five gallon reef questions

[rogerwells]

ok i just got a five gallon tank for my girlfriend and i need to know a few things
1. what kind of star fish (if any) can go in a tank this size?
2. i had just planned on putting one clownfish in there but she wants another fish...would this be possible?
3. would an urchin be able to survive in a tank this size?
4. is there enough food in the tank for a small conch?

[Gwoardnog]

1. none
2. no (heck 1 clown is debatable)
3. probably not
4. nope

welcome to tiny tanks :)

[rogerwells]

hmm...i had figured all that but i think the clown will be good in the 5 gallon...i have seen people keep 2 in a six gallon....anyone else have any idea as to what other cool stuff i could put in there for her?

i had planned on a clown fish, a peppermint shrimp, some snails and 2 blue leg hermits

[surfnvb7]

agreed...

1. none
2. no (heck 1 clown is HIGHLY debatable)
3. probably not
4. nope

if you really want to ask a question to people who WILL say to keep a clown in a 5g......ask a more specific question...

like..."Who here has kept a clown, conch, urchin, or any kind of star in a 5g for more than 6months to a year?"

I am kinda doubting you'll get any responses to that...

As far as "cool" stuff in a small tank like that....tank full of xenia/shrooms, maybe some zoas.

I'd actually go with a whole platoon of sexy shrimp in a small tank as the only inverts along with snails in there. I think that would be highly entertaining to watch in a small tank like that.

If you go with any fish....I think you only have 2 options....a clown goby (kinda cruel IMO).....OR a neon goby (the tiny black ones with the blue stripe).

[rogerwells]

well...ok heres my new plan...get one small clown for the tank (i know they grow) then in six to seven months upgrade to a 10 gallon....sound good?

[louist]

I'd actually go with a whole platoon of sexy shrimp in a small tank as the only inverts along with snails in there.
It would appear Al has good tastes :D I saw a nano at the LFS with nothing but sexy shrimps and corals, and I said to myself "I gotta have one of those" :D

[surfnvb7]

haha yeah! i think that would be entertaining to watch with a bunch of them all by themselves in a small tank!!

but, sexyshrimp in any big tank with other stuff in there would be a big mistake...they would quickly become an expensive buffet.

[reefwick]

Why don't you just get the 10 gallon now????? Why wait 6 months to upgrade just 5 gallons??? Doesn't make much sense.

I think you should get the idea by now that your tastes require much larger tanks. This has been repeated in all of your recent posts.

[rogerwells]

well..its for my girlfriend....and i got her to five because she liked mine...but if after a few months she gets sick of the tank and starts not to take care of it then it will be easier to get rid of one clownfish and a five gallons worth of live rock then to get rid of everything in the ten gallon....and i dont have enough money...the five only cost me sixty total...the ten would of cost me more because i would have to get a new stand and everything for her....plus the five is purple so it matches her room well

[surfnvb7]

do you realize what you are saying?? she wants a tank b/c its a certain color, and she wants a certain fish b/c its certain popularity in the media?? this sounds like a recipe for dissaster.

get her a betta or something in FW that is cheap, make her prove she can keep something like this alive in the long term...

that what i did with my girlfriend, she started with a gold fish for a long time, but transfered into a "real" tank, then she did a FW planted tank with all kinds of FW tropical fish that was really nice for over a year...

now she's just starting a 10g saltwater tank (been going 5 months), and even she admits she is somewhat overwhelmed at the work (and the science) that goes into caring for it and her clown fish. i wouldnt even let her put a fish in there for several months until she learned how to do all the test kits, the salinity etc. learned the water chemistry, what fish are good for tanks, which aren't...along with what corals/inverts are good and not good.

if you are looking to impress a girl.....go buy her a pair of shoes or something. just dont get a pair too big or she will take that as you think her feet are fat, then you are really in a hole. :lol:

[reefwick]

surfnvb7 is right. He has a little bit of a sharp edge, but he is right. Unless your gonna take care of the tank (or think you'll end up taking care of the tank), Go the shrooms, zoanthid only route or FW something or other. Buying a tank that matches a room is such a girl thing, I can see that but make sure these animals have a knowledgeable keeper, not just a interior decorator.

