Greybeard
2500 Club Member
I've kept several eels, over the years, including a snowflake. I don't know how large the one you're wanting to keep is, but they can grow fairly large. 28" or so, and as big around as your wrist. I'd say a 50 or 70 gallon tank would be about the minimum. They like to hide, so ample rockwork, caves, that sort of thing is important to make him comfortable. Lengths of 2" PVC under the rockwork are popular with eels. As Crab said above, many eels are escape artists. Some sort of top that has a mechanism to keep it from being pushed off easily is a necessity for eels, the larger the eel, the more important it's going to become. Big eels are STRONG.
I'd recommend a thin (1" or so) layer of sand, special reef grade, perhaps... something a bit coarser, so it stays in place better. Plenty of marine aquarium safe rock... dry base rock is probably the way to go. I'd epoxy the rock structure together... as I said, big eels are STRONG. You don't want him rearranging it for you
Snowflakes have poor eyesight, and an excellent sense of smell. I always fed mine thawed out raw, whole, salad shrimp from the grocery store. It's a pretty inexpensive and healthy way to keep this sort of predator. They can be a challenge to get them eating, if they're recently caught. Live ghost shrimp usually does the trick. Please don't feed them goldfish... it's a horrible diet for a marine predator.
A single or dual bulb florescent strip is plenty of light... the eel doesn't care about it one way or the other, and a bright light is just going to encourage algae growth.
Heaters can be a challenge... I've seen eels get burned on them. I'd probably recommend one of the plastic variety... Colbalt's Neo-Therm line springs to mind.
I usually recommend sump/refugeum/macro algae/skimmer kind of filters, but in this case, as a fish only system, it's probably not necessary. In a predator tank, a good quality filter with floss and granulated carbon filter cartridges, changed regularly, isn't a bad solution. The bigger Penguin hang on type, or even good quality canister filters, can work well in this sort of environment. Predator fishes care little about Nitrate, the bane of most of us reefkeepers. Monthly 10-15% water changes are probably sufficient, along with regular changing of the filter media. Even on predator tanks, I always recommend RO/DI water source. Tap water just introduces too many variables. You can generally buy it at the local fish shop, or pick up an RO/DI filter and make your own clean water. Instant Ocean is probably the right answer on salt.
Tankmates can be a challenge. If the eel can swallow it, it's going to do so, eventually. Aggressive predators can and will pick on more sedentary eels... I'd caution you against most triggers, puffers, and angels. Lionfish and many smaller Groupers usually make a good pairing with eels.
The most important point I could make is this... if you're expecting an eel in August... get water in the tank ASAP. It takes a while for a new marine aquarium to get established. You don't have much time. I'd suggest Dr. Tim's One and Only or Red Sea's 'Reef Mature' products... something to get the new tank's biologic filtration kick started.
I'd recommend a thin (1" or so) layer of sand, special reef grade, perhaps... something a bit coarser, so it stays in place better. Plenty of marine aquarium safe rock... dry base rock is probably the way to go. I'd epoxy the rock structure together... as I said, big eels are STRONG. You don't want him rearranging it for you
Snowflakes have poor eyesight, and an excellent sense of smell. I always fed mine thawed out raw, whole, salad shrimp from the grocery store. It's a pretty inexpensive and healthy way to keep this sort of predator. They can be a challenge to get them eating, if they're recently caught. Live ghost shrimp usually does the trick. Please don't feed them goldfish... it's a horrible diet for a marine predator.
A single or dual bulb florescent strip is plenty of light... the eel doesn't care about it one way or the other, and a bright light is just going to encourage algae growth.
Heaters can be a challenge... I've seen eels get burned on them. I'd probably recommend one of the plastic variety... Colbalt's Neo-Therm line springs to mind.
I usually recommend sump/refugeum/macro algae/skimmer kind of filters, but in this case, as a fish only system, it's probably not necessary. In a predator tank, a good quality filter with floss and granulated carbon filter cartridges, changed regularly, isn't a bad solution. The bigger Penguin hang on type, or even good quality canister filters, can work well in this sort of environment. Predator fishes care little about Nitrate, the bane of most of us reefkeepers. Monthly 10-15% water changes are probably sufficient, along with regular changing of the filter media. Even on predator tanks, I always recommend RO/DI water source. Tap water just introduces too many variables. You can generally buy it at the local fish shop, or pick up an RO/DI filter and make your own clean water. Instant Ocean is probably the right answer on salt.
Tankmates can be a challenge. If the eel can swallow it, it's going to do so, eventually. Aggressive predators can and will pick on more sedentary eels... I'd caution you against most triggers, puffers, and angels. Lionfish and many smaller Groupers usually make a good pairing with eels.
The most important point I could make is this... if you're expecting an eel in August... get water in the tank ASAP. It takes a while for a new marine aquarium to get established. You don't have much time. I'd suggest Dr. Tim's One and Only or Red Sea's 'Reef Mature' products... something to get the new tank's biologic filtration kick started.
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