Going to be owning a snowflake eel, any help?

netrix

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Hi all.

My brother and I are going to be new owners of a Snowflake Eel.

I've done some research into owning the eel, 35% water change per week, feeding live/frozen food, tank size [55gallon if correct], likes coral base/dark hiding spots, only keeping one eel in the tank, etc. etc.

I was wondering if i'd need a sump tank? or something like that. I know a good filter is needed for oxygen and and water testing kit.


Please let me know if theres anything else I should know or any tips I can learn from your wisdom!

Many Thanks!
Bren :)
 

Tiger Brown

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Hello Bren and welcome to R2R. My college roommate had a snowflake eel in our dorm room so I have a little experience with them. I don’t see why you would need a sump especially if you plan to change that much water every week unless you want to use it as an extension of your tank to grow live food. Our eel did fine with frozen and freeze dried. Bottom line is they are extremely hardy and easy to keep, you have obviously done your homework as your setup sounds perfect for an eel. Best advice I have is to seal your tank tight, they will look for a way out and, sadly, that is how my roommate eventually lost his. Good luck.
 

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Hello Bren and welcome to R2R. My college roommate had a snowflake eel in our dorm room so I have a little experience with them. I don’t see why you would need a sump especially if you plan to change that much water every week unless you want to use it as an extension of your tank to grow live food. Our eel did fine with frozen and freeze dried. Bottom line is they are extremely hardy and easy to keep, you have obviously done your homework as your setup sounds perfect for an eel. Best advice I have is to seal your tank tight, they will look for a way out and, sadly, that is how my roommate eventually lost his. Good luck.
+1
Also, don't have any other fish like gobies or jawfish that like to make caves. If he is a big eel, don't keep him with small fish.
 

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I have one in my 90 gallon reef. He is actually one of the only survivors, as my tank recently crashed completely due to a heater explosion. He is very cool and loves to eat from tongs. He doesn't really mess with any of my fish, and I have some smaller fish.
 

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Make sure you have a lid of some sort. Eels love to carpet surf!

They generally will eat anything they can fit in their mouth and some things they can't. That being said, I had one in a 180 reef that was a model citizen.
 
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netrix

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Hi everyone.

Thank you so much for all the helpful replies and warm welcoming!

Just a few more questions regarding the temperate if a heater is needed and I'm going to be looking more into tank conditions, P.H levels and all of that today.

Thankyou once again!
:)
 
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netrix

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They tend to like water in the normal tropical range 72-78 degrees so you'll need a heater.
Perfect thankyou for your response! :) Quick Edit! DO you think a 50w heater will do the job? some saying it wil others say will only work for a 10-30l tank?
 
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netrix

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Hello Bren and welcome to R2R. My college roommate had a snowflake eel in our dorm room so I have a little experience with them. I don’t see why you would need a sump especially if you plan to change that much water every week unless you want to use it as an extension of your tank to grow live food. Our eel did fine with frozen and freeze dried. Bottom line is they are extremely hardy and easy to keep, you have obviously done your homework as your setup sounds perfect for an eel. Best advice I have is to seal your tank tight, they will look for a way out and, sadly, that is how my roommate eventually lost his. Good luck.
Thankyou so much for your comments, I'll be sure to get some clamps for the lid! :)
 
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netrix

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+1
Also, don't have any other fish like gobies or jawfish that like to make caves. If he is a big eel, don't keep him with small fish.
Thankyou! I have a few smaller fish n other tanks so I'll be sure not to mix them :)
 

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Perfect thankyou for your response! :) Quick Edit! DO you think a 50w heater will do the job? some saying it wil others say will only work for a 10-30l tank?

Heater size can vary depending upon the ambient air temperature in the tank room, but my opinion is that 50W is way too small for a 55. I use a 250 W heater in mine, yes it is oversized, but it keeps the tank temperature rock steady and doesn't have to work hard to do so.
 

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