New Tank stock

[sadiej333]

Hello there! So I am helping my dad with a saltwater aquarium. He is brand new and I have only owned a small nano tank which was sold to me with the belief it was the best beginner tank. I was in the process up setting up a 30 gallon when I had to move and sell it. We recently found a great deal on a 110 gallon aquarium with sump, protein skimmer, lights and all the extras.

We right now are in the education the tank will be here this weekend and it will I know take awhile for it to even be close to ready for fish. So I am using the time to read about fish and I’ve been reading so many different articles but I figured I would ask for some ideas from the experts to narrow our research. So I would love and greatly appreciate some stocking different ideas that we can look into. Also ideas on how much live rock to buy and where to get it from?

Thank you so much for your time!

 

[blaxsun]

After you get everything cleaned and setup, you'll probably want to perform a water test for leaks. Then you need to decide if you want sand or a bare bottom tank (some sand-sifting fish and wrasses require a fine sandbed). When it comes to rock, you can either opt for live (may contain pests) or dry (takes a bit longer to cycle).

Other considerations are if you want something like a Neptune Apex for controlling things or a UV sterilizer.

One thing you should give consideration to is if/how you're going to quarantine your new fish, and a separate small 10-20 gallon tank is ideal for this.

 

[sadiej333]

After you get everything cleaned and setup, you'll probably want to perform a water test for leaks. Then you need to decide if you want sand or a bare bottom tank (some sand-sifting fish and wrasses require a fine sandbed). When it comes to rock, you can either opt for live (may contain pests) or dry (takes a bit longer to cycle).

Other considerations are if you want something like a Neptune Apex for controlling things or a UV sterilizer.

One thing you should give consideration to is if/how you're going to quarantine your new fish, and a separate small 10-20 gallon tank is ideal for this.

Thank you so much for the tips I will Definitely have a quarantine tank I think I actually have a large UV sterilizer I had from an old tank I held onto and I will look into the Neptune apex.
I definitely want sand and I don’t mind cycling the rock I have preempted setting this up will take a ton of time and patience because I’m my beginner freshwater days I made the mistake of moving to fast before. And that gives us more time to educate ourselves.

 

[Lavey29]

Sounds like you are off to a good start and taking your time to get thing right. That size tank offers a lot of different fish options but if you decide you want corals then some types of fish are not suitable. FOWLR tanks with no coral can allow more choices but most people enjoy the coral reef look I'm guessing. Lighting and flow are important components of reef tank set ups too.

 

[PatW]

Stocking ……

A temptation is to try to have way too much in a tank. There are fish that are best left to dedicated systems. Sure mandarins are really, really cute. But they require live food and plentiful meals, They are better off by themselves. Clownfish show best with anemones and so again best for centerpieces in dedicated systems. Jawfish are really cute but LOVE LOVE LOVE deep coarse sand for their burrows - centerpiece fish.

A 110 gallon is probably a 4’ tank so you can have 1 or two of the smallest tangs such as a Ctenochaetus tang and a yellow tang. Flasher and fairy wrasses make for good active swimming fish. Gobies and blennies for bottom huggers. Try to put in fish that do not compete with each other. Chromis are nice and cheap but green chromis tend to murder each other. Cardinals like Bengai are good fish as are dartfish. Try to go with fish that are small, peaceful and easy.

A mix of tough corals can give a good colorful backdrop. I like the stoney corals especially the SPS corals. Once you get things going SPS can be pretty durable. But that is once you get things going.

Then there is the cleanup crew. Hermits are good but if food gets scarce they murder snails or just murder snails for the heck of it. Snails are really nice but have the unfortunate tendency of dying if they fall on their backs and I have fallen and can’t get up. The thing about cleanup crews is the suggested numbers seem to be about 5 to 10 times what is really needed. Add just a few at a time.

You will undoubtedly find things out by trial and error. Something that works for others will not work for you and vice versa.

