Is this realistic?

[X-37B]

Nothing gets hurt by one*

It does not bother anything else.
There is only a pajama cardinal in this 15 with it.

 

[kizzy89]

Macros take a lot of nutrients from the water so eventually you might have to feed heavy or dose something for them. Some macros do better with more flow, like dragons breath. Dragons breath also does better/has more orange on the tips with heavy blue light ive found out, also do a lot of research on the macros you want so you dont end up putting something like Caulerpa prolifera that if left unchecked will grow over everything and you wont be able to get rid of it even if you want to. Your plan sounds solid but you'll definitely want a powerhead of some sort maybe even two. I for one am stoked about this build and excited to see pictures when it's up and running!

 

[GreenBoi]

Macros take a lot of nutrients from the water so eventually you might have to feed heavy or dose something for them. Some macros do better with more flow, like dragons breath. Dragons breath also does better/has more orange on the tips with heavy blue light ive found out, also do a lot of research on the macros you want so you dont end up putting something like Caulerpa prolifera that if left unchecked will grow over everything and you wont be able to get rid of it even if you want to. Your plan sounds solid but you'll definitely want a powerhead of some sort maybe even two. I for one am stoked about this build and excited to see pictures when it's up and running!

Thank you so much! I live in California so I legally can’t buy any macros in the Caulerpa genus. I definitely have more to learn but yeah I’m very excited to show my progress!

 

[CKW]

Thanks again for welcoming me here and sharing tips/places to start! I thought I would share my idea for my first tank to get feedback on if it’s realistic/plausible for me as a beginner. PLEASE BE BLUNT AND DON’T HOLD BACK ANY CRITICISM! I want to get this right so I appreciate any advice you may have. Ok so my list of potential equipment :

TANK EQUIPMENT:
• 35 gallon rimless tank (if you want the link lmk)
• Tidal 35 HOB power filter (I’ve heard good things)
• BRS 100W titanium heater
• INK BIRD heater controller
• Full spectrum 20W LED light (I’m only growing macros to start no coral)
• 40 lbs CaribSea aragonite reef sand
• 30 lbs dry live rock
• Instant Ocean reef crystals reef salt
• RO/DI water (gonna buy from a LFS to start but might get a home system eventually)

EXTRA TOOLS:
• Fritz turbo-start 900
• glass scraper
• refractometer
• feeding pipette
• testing kit (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate)
• rock putty (for aquascaping)

STOCKING LIST:
• BIOTA captive bred Ocellaris pair
• BIOTA captive bred mandarin dragonet (they claim their captive bred mandarins take pellets/frozen food. This is my dream fish so if you guys think that’s legit I’ll go for it, if not there’s no way a 35 gallon tank would have enough pods so I won’t risk it)
• BIOTA captive bred yellow watchman goby
• tiger snapping shrimp (to pair with watchman goby)
• 5 dwarf blue leg hermit crabs
• 5 bumble bee snails
• 5 Nassarius snails
• around 10 species of macro algae (I researched and chose what I think are beginner species so if you want the list lmk)

FOOD:
• frozen PE Calanus
• TDO-C2 Chroma boost small pellets
• seaweed sheets (more veggies for the clowns)

END NOTES:
If there’s anything I’m missing or if you have better suggestions please tell me!

Also if you think I’m over stocking with fish be honest because I’d rather have less fish and keep them happy/healthy over an overstocked tank with stressed fish.

Any questions are welcome too!

Thxxx

It sounds doable. I would add a variety of frozen foods. After cycling, add “critters “ slowly over about two to three weeks. Keep an eye on the test parameters and curb your want to hurry the process.
Additional “tools” and other items will be added as you progress and continue your research and journey.

 

[CKW]

I see nothing wrong with your equipment. I would advise against using dry rock unless it has been turned into true live rock. Almost every tank that uses dry rock gets dinos.

You are definitely not overstocked. My only concerns with the stock list are clowns becoming aggressive as they mature and spawn. They can become terrors in small tanks. While Biota Mandarins MIGHT eat pellets and regular food, they still need a large population of pods. They have super high metabolisms, and you would have to feed constantly to sustain them. Getting enough pods for a mandarin in a 35 gallon is difficult, but it can be done. I would use more live rock than you think you need, seed the tank with pods at least once a month, and add a refugium to the list. The goby and pistol shrimp are fine, but don’t be surprised if the pistol takes out some crabs and snails.

Yup, ditch the Clowns. They WILL become aggressive! Making it difficult to add fish and will attack you. !!!!!

 

[exnisstech]

Make sure the clowns are a bonded pair and not just two clowns unless your willing to deal with the aggression that ussually happens when one decides to transition to female. Personally I would skip the clowns as I think there are much more interesting small fish. 2 spawning clowns in that size tank could limit your ability to add fish in the future.
Be sure and have a method to calibrate the refractometer.

EDIT: I forgot to mention I'll never do another dry rock only start up.

https://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-06/rhf/index.htm