Fish for 25G & Newbie Questions!

[R3V34L]

Hey all - first post here!

Starting my first aquarium, and currently a month in and starting to see the beginning of an ugly phase. I've got a Waterbox Penninsula Mini 25 gallon and running into questions with stock lists and a few other bits and bobs:

Stock List:
Thoughts are:

• Clownfish x2 (baseline minimum, if I shouldn't get more than two fish, these would be it)
• Royal Gramma x1 (would love to have)
• Lawnmower Blenny x1 (something to eat algae?)

I'm trying to figure out what kind of fish to include in this relatively small tank. I've already got a black storm clownfish, and want to throw in a second one. I'd love to be able to include a Royal Gramma (my girlfriend likes them and that helps make sure the hobby is sustainable!) but I'm seeing mixed information on a 25G being too small, and I'm more nervous since the AIO means I've got even less display tank. Also a bit concerned about not having a utility fish to fight algae.

Alternatively looking at a tail spot blenny? I also like the idea of a yellow watchman goby + pistol shrimp, but concerned that would be a pretty large fish that may not help with algae in a small tank + I hear pistol shrimps would maybe cross snails off my list of CUC?

Also considering CUC, especially since I'm starting to see algae grow in the tank. Sounds like maybe picking up 1-2 snails could be worth doing as I go slow?

Water Changes:
I've been doing weekly 5G water changes, mostly because that is the size bucket that I can fit in my apartment. I recognize that this is a relatively high % of the total water in the tank each week, is it possibly bad to be doing so much? I also don't have a spare heater, so the temperature drops during the water change to ~76 degrees and takes ~2.5hrs to get back to 78 degrees. Initially it seemed like overkill to buy a heater+controller for a 5G bucket, but happy to do that if the temp drop once a week is too much (especially as I get corals).

pH stability:
I'm mildly watching pH since the Apex EL I'm using has a probe anyway...and I can't see to get the pH above ~7.9. I even went as far as to open all of the windows in my place for a day which made it pretty cold, and didn't see a huge improvement. I'm assuming that things like 2-part are a ways off into my future but was a little nervous that I'm not taking this seriously enough and I should be doing more to help make sure pH is elevated.

Judging Food Volume:
I've been breaking apart an amount of Reef Frenzy Nano roughly a quarter the size of my pinky nail, mixing it with tank water and dropping it off for my (super tiny) clown. This isn't a super consistent amount since the food is frozen. Should I just keep monitoring for ammonia levels + phosphate and if I'm not seeing alarming increases keep dosage the same?

Helping Fish Recover from getting hurt:
Within the first week I had my clown, it looks like got clipped between the fish guard on my Nero 3 and the powerhead itself (the clown got a gash down his left flank, and there was a small piece of organic matter stuck between the powerhead and the fish guard that didn't look like any of the frozen food I've been putting in. I immediately turned the power head down from ~30% to 10% and ordered a more substantial nem guard that seems to fit a bit better. My clown had a gash for a little while that has rapidly gotten better and his behavior never changed, but curious if anything else I should give him to help recovery? My LFS recommended Brightwell Aquatics GarlicPower which I include a drop of in the clown's food every couple days, but I'm not sure if I just got conned into buying something smelly for no reason...

 

[prdubois]

Welcome to r2r

 

[prdubois]

Fish list looks good to start.
I would change less water 10% is good unless you have an issue. Too much could cause mini cycles.
Some struggle with PH. What is your alk?
Sounds like your feeding fine.

 

[Kynzo]

Welcome, Stock list sounds good, IME your CUC controls algae more than fish in nanos. Tailspot or lawnmower, take your pick. The temp drop probably won't kill anything but it would be better if you had 1 for the wc bucket and 1 for the tank. It's also just more convenient than pulling it out of your display and putting it back. pH is a bit low but it's better to keep it stable since it isn't crazy off. If your tank is cycled don't worry about testing for ammonia, you can judge if you're feeding too much by algae outbreaks. I'm not sure about the injury though, if he keeps eating normal for a week I think he should be fine. I wouldn't say you got conned, some believe garlic helps strengthen fish immune systems. Idk if it's a great comparison, but you could think of it like how we think vitamin C when you're sick makes you better when it doesn't necessarily.

 

[PatW]

I agree. The fish list is good.

Twenty percent water changes are fine if you match temperature and salinity. It is better to match alkalinity also but that is much more important in tanks with hard corals.

My pH runs higher than yours and it has never been a problem.

For better feeding, you can get a small squirt bottle, Fill it with salt water, add some food and keep it in the refrigerator. I don’t keep mine more than a few days because I use it up by then. It should keep, If it get stinky, it is past its for sale date. Feed by just squirting in the amount you want to feed.

You might consider feeding a few pellets. I feed a mix of 3 kinds of pellets. I do this just to try to get a big enough food variety.

Sounds like you are doing fine.

 

[Acros]

I am setting up an IM 25 lagoon and considering mollies for algae control. Thinking of going with a small group of mollies and then decide if I want to add another fish.

What I could not find is a replacement for pest eating wrasses such as 6-line wrasse or yellow corris wrasse that is happy in a small tank