 

[Billldg]

Hello there! So I am helping my dad with a saltwater aquarium. He is brand new and I have only owned a small nano tank which was sold to me with the belief it was the best beginner tank. I was in the process up setting up a 30 gallon when I had to move and sell it. We recently found a great deal on a 110 gallon aquarium with sump, protein skimmer, lights and all the extras.

We right now are in the education the tank will be here this weekend and it will I know take awhile for it to even be close to ready for fish. So I am using the time to read about fish and I’ve been reading so many different articles but I figured I would ask for some ideas from the experts to narrow our research. So I would love and greatly appreciate some stocking different ideas that we can look into. Also ideas on how much live rock to buy and where to get it from?

Thank you so much for your time!

I always buy more rock than needed for a tank. So figure 110 gal tank, I would buy 120-130 pounds of rock. You will likely not use it all, but, the extra rock gives you options for the scape. Plus, you can actually soak dry rock in a brute trash can for a few months with actual live rock and seed the dry rock with bacteria. I think I bought roughly 250 lbs of rock for my 225 gal tank along with 50 lbs of live rock and I soaked the dry rock in brute trash cans with the live rock to help seed it.

 

[Slocke]

I've also got a 110. I think my favorite fish at the moment is the Midas blenny. Beautiful, quirky, and fits my 110 perfectly. Also easy and peaceful.
Other fish I suggest are a foxface and if you have live sand a good sized goby. I'm also partial to wrasse though I've had bad luck with them recently.

Those are the fish that add the most to my tank.

 

[sadiej333]

I've also got a 110. I think my favorite fish at the moment is the Midas blenny. Beautiful, quirky, and fits my 110 perfectly. Also easy and peaceful.
Other fish I suggest are a foxface and if you have live sand a good sized goby. I'm also partial to wrasse though I've had bad luck with them recently.

Those are the fish that add the most to my tank.

Omgosh the Midas blennie is my favorite too! I owned one in another tank but lost power I was devastated! And I also have had bad experiences with wrasse!

 

[sadiej333]

I've also got a 110. I think my favorite fish at the moment is the Midas blenny. Beautiful, quirky, and fits my 110 perfectly. Also easy and peaceful.
Other fish I suggest are a foxface and if you have live sand a good sized goby. I'm also partial to wrasse though I've had bad luck with them recently.

Those are the fish that add the most to my tank.

I always buy more rock than needed for a tank. So figure 110 gal tank, I would buy 120-130 pounds of rock. You will likely not use it all, but, the extra rock gives you options for the scape. Plus, you can actually soak dry rock in a brute trash can for a few months with actual live rock and seed the dry rock with bacteria. I think I bought roughly 250 lbs of rock for my 225 gal tank along with 50 lbs of live rock and I soaked the dry rock in brute trash cans with the live rock to help seed it.

Thank you so much

 

[sadiej333]

Stocking ……

A temptation is to try to have way too much in a tank. There are fish that are best left to dedicated systems. Sure mandarins are really, really cute. But they require live food and plentiful meals, They are better off by themselves. Clownfish show best with anemones and so again best for centerpieces in dedicated systems. Jawfish are really cute but LOVE LOVE LOVE deep coarse sand for their burrows - centerpiece fish.

A 110 gallon is probably a 4’ tank so you can have 1 or two of the smallest tangs such as a Ctenochaetus tang and a yellow tang. Flasher and fairy wrasses make for good active swimming fish. Gobies and blennies for bottom huggers. Try to put in fish that do not compete with each other. Chromis are nice and cheap but green chromis tend to murder each other. Cardinals like Bengai are good fish as are dartfish. Try to go with fish that are small, peaceful and easy.

A mix of tough corals can give a good colorful backdrop. I like the stoney corals especially the SPS corals. Once you get things going SPS can be pretty durable. But that is once you get things going.

