Seahorse tank requirements

[oceanhighz]

I was thinking about setting up a 10 gallon tank for dwarf sea horses. I was wondering what kind of equipment everyone uses on their tanks. If I need to wait for another skimmer I am going to do so. Just let me know what you people think.

thanks alot,
Brandon

[mystari]

10 gal would be the largest tank I would put dwarfs in. If you choose to go this big, you can put a gazillion horses in there. (Not really, but you can put A LOT!!):rolleyes: www.seahorse.org has a stocking chart and states 16 as optimal. You want to be able to have the bbs ratio good without too many bbs.....

I have a 5 gal, 8 horses, black sand, fake plants, some live caulerpa, a couple seahorse trees a couple blue legged hermits and a couple of snails. Mine is an Eclipse knock-off, I use the mech filter with a sponge over the in take and that is it!!

You need to keep dwarf tanks pretty basic. NO live rock though.

Hop on over to seahorse.org, there is a special section just for dwarfs and a lot of really knowledgeable/helpful people.

Good Luck,

Tari

[pnosko]

Why no LR? Also, is your "knock-off" using the biowheel? If not, where's the biofiltration coming from?

[Will]

no live rock because almost all live rock contains some hydroid species and hydroids sting fish. the sting of a hydroid can prove fatal to a dwarf seahorse. also, with the deluges of bbs used to feed dwarfs, hydroids bloom and capture much of the food that should be going to the seahorses.
fourhand2

[pnosko]

fourhand2,
1) this tank is your sig, it's for seahorses?
2) Why the "reef" lighting?
3) what's your substrate?

mystari,
1) Is your "knock-off" using the biowheel?
2) If not, where's the biofiltration coming from?

[Will]

>1) this tank is your sig, it's for seahorses?
yes, it's my seahorse tank
>2) Why the "reef" lighting?
it also encorporates corals and clams, but is not a full-blown reef tank. actually though, i'm planning on moving the seahorses into a tank of their own in the near future. read a thread in dr. ron's forum called "seahorse biome" for more info on that project..
>3) what's your substrate?
it is live sand. it's about 2.5", but im considering slowly adding more sand in an effort to create a dsb...
fourhand2

[mystari]

pnosko -

Sorry for the late reply, haven't been here for a few days. No bio-wheel on the tank, just the whisper filter. I would have to say the biofiltration is the sand. I have approx 2" sand, my water parameters are always perfect. Have had this tank set up since June (I believe) and had no water quality issues.

Tari