[vest0830]

1. I kept a star fish in my tank for about 3 weeks, then it croked. learned that one the hard way. My wife bought it without asking me, she brought it home...I was like uhhhh....and it went in.

2. I then got 2 very tiny clowns. both were about a 1/4" long. They didnt stay in there very long. after about 5 months, they are now about an inch long. They outgrew that tank very fast, they also ate like pigs.

3. no. I wouldnt even attempt it.

4. no. also wouldnt attempt it.

When I had my old 5g set up, I had a few zoo's, a small lather, and some shrooms. It thrived very nice, and looked very nice as well. Im on my work conputer, so I have no pics, but it looked pretty nice. I also see your a little low on the cash flow. Keeping a reef tank is not a cheap hobby. Plus, it gets VERY addicting VERY fast. You also said you will upgrade...buy stuff over time. Get this small tank set up, then maybe in a few weeks buy a new tank, then a few weeks later get powerheads, then lights, then sand...and then it will be time to move everything...and you will be so anxious by then anyways, you will put every last dime you have into it.

One more question I have. You say this is for your GF. Is this a long term thing? Saltwater is not a whenever you feel like it hobby. I neglected mine for a week and it got very nasty in just that short amount of time.

[rogerwells]

yeah i got her a goldfish for her birthday in june...thats why i got her the new tank....but the clown will be harder then the gold fish so hopefully by june if she still wants a fish then ill upgrade to the ten...yeah we been going out for like two years so if she neglects the tank ill be ready to step in....vest i think you are the only guy in here that has looked at my situation as a half full not half empty thing here...the one clown should be fine for a few months then ill move it to the ten gallon

[vest0830]

Sounds good. If you put your mind to it, it can work. People here have very "by the book" kinda ways of doing things as im sure you know.

Theres more than one way of doing this.Yes, there are some things that just have to be done a certain way but notice how many members there are as opposed to how many "look at my tank threads" or even pictures of tanks posted. Research the "I havent touched my tank in XXXX amount of time" and look at the threads where people are always messin with there tanks.

Like I said, theres more than one way to do this hobby. If you fail to plan, plan to fail. Its pretty simple when you get the hang of it.

[rogerwells]

yeah...i have had a 29 for about six months now but i didnt know the limits on what i could put into a five...thats why i thought i would come on here before i killed something

[Cutiewitbooty]

i wouldn't even put 2 clowns in my 10 gal. Just get her a betta or some Fw neon tetras, guppys or something. Is the goldfish you got her still alive?

[rogerwells]

i already got the sw and sand and rock in the tank....and the goldfish died because hairspray got in the tank....she does he hair near the goldfish bowl and since it didnt have a lid the chemicals killed it

[The Lance]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6443282#post6443282 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rogerwells
i already got the sw and sand and rock in the tank....and the goldfish died because hairspray got in the tank....she does he hair near the goldfish bowl and since it didnt have a lid the chemicals killed it

Hopefully she learned on that one! It seems like a waste of your money and a lot of extra work for you when she could just enjoy your tank. Sorry for joining the half empty party, but it's all your call in the end.

[wjhuie]

I would just go with some cool invet and some corals.

[reefwick]

There's are responsible reefer....... If she can't keep a goldfish alive she has no business near a saltwater tank. Roger everything you have stated in this whole thread should clearly show you this is a bad idea. C'mon man think for a minute here.