Then there is the cleanup crew. Hermits are good but if food gets scarce they murder snails or just murder snails for the heck of it. Snails are really nice but have the unfortunate tendency of dying if they fall on their backs and I have fallen and can’t get up. The thing about cleanup crews is the suggested numbers seem to be about 5 to 10 times what is really needed. Add just a few at a time.

You will undoubtedly find things out by trial and error. Something that works for others will not work for you and vice versa.

Thank you so much the main thing he wants is an eel and I’ve shot so many species down because of size and other things but I think he wants that he wants to build the tank around that if it’s possible.

 

[Slocke]

Thank you so much the main thing he wants is an eel and I’ve shot so many species down because of size and other things but I think he wants that he wants to build the tank around that if it’s possible.

My original plan was an eel but then I kept buying things that were incompatible. But last time I was at my LFS they were selling black, white, and most extraordinarily the blue and yellow ribbon eels. If I could turn back the clock….

 

[sadiej333]

Hello there! So I am helping my dad with a saltwater aquarium. He is brand new and I have only owned a small nano tank which was sold to me with the belief it was the best beginner tank. I was in the process up setting up a 30 gallon when I had to move and sell it. We recently found a great deal on a 110 gallon aquarium with sump, protein skimmer, lights and all the extras.

We right now are in the education the tank will be here this weekend and it will I know take awhile for it to even be close to ready for fish. So I am using the time to read about fish and I’ve been reading so many different articles but I figured I would ask for some ideas from the experts to narrow our research. So I would love and greatly appreciate some stocking different ideas that we can look into. Also ideas on how much live rock to buy and where to get it from?

Thank you so much for your

Thank you so much for the tips I will Definitely have a quarantine tank I think I actually have a large UV sterilizer I had from an old tank I held onto and I will look into the Neptune apex.
I definitely want sand and I don’t mind cycling the rock I have preempted setting this up will take a ton of time and patience because I’m my beginner freshwater days I made the mistake of moving to fast before. And that gives us more time to educate ourselves.

Quick question for you, the guy at the fish store said to mix the salt and to use tap water with a conditioner was wondering your thoughts on that? The tank again will cycle for a long time

 

[davidcalgary29]

Quick question for you, the guy at the fish store said to mix the salt and to use tap water with a conditioner was wondering your thoughts on that? The tank again will cycle for a long time

No, don't do that. Spend the extra money and get a proper RO/DI system at the outset. You're going to make an awful lot of water changes in your first year.

 

[sadiej333]

No, don't do that. Spend the extra money and get a proper RO/DI system at the outset. You're going to make an awful lot of water changes in your first year.

Thank you!

 

[blaxsun]

Start with a few relatively cheap fish. No one gets into the hobby with the intention of harming our reef inhabitants, but sometimes things are beyond our control. While it's always devastating to lose a fish (especially when starting out), it's less of a blow if it's a $10 fish vs. a $250 fish.

 

[davidcalgary29]

And make that captive-bred cheap fish. They tend to be much more hardy in our aquaria than wild-caught specimens.

Don't go for a clownfish pair, unless you're willing to have the female to nip at your hands and draw blood every time you put them in the tank. Yes, you shouldn't put your hands in the tank without wearing gloves anyway, but that's not the way that I'd want to be reminded.

 

[sadiej333]

And make that captive-bred cheap fish. They tend to be much more hardy in our aquaria than wild-caught specimens.

Don't go for a clownfish pair, unless you're willing to have the female to nip at your hands and draw blood every time you put them in the tank. Yes, you shouldn't put your hands in the tank without wearing gloves anyway, but that's not the way that I'd want to be reminded.

Thank you for clarifying

another question what size wave maker set should I get for 110? The tank came with to kessil lights but one isn’t working they didn’t clean it looks like. It also came with a current light so I was going to get the ones I can hook up to the little control center. Then would I also need a powerhead or two? I’ve read so much mixed information haha

 

[sadiej333]

This is the new tank still in the cleaning stage then going to try to do something about these scratches.