# 20G Saltwater Tank?



## LenL (Oct 13, 2015)

Hello Fish Folks!

I have a new 20 gallon tank not yet set up...I will be running an aquaclear 50 filter on it, LED lights and a 50w heater. I am familiar with african cichlids and assorted tropical fish, currently have a 55g and a 37g tank going. My question...what would you suggest for a 20g tall tank? I dont want to do coral, i'm looking for something that wouldnt require special lighting or filtration.

Thanks!


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## badxgillen (Aug 20, 2010)

Regardless of whether you do corals or not I would look into either getting a skimmer for the tank to prolong degradation of water chemistry or make sure to do routine water changes, preferably once a week, to keep the organics and nitrates down. A skimmer generally pays for itself in the amount of salt saved and well being of the livestock.

As far as stocking a 20 is it tall or long? I generally prefer long as it has more surface area to it but either will work. I would recommend some of the nano fishes so that you can stock more in the tank. Some of the smaller gobies are nice additions such as the hectors, yasha, antennae, and yellow watchmen. I love blennies too and there could be a decent selection of smaller guys like the tailspot, bicolor, and flame tail. Once the tank is established with copopods and isopods you culd add a dragonette such as the green target, ruby red, scooter, or the classic green and blue. There are some nice dartfish that don't get too big like the fire fish that has at least three variants including a purple.


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## LenL (Oct 13, 2015)

Thanks! It is a 20G tall. The skimmer sounds like a great plan. Recommendations on a hardy fish to use for the break in? Would Damsels be too big? I had used damsels before, but in a larger tank many years ago.


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## badxgillen (Aug 20, 2010)

If you are set on putting a damsel in to assist in keeping the cycle going I would recommend a smaller variety and removing him prior to putting in the later stock. You can try and put him back after the other fish have gotten their bearings but be prepared to remove the damsel again if things get ugly. They can show a bit or territoriality toward newcomers in the tank.


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## Pasfur (Mar 29, 2008)

There are many ways to go about setting up a successful saltwater aquarium. I personally take a very different approach to what is being discussed here.

To me, small tanks such as this one should be extremely easy in comparison to the larger setups many first time saltwater aquarists attempt. The key here is to understand what you are attempting to accomplish. You must understand up front that you simply can not keep much livestock in a saltwater aquarium of this size. One tank in my fishroom currently is a 20 gallon long with 3 damsels and a hermit crab. This is a simple as it gets, with very little upkeep required. My 20 gallon freshwater tanks are much more time consuming.

Your current filtration of choice will work, but will result in rising Nitrates & Phosphates, leading to more maintenance in the form of water changes and diatom outbreaks. It would be far easier to simply set up a natural aquarium with a live sand bed and live rock. You could continue to utilize the hang on filter simply for water movement. I personally wouldn't use filter media of any type in such a setup. You could make a decent argument to use activated carbon, but could equally argue against it and it is unnecessary.

The fish selection will be the most difficult part, as many of the smaller fish available to best in setups with large populations of amphipods & copepods. Some small fish, such as Mandarin Dragonets, are virtually impossible to sustain in a marine aquarium due to their dietary needs. Leave these for the absolute EXPERTS and do not even consider purchasing one. Many years ago I wrote a sticky for the reference area of this website. I put a tremendous amount of thought into this sticky, with the idea being to help the beginner in fish selection. It isn't terribly long, i strongly recommend giving it a read before you get started. http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/...h-compatability-creating-stocking-list-38579/

Regardless of which school of thought you take to proceed, just be patient and you will have the best shot of success! Good luck!


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## badxgillen (Aug 20, 2010)

I must admit that I get presumptuous that people starting out a new tank utilize live sand and live rock which is generally the best way to go. Research, research, research, and patience will be your friend in the beginning. Going too fast in saltwater always ends up with someone or something having a bad experience or costing a reasonable sum of money.

On the Dragonettes many of what we get in shipments here are captive raised and readily take frozen foods and quite often processed. It used to be that they were all wild caught and imported, I would look into this at your distributor. When purchasing fish from a store I like to insist on seeing the animal eat before purchase or at the least make sure the employees knew what it was eating when they were feeding it. You can't keep a fish with no appetite for what you have to offer.

Thanks a bunch for adding in the link Pasfur, a good read.


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## Pasfur (Mar 29, 2008)

badxgillen said:


> On the Dragonettes many of what we get in shipments here are captive raised and readily take frozen foods and quite often processed. It used to be that they were all wild caught and imported, I would look into this at your distributor. When purchasing fish from a store I like to insist on seeing the animal eat before purchase or at the least make sure the employees knew what it was eating when they were feeding it. You can't keep a fish with no appetite for what you have to offer.


What's the long term outlook on the captive raised Dragonettes? I don't recall having many hobbyists complain that the Dragonettes won't eat... its more of a nutrition issue. They quickly wipe out the amphipod/copepod populations in a tank and then become malnourished from an improper diet. You know... a kid will eat pizza all day long... but after a few years of nothing but pizza that kid probably isn't doing to well.


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## badxgillen (Aug 20, 2010)

Its hard to answer that one on behalf of other people, I wish there was some information on captive animal lifespans in various conditions. I personally have one mandarin that is at least 5 years old, my wife has one that is several years old as well. I know they live much longer than this as do many of the marine fishes we keep. A couple clowns I have are well over 10 and I have a 15 year old tang and Royal Gramma, a pet store I worked at for ten years have had the same clowns in their display for over 25 years. 
I would agree on your comment, if you feed pizza things won't work out that well and that is applicable to most of our animals, it is so very true.

In retrospect 
I will agree with Pasfur and say that they may not be a realistic choice for a novice as they often need to be spot fed sometimes only taking one type of food. Sorry if I seemed misleading, we all mean for the best outcome of your future tank.
Good to see that you are doing some research. Studying and patience will get you far in this hobby.


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