live rock v.s. base rock? and a couple of salt water questions?

Question

in my ten gallon salt tank right now i have 5lbs of live rock. ive been told that i need at least one lbs per gallon of live rock. i have 20lbs of live sand, and all live nutrisea water.

could i add 5 more lbs of just base rock and be okay? or do ireally need 5 more lbs of live rock? i know that it will turn into live rock after a while, how long?

also, how hard is it to keep an anenomea? do you have to feed it? if so, what do i need to buy to feed one?
do you have to feed corals? if so what?
i have 4 watts per gallon fluerescant lighting

how many hermit crabs and snails for a cleanup crew?

sand sifter starfish?.. what do i feed it? or does it just get food from all the live stuff in my tank? and is it hard to keep?

sorry if i ask a lot, but im new to saltwater.

my specific gravity stays around 1.022 ph is 8.2-8.3 temp is 78F

Answer 1

Lots of questions here, so I'll take them in order:

1) No such thing as live water. The amount of rock will be based on the origin - if from the Pacific Ocean, 1 lb/gallon is good, if from the Atlantic or Carribean, 1.5-2 lbs/gallon is better because there isn't as much surface area. In a 10 gallon tank, though, this won't leave your fish with much room. If you're going with fish only, you might get away with using less, but if you want inverts, the extra biological filtration will keep the nutrients down and the water quality up over a longer period (still should do weekly water changes, though!). You can buy base rock and keep the live rock covering it - the live rock will seed the base rock with bacteria and it costs lots less.

2) How hard they are to keep depends on your lighting. With photosynthetic algae inside their bodies, they need enough light for photosynthesis. I've never been able to keep them with less than a compact fluorescent, but I've never tried using VHO tubes for a 10 gallon either. Watts per gallon is only part of the story - the lights need to be the proper wavelength for photosynthesis, and the distance from the light source to the anemone also matters. Some are easier to keep than others, with one of the easiest being a bubble-tipped anemone if you want one that will host clownfish. You need to match the clownfish with certain types of anemones they use, and if you already have the fish, you need to fins an anemone suited to their species. I'll put a link about this below. If you don't mind it not being used by clowns, go for a condy (Condylactis) anemone which are one of the easiest overall. A 10 gallon may not be suitable for some of the larger carpet and saddle types of anemones. Anemones get some of their food from their algae, some from the messy eating of fish in the tank, and they also pick small floating particles (plankton, "marine snow") from the water. But if they aren't getting enought and decrease in size, you can feed them around once a week. Depending on their size, you can give them a few brine shrimp, or other food you give your fish. Just use a turkey baster to squeeze a little thawed food near their tentacles in a spot where the current will carry it to them. Larger anemones (and these will be too large for you) will eat whole fish. Corals are similar to the anemones when it comes to feeding - most need good lighting (some aren't photosynthetic at all), and they feed on small particles in the water. There are some large enough to take shrimp and larger foods. For this, you'd be better to research the particular type of coral you plan to get. Mushrooms are fairly hardy, don't need special feeding (if there are fish in the tank that you're feeding anyway, and you have adequate lighting at least), and are colorful - give these a try for starters.

3) You can keep a few of these guys, probably 1-2 per gallon of water (your volume may only be 5-8 gallons because of the rock and sand in the tank). Just keep in mind that hermits need to change their shells and get the some extras in larger sizes than what their in, or they'll use the ones your snails come in (and kill the snails).

4) I wouldn't advise a seastar for your size of tank - they wouldn't find enough to eat unless you target fed them or seriously overfeed the other animals. This could be a water quality problem in the making.

5) Your water parameters are pretty good, but if you're going to ad inverts, I'd increase the specific gravity to 1.024. Do you measure ammonia, nitrtie, and nitrate as well? In your size of tank, these could build up and cause problems for your animals rather quickly!

Answer 2

First thing salt tanks don't NEED live or base rock. How much you choose to have is up to you. If you are using it to cycle your tank, 1# per gallon works. Your sand however is another story. there should be only 2" or less across the bottom of your aquarium no more. Having too much will lead to pockets. The nutrasea water is not needed for your tank. Adding all kinds of "things" hoping that it will help your tank is more than likely overloading it. Use regular tap water or RO water with a good water conditioner/ dechlor.

Yes you can add 5 more pounds of rock if you want to if not, no big deal. your tank will still cycle and still be healthy. Base rock is basically rock that is dead or almost dead. There is no way to tell if and when it will house life since every tank is different.

Anemone's are easy to care for in an established tank. Lighting will depend on what type of anemone you get since each has a specific lighting requirement. Yes you need or should target feed the anemones. I use a turkey baster and squirt brine across them. Sometimes I will feed them a piece of squid or a feeder fish.

The amount of food required by corals depends upon the individual species, metabolic requirements and the amount of food available. In the wild, corals feed more actively at night rather than during the day. As the sun sets and the reef becomes darker, plankton rises from the reef, providing a food rich environment for the polyps. This is the major food source for most corals. Corals primary food source comes from a type of microscopic algae in their tissue called zooxanthellae. The zooxanthellae and coral have a symbiotic relationship, meaning each organism benefits from the other. Like other plants, the zooxanthellae in the coral tissue uses photosynthesis as a means of harnessing the sun's light and converting it to nutrients. Some of these nutrients, like oxygen and sugars, are used by the coral. The coral also produces waste products that the algae can use. Carbon dioxide, nitrates, and phosphates are waste products of the coral but important nutrients for the zooxanthellae.

Clean up crew, if your tank is new, there is nothing to clean up and they will starve. Do not think about them yet. Not until your tank has aged and you begin getting algae. 1 snail and 1 crab is fine for your tank. Starfish and urchans should not be added to your tank yet either. Urchans should not be added if you plan on having corals and only certain starfish.
If you already have one, your star fish needs to be target fed once per week. Use a turkey baster and shoot brine shrimp or Emerald entre around him. Also, sinking small pellets will be eaten as he moves over them. Starfish are not hard to keep but they are picky about their water requirements. Nitrites and ammonia need to remain almost undetectable and the nitrates need to be LOW. 40 or less.

Once you aquire corals you may want to reconsider turning your temps up a bit. Don't listen to what the fish stores tell you. Research your particular coral and find out where it comes from. Most corals (And fish) from the south pacific require temps around 83.

Good luck with your salt water and as always, feel free to email


As the sun sets on the reef and the zooxanthellae reduce their photosynthetic activity (which is used for fueling a high rate of calcification for growth), there isn't much left for the corals to do but eat.


EDIT:

Sorry, also, don't use reef boost and nutrasea They really are not needed. If you choose to use reef boost, here is a site that sells it for a lot less than $35 a bottle. it is only 19

http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=PD01211

Answer 3

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Answer 4

you need to get this so your base rock would become live rock faster its call reef booster they only sell in on eBay
works like a charm to me . my caroline algae don't stop growing and my live rock looks awsome ..

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=ADME:L:LCA:US:11&item=190121897030

don't worry about bidding just pm the seller and buy it direct i been buying this product for months now . made my base rock live in no time ..


"how many hermit crabs and snails for a cleanup crew?" like 6or 8 in total .

anenomea? for a 10 gallon i wound buy it . they 2 delicate they die relly fast .. sounds bad but its tru

sand sifter starfish?.. what do i feed it? or does it just get food from all the live stuff in my tank? and is it hard to keep?

sand sifter starfish
are one of the most hardy star fish you could find ..It likes to eat Eats benthic sand crustaceans like spaghetti worms, tube worms, copepods, amphipods and other sandbed infauna..