Dwarf Pipefish tank revisions

DracoKat · Jun 15, 2022

So for the past 8 months or so I've had dwarf seahorses and Pipefish. I've been unsuccessful with the seahorses, they've slowly died one by one and I have no idea why. I've fed freshly hatched artemis shrimp daily, cleaned the tank weekly etc. water testing always came back good. I think with the summer the tank temp became too warm for them and I struggled to keep it cool enough.

So down to one pony, and 4 dwarf pipefish which are doing really well, I want to make the tank look nicer.

Right now there's just fake plants. No sand, nothing but fake plants.

Can I add some rocks? I can pull rocks from my existing reef tanks, and I have dry rock too but I am not sure if it would be dangerous for them if it kicks into cycle? Or would I have issues with hydroids? Should I keep the fake plants?

I was considering getting some sexy shrimps and/or clown gobies and I want more than just fake plants. Some gorgs and macros. I want it to look more natural.

any advice?

dhanking · Jun 15, 2022

I don't think adding rocks would do anything bad however I would not recommend trying to grow gorgonians in your tank. Gorgonians usually don't do well in low flow environments because it is easier for algae to grow on them. I would buy some macroalgae if I were you, seahorses and pipefish really enjoy it.

Mikala · Aug 28, 2022

Actually gorgonians are perfect and do really well in a seahorse tank as they give the seahorses something to hitch too and they won't sting them as other corals might. I have always kept them with my dwarfs and have never had an issue with them. Live rock is good as is macroalgae. The only shrimp I would put in there would be the Pederson shrimp, others will bother your livestock. Gobies are a good choice, I currently have a watchman and he has not bothered my seahorses at all, but I only did that as he was getting picked on in my larger 65 gallon reef tank. With the brine are you enriching it at all? Could be the reason for the fatalities? Just a thought, BBS on their own isn't enough to sustain them, basically empty calories, they need to be enriched. Hope all goes well with your remaining!

dennis romano · Aug 28, 2022

Dwarf seahorses and dwarf pipes are usually found in weedy areas. Adding some rock from your other tank should introduce pods that they will pick on throughout the day. Keep the fake plants. You don't have to worry about upgrading the lighting. Right now, I have blue stripe and Janss pipes and they are so cool.