaner wrasses and blennies.

 

[DwarfCichlidLvr]

Just don't get a six line warsse.
And a yellow tail angel would also work well.

 

[Aquarium guy person]

Is this good stocking?
-1x dwarf flame angel
-1x royal gramma
-1x yellow watchman goby
-1x pistol shrimp
-3x firefish
-1x bicolor blenny
-2x cleaner shrimp
-2x cleaner wrasse
I can modify those fish or their numbers if needed

 

[DwarfCichlidLvr]

I think that is a bit much fir a 40 gallon.
Id remove 1 of the following:
firefish
cleaner warsse
bicolor blenny

DISCLAIMER: Ive never had an SW tank but have done research on them.

 

[Aquarium guy person]

Maybe I will take out both the cleaner wrasses. Would that be a good stock then? Could I add one more of any of the other types of fish?

 

[DwarfCichlidLvr]

So you remove what I said and the additional warsse?
I many tou could try sexy shrimp but that might be an expensive snack. I really wouldn't add anything more though. I mean I suppose your could add 1 or 2 cardinal fish. If you did add them I would only get one though. Id leav the heavily stocked marine tanks to the experts/ones that have been taking care of SW for a year or two.

 

[Colin_T]

Is this good stocking?
-1x dwarf flame angel
-1x royal gramma
-1x yellow watchman goby
-1x pistol shrimp
-3x firefish
-1x bicolor blenny
-2x cleaner shrimp
-2x cleaner wrasse
I can modify those fish or their numbers if needed

I would only have 1 cleaner wrasse but apart from that, they should be fine in a tank that is 3 foot long x 16inch wide x 18 inch high.

Get a young (small) cleaner wrasse and feed it with a variety of foods. It will settle in nicely and won't be reliant on the other fish for food. By that I mean the cleaner wrasses normally pick parasites and dead skin off other fish (they clean them of unwanted items). They eat other foods too but if you get a young fish it will be more likely to take other foods.

Cleaner wrasses produce a mucous sleeping bag around themselves at night and this is usually seen floating around the tank in the morning. So don't be too concerned if you see a clear jelly like sack floating around the tank each day.

 

[Aquarium guy person]

Since I won’t be able to get all the fish at the same time, which fish or invertebrates should I get first and which ones should I get last. I heard flame angels can eat soft corals. Could I sub it with 2 of the standard clowns? I want to eventually have some soft corals in there.

 

[Colin_T]

Any of the fish except the angel can go in first. Pygmy angels should go in last when there is lots of algae on the rocks and glass. Put the fish in before the shrimp, except if you get a watchman goby, then add that and his partner shrimp at the same time.

The shrimp that live with watchman gobies are called pistol shrimp and can kill other fish so make sure the shrimp is well fed.

If you don't want the angel, you can get a pair of Amphiprion ocellaris or percula (anemonefish like Nemo). Other species of anemonefish get too big and aggressive when breeding and will bash everyone in the tank.

If you get anemonefish, either buy 2 fish that have bonded or get a small fish and a slightly bigger one. The bigger one will become female and the smaller one will be male. If you get 2 big fish they will both be females and fight.

 

[DwarfCichlidLvr]

Angels should always go in last! (for marine angels)

 

[Aquarium guy person]

Are there any cheap alternatives to live rock? I don’t want to pay that much for rocks if you know what I mean.

 

[Colin_T]

Buy dry limestone or sandstone rocks and put them in the tank. After 6 months they are considered live rock.

or go to the beach and grab some out of the water.

 

[ChefAlex]

Are there any cheap alternatives to live rock? I don’t want to pay that much for rocks if you know what I mean.

Most reef-keepers nowadays are completely eschewing live rock for dry rock. Dry rock, broadly, could be rock pulled from the ocean and dried, land-based rock that has been quarried and cleaned or aragonite rock that has been treated with polymers and such to manufacture realistic looking porous live rock. The advantage over live rock is price and not risking unwanted hitchhiking pests. There are pros/cons to live rock vs. dry rock and you’d have to do research to form your own opinion.

That being said, I still feel dry rock is marked up too much. Spending $5-$10 per pound for rocks seems silly to me but all reef-keepers do it.

There are alternatives as Colin_T pointed out. Just be very careful with these as you need to find the right type (light and porous), make sure it hasn’t been chemically contaminated and be sure of its composition. The curing process for any rock is essential though. Getting your own rock for a reef might be a very unpopular opinion if you were to ask on a reef forum or LFS and for good reason, but it can be done so long as you do it correctly. There are whole lot more variables going on (phosphates, light exposure and many others) with collecting your own rocks so keep that in mind when dealing with sensitive reef life like soft corals. If it were me, I would try it for a small soft coral tank if money was tight (acknowledging the risks involved) but would never attempt for an SPS system.

Hope this helps.

 

[Aquarium guy person]

Is coral base rock on Amazon good?