Starting it...

[stormydax]

hi guys,

after reading for so long...think i will start my FOWLR tank soon...

Just to double check few things...

1) I have coral sand from my previous freshwater tank...can it work?

2) I will buy direct sea-water from LFS ...how many weeks do i need to cycle it?

3) What fish do you suggest for a beginner?

I will get it tomorrow...

thanks

[Caleb]

the frshwater coral sand that you had.. would be ok... but to be safe make sure you test your water daily...

you didnt mention what sort of filteration you are using...

wat size of tank are you intending to get ?

Different fish have different needs.. some are carnivore some are herbivore... some attack corals.. other attack other fish...

damsels are easy... but are very territorial... certain clown fish need to live alone.. else they will kill their own kind...

you'd have to decide on yourself.. and most important, what is your end in mind.. will give you direction on what sort of fish to keep.

[delirium]

1) Yes. Wash properly.

2) Depends on cured, uncured or dead LRs. If you get cured LRs from other reefers which has been in their tank for sometime, you can actually shorten cycling period. When i started my tank last time, my cycling period was less then a week for a 3' tank.

3) Read before buying. Dont buy on impulse. Some fishes you will regret after adding in.

[adrianlau]

Welcome, new convert (from freshwater to marine). I made the conversion last Sep and have no regrets, yet.

The key secret to keeping marine fish is to develop patience. (Maybe I will write a book "The Zen of FOWLR"). Good that you've been reading for so long, a lot to learn from others who have walked on this path .

OK, enough philosophy. These are my thoughts of what I would recommend to someone starting a marine tank (especially if on a tight budget, like me).

Cycle the tank for at least one month. Use Nutrafin's Cycle or Aquarium Product's Biozyme for Saltwater Aquariums. (Some people keep 1 or 2 Damsels to seed the cycling stage, but Damsels will become aggressive. Has anybody tried using Freshwater baby feeder Molly? Wonder how long they can survive in saltwater.)

After cycling, start with fishes that are classified as Easy fish in eg.

LiveAquaria.com

Examples include, Blue/Green Chromis, Pseudochromis, Hawkfish, Yellow Tang. If you want Clownfish, go for Clark's Clown, Tomato Clown or Maroon Clown which are easier than the Common Clown. Be careful, marine fish has to be stocked lesser than freshwater fish, because Marine fish are more sensitive to water conditions.

All these are provided you've got the write equipment in the first place. Have fun.

[stormydax]

hi guys,

thanks for all the advice.

I was over at Pasir ris and bought 3 blue (yellow tail) damsel to cycle the tank. I had actually cycled the water for one week already.

Will be order some clownfish from the LFS and some anemone...

Btw, is live rock necessary in the tank...coz it is really ugly...

thanks

your sincerely,

Storm

[johntanjm]

you mentioned sea water. I personally recommend self mixed salt water. get a good marine salt otherwise in the future might have problems. maybe if you want to introduce some natural bacteria and organisms from sea water, use 90% own mix. 10% sea water

[stormydax]

hi,

just checked with the LFS.it is seawater.

I will be adding around 7-10pieces of philippines clownfishes and two anemone...my tank is two feet long, width is around 1 ft, ht around 3/4 feet...can it fit?

is $3 for a piece of philipinnes clownfish ex?

thanks

yours sincerely,

Storm

[stormydax]

hi,

just checked with the LFS.it is seawater.

I will be adding around 7-10pieces of philippines clownfishes and two anemone...my tank is two feet long, width is around 1 ft, ht around 3/4 feet...can it fit?

is $3 for a piece of philipinnes clownfish ex?

thanks

yours sincerely,

Storm

[Bali Brain]

Are you happy with just Clownfishes? Cos that's about it for a tank of your size. I would advise not to jump the gun. Otherwise, you will be coming across many many beautiful fishes which you would be tempted to get. But alas, your tank's bioload cannot take it, and in the end, adding one more and one more after that...will end in failure. There's only one secret to keeping Marines - PATIENCE.

[hammerhd]

hey stormy

You are stocking up too fast and too much. the tank might crash

[benteo36]

Your type of skimmer use?

[stormydax]

hi ,

got 5 clownfish and 1 anemone...no skimmer...

may i know what do you guys feed yourclownfish?

thanks

[hammerhd]

homemade food as a treat or pellet mix with flakes

[stormydax]

hi,

dun think i will be making any home-made food?

I bought a small bottle of food, (cost me 8dollars) from pian yi dao siao in bedok. It is a very small bottle and the owner say it si very good...

well, does anyone have any good dried food to recommend to feed clownfish?

What can i use to feed anemone?

thanks

[big_ben102000]

u can feed the anemone prawns.. btw they also need sufficient light to survive. maybe u wanna list down the equipments you are using so the more exprience reefers here can give u some advice.

cheers

[hammerhd]

basically clownfish eat anything. I sometimes i also feed them with reefroids.

A treat lah.

[stormydax]

hi guys,

my anemone is not as lively as when i just got it...it is simply lying flat on the ground with minmal movement and the clownfish are trying hard to wriggle in and out...

is it because it is dying? if it is, should i take it out?

hope to receive a reply soon...

thanks

[stormydax]

hi guys,

my anemone is not as lively as when i just got it...it is simply lying flat on the ground with minmal movement and the clownfish are trying hard to wriggle in and out...

is it because it is dying? if it is, should i take it out?

hope to receive a reply soon...

thanks

[stormydax]

hi..

my anemone die after sometime...but oi took it out before it is completely down.

a week later...my clownfishes and yellowtail damsel died one by one...why is it so?

thanks

yours sincerely,

Stormydax

[adrianlau]

Bro, sorry to hear that. If you have been reading a lot like you said in your first post, you got to start doing what you have read.

Guess why there was no reply to your urgent call for help? A lot of warnings were sounded out to you already.

The excitement of starting a tank can be overwhelming, but in order not the commit the common mistakes that beginners make, you'll need to control your impulse (as advised by delirium, Bali Brain and hammerhd)

Like what big_ben102000 has said, list down your equipment so that others can advise whether what is feasible.

Restart by cycling your tank for 1 month before adding any fish.

[stormydax]

Hi...

I will be cycling the tank again one more time...lets hope it works...

thanks

yours sincerely,

storm

[savethe_coralreef]

put a skimmer you cannot have a marine aquarium without skimmer specially you are just starting then cycle your tank properly about 1 to 1.5 months put bacteria to seed your bio filter and use sump as filtration it is the best overhead sucks canister is ok if you know how to properly use it and get a denitrator to reduce your nitrate its sounds complicated at first but as you go along you will understand how to keep marine fish happy fish keeping

[Bali Brain]

If you can have Damsels dying on you, then obviously there is something seriously wrong with the water. You bought the Damsels after 1 week of cycling tank. That is clearly insufficient time for the build-up of nitrifying bacteria, and although they didn't die straight away, after 1-2 weeks, they must have died from ammonia poisoning. You didn't say how much LR you have. Perhaps you should read up more on how a tank is cycled to understand how it would affect your tank.The other thing is do you have test kits? You need to have them to make sure your water can sustain the fishes.

[big_ben102000]

clowns do not need an anemone to survive, many reefers here have had clowns surviving happily without any anemone for them to play in. anemone isnt that easy to keep as well, unless u are an advance reefer.

cheers