10 Gallon Nano please help

[mutts]

i use eggcrate on all my tanks, but is cuts down on a little light, not really much to worry about as long as you keep it clean and don't paint it black like I did

i change my carbon once a month or so. i normally don't worry about it unless their is a problem in the tank

and like tracy said patience is SOOOO important!

[mutts]

ah! i forgot somthing

coraline can grow under normal output flourescents two of my tanks are under 160W of NO lighting. and they grow it like mad. but their are several factors. one is making sure your live rock has some when you get it, otherwise it is impossable to grow it without a living sample in the tank, the more lighting you have on the tank the faster it will grow

[lReef lKeeper]

another factor for coralline is calcium + alkalinity being in the right parameters for better growth. in new tanks with new water and no coals you should be ok on this if you used a GOOD salt mix !!

[playa0069u]

Thank you all so much you have been so much more helpful than another forum I am a member of in everything I have asked. so under 1 18" flourescents, I would grow coraline? or no? or just slowly?.... how slow are we talkin here lol

[playa0069u]

also, are there any specific bulbs I should get? i was just gonna get a cool white and a blue from wal mart? do I need a 20 dollar bulb just for coraline? will it help?

[jojo22]

I'm not trying to be rude but if a $20 bulb is going to make that big of a difference then maby saltwater is not a good hobby for you at this time. I'm also not trying to scare you away from it, I guess what I AM saying is that you should do lots of research before you buy anything except maby a bigger clean up crew. The info here is second to none I might also add that The concentious marine aquarist (sp) by Robert Fenner it would do anyone new to the hobby well past the fourty dollars it costs. Yes the book is about twice the cost of a walmart bulb. You may also want to do price searching on needed items, such as a protien skimmer, powerheads, and if you want to keep corals you will need much better lighting. I personaly spent about $150 for a pc ficture for my 10 gallon. If after all of this you want to stick with it thats GREAT this hobby hehehe...should I say addiction can be as rewarding as you make it. If you decide to hold off a little while PLEASE stay ask questions, learn and soon you will be helping others (I am liveing proof of this) as we all love to share our knowledge here.

P.S. to answer your question coraline will grow very slowly under NO lighting ( I would say 6-9 months before you see any) but this can also happen with the best lighting. Keep your cal/alk up any prepair for about as much fun as watching grass grow. I would suggest the best lighting you can afford well because it never hurts to buy the next step up.

[playa0069u]

I have been researching for about a month or two now and have everything I need except the light. I am 17 and have no job. I have a girlfriend and with all the girlfriend stuff my options are limited with every dollar. We are starting a tank together 29 gallon with a 55watt dual compact flourescent, but i wanted to start my own little nano at my place. i dont want anything expensive... obviously. I want a tank with a goby, a pistol shrimp, and a fish ... a royal gramma or something maybe? im still looking at fish. I have 70 pounds of base rock to choose from, a powerhead, 2 NO light fixtures, a glass lid, aragonite sand, and i want to buy a little LR some LS (from established tanks), a hob, some good salt, bulbs and eventually a cleanup crew. I was just wondering if a blue and a white bulb from wally world would cover it, because my lfs blows with lights. They tell me "don't buy bulbs from us, they are rediculous" so would the expensive bulbs make that much of a difference or no?

[mutts]

you can always look online for bulbs at some of the online stores there are some good ones go look at the vender review part of the site

i understand being 17 and the money thing, my suggestion is get a job and fast! trust me, i'm 18 working 2 jobs and going to college and i can bearly afford all my tanks. and being a boy you will need a job or your tank or gf will suffer!!

other then that good luck!

[dsfdbutterfly]

I think the bottom line is this, I've seen crazy things in this hobby. Things that shouldn't be growing under the light that they are being provided. Tanks that are ignored and florishing. Stuff like that. If your walmart is good then they may have good enough lights for you. Most aren't though. I've found decent ones at my home depot and if you have a town that you can travel to that has a pets mart or similar they are cheaper than shipping light bulbs for that size usually.

The glass over the tank is a personnal preferance but most people will tell you it's a bad idea in the salt business. Most people don't put air stones in their saltwater tanks so it limits the oxygen exchange and also inhibits the lights. I have many fish that are considered jumpers and don't have anything over my tank. I've gotten lucky though cuz I know many have had fish jump to their deaths. If you are concerned with this I would use the eggcreate.

We all tend to spend what we can on our obsession/hobby here. When the bug gets a hold of you extra money is a thing of the past. You do have to find places to save money in this hobby as EVERYTHING is expensive. DIY projects are the best way and to see if you can get in with any local reefing groups. Many people can save you money on corals and other items. Work smarter not harder someone once told me.

It's hard to decide but the best thing for you to do to save money is to decide what your goals are. That will give you the best idea on what kind of money you need to spend on lighting, filters and other items. Just remember, you can get as complicated or as simple as you want. You just have to know what you want out of it so that you make it happen.

Angie