[rogerwells]

well the clown died cause of hairspray...this tank has a hood....im thinking of just going with a clown goby or a court jester goby....but i dont want to get corals for the tank cause thats extra money for lights....im saving up for lights for my tank

[BadReefLover]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6431274#post6431274 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by surfnvb7
do you realize what you are saying?? she wants a tank b/c its a certain color, and she wants a certain fish b/c its certain popularity in the media?? this sounds like a recipe for dissaster.

get her a betta or something in FW that is cheap, make her prove she can keep something like this alive in the long term...

that what i did with my girlfriend, she started with a gold fish for a long time, but transfered into a "real" tank, then she did a FW planted tank with all kinds of FW tropical fish that was really nice for over a year...

now she's just starting a 10g saltwater tank (been going 5 months), and even she admits she is somewhat overwhelmed at the work (and the science) that goes into caring for it and her clown fish. i wouldnt even let her put a fish in there for several months until she learned how to do all the test kits, the salinity etc. learned the water chemistry, what fish are good for tanks, which aren't...along with what corals/inverts are good and not good.

if you are looking to impress a girl.....go buy her a pair of shoes or something. just dont get a pair too big or she will take that as you think her feet are fat, then you are really in a hole. :lol:

Look buddy. My boyfriend posted this with a specific question. either answer it or dont you butt in. I've had a betta before thank you. It lived for 5 years. And although my boyfriend may have thought so, hairspray didnt kill my goldfish. It died a week after we bought it, and I had not been using hairspray. The hairspray incident occured when the tank was empty. I am responsible enough to have a REAL tank thank you sir. And I didn't pick out the purple tank, but thank you for stereotyping me. My boyfriend bought the purple one because he thought I would like it. He is a thoughtful person... who doesn't distrust me or patronize me because I'm a female. Being a girl doesn't keep me from being able to take care of a reef tank. I feel bad for your girlfriend for having to deal with someone like you who thinks otherwise. He thought I should start out small. That's fine, I'll work with what I have, but thank you for anwsering honestly... I wouldn't have known otherwise what I could keep. That said... stay out of people's personal business you smartass. Just answer the fish questions.

[BadReefLover]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6445032#post6445032 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rogerwells
well the clown died cause of hairspray...this tank has a hood....im thinking of just going with a clown goby or a court jester goby....but i dont want to get corals for the tank cause thats extra money for lights....im saving up for lights for my tank

Roger, we never got a clownfish.. i think you meant goldfish. ...but that is also wrong. You know i didnt kill that.

Either way that information is irrelevant to the original question. All we needed to know was what could we put in my tank.
That's it.. Yes or No.

[Siffy]

BadReefLove,

Take a browse through these
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/scateg.cfm?pCatId=2124
The Nano Fish section of marine fish on Live Aquaria.
I'd recommend the Neon Goby, Neon Gold Goby, Clown Goby, maybe a Catalina Goby (I think those are pretty), or either of the Firefish. I'd stay away from sand sifting gobies due to the lack of sand surface area. And of course a shrimp (I like skunks) if you'll have plenty of rock to crawl on. But, yeah, those are just my preferences and you should look through the nano fish list then consult either you bf, rc, or both. Most of those do fine in a 10 gallon, but fewer are ok in a 5. Oh, as for the "instead of a tank", I would have recommended a purse.

[rogerwells]

will the firefish be good in the five? cause i thought they needed more room....also the tank probably wont have a hood and i know they are jumpers....im going to get better lighting and get some corals in there...and i think we are going with a clown goby

[vest0830]

My post got deleted for some reason. Maybe I shouldnt repeat what I said. In a nutshell, Good luck roger. Make it happen. ;)

now you should have the motivation to pove these people wrong.

[BadReefLover]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6453891#post6453891 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by vest0830
My post got deleted for some reason. Maybe I shouldnt repeat what I said. In a nutshell, Good luck roger. Make it happen. ;)

now you should have the motivation to pove these people wrong.

I appreciate that. Some of these people need to get over themselves.

Anyway, so thanks. I think my tank is going to do really well.

[rogerwells]

yeah kc thats the vest dude i said was awesome....i dont know why they deleted what you said

[eco170]

Why don't you get a whole school of fish while your at it! I mean if there's space in the tank you should fill it right? Just because you CAN and people have made something work it dosen't mean you should. It's not good for the fish. People on this board are here not only as hobbyist, but there here to help inform and improve the quality of care for these animals. As far as I'm concerned if you put that fish in a tank like that your no better than someone that abuses there dog.