Someone! Help me plan my tank!

mdsnlwlsn · Nov 30, 2011

I'm a beginner, jsut starting out. I still havent't gotten my lights yet, nor set up my tank. But i'm new, young and naive and need help planning it out before hand. I don't want to run into any compatibility issues, and would feel a lot safer if i knew what I was going to add in before hand. If anyone with experience could help me out, I would be eternally grateful!
Here's some things I'd like to have. If anyone could give me some information on what may go with these, what won't work, whether these will work together, ect. I'm completely open to anything at this point:

Frogspawn

Flower pot Alveopora sp

bubble coral

and i'd love to get a seahorse at some point

Thanks for your input!! :kiss:

kuyatwo · Nov 30, 2011

I don't think you can keep seahorses with bubble or hammer corals they will get stung

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Birdee · Nov 30, 2011

Yeah, seahorses really need a different sort of set up than a standard reef and the larger corals. Most people keep them as a species tank due to the fact that they are a bit fragile and have special needs. And large stingers are definitely out of the question... I'm pretty sure a Bubble would not only kill a horse, but scoop it up and make a snack of it too. Horses also need low flow.
However they are pretty cool and a pair or two makes a fine smaller display when catered to. :neutral:

Some of the free swimming pipefish might be acceptable in a set-up with those corals listed. I've seen Bluestripes and Janss (maybe Flames or Bandeds too) doing well in reefs with some large med-aggressive corals and pretty good flow going on.

REEFKEEPER10 · Nov 30, 2011

I would hold off on the flower pot until you get some experience under your belt.

mdsnlwlsn · Dec 4, 2011

okay, so no seahorse or flowerpot. what other corals and invertebrates go well with the bubble and the frogspawn?

Birdee · Dec 4, 2011

Yeah... just not too close of course, they are stingers.

REEFKEEPER10 · Dec 8, 2011

sexy shrimp love frogspawn but if you keep fish in the tank they will be snack. porcelain crabs are good. some will host corals with no problems.

REEFKEEPER10 · Dec 12, 2011

why don't you plum a small display tank into you reef tank. have it receive water from the overflow and have a overflow to the sump. then you can keep sea horses to. just a thought.

mainereefer · Dec 12, 2011

your lighting and flow will determine what you can keep for corals. the size of your tank will determine what you can keep for fish
so what is the plan for lighting? what size tank.......

for most "newbes" I recommend keeping some softies then move up to lps then sps. at that point if you can keep your water good enough for sps to grow you might have a chance at seahorses.

mdsnlwlsn · Dec 12, 2011

it's a 30g rectangular tank. right now i have a 30" aquaclear t5 dual lamp on it, but i'm planning on adding another one of those in the future.

display tank is a cool idea! but i don't know if i want to take on something that complicated as a beginner.

since they will be my first addition, whats good to get as far as invertebrates go? i don't want anything too expensive, but if anyone can give names of some beautiful inverts it would be much appreciated.