My seahorse tank is finally complete and now I am starting a 30

[Sengerseahorse]

Hello everyone. I am new to this forum and to the wonderful hobby of salt water. I thought I would share that my seahorses are thriving in thier new home. I have had them for about 2 weeks now along with my garden eels and I have gotten the itch to go bigger. So.......

I started to build my 30 gallon tall tank yesterday with a ton of help from my husband and I am curious as to your thoughts on my contemplation and why you made that choice.

Sump or canister?

My seahorse tank is a 14 gal biocube stock skimmer, etc... Built specifically for my horses. My 30 gal is going to house a clown, tang, and possibly a fire angel and I am going to attempt some soft corals.

Thanks for your input.

[Madmak]

I would suggest a sump, simply easier to work with and add/change equipment as you wish. The added water volume also help with the parameters and buffers any issues.

More importantly, I'd love to see some pics of the seahorse tank! I have a JBJ 24 sitting empty that I was considering for stallions.

[fishoholic]

30g tall is to small for a tang. Tangs like length to swim in 6 feet long, 180g, is ideal for a tang. Minimum 90g for smaller tangs like a kole tang.

A 14g is small for seahorses, never mind garden eels. The 30g tall would be a much better environment for seahorses.

As for garden eels if you want to keep a group of them they do best with minimum flow, 6 inch sandbed in a 100g or lager tank. Info on garden eels.
http://www.aquariumdomain.com/viewSp...ine.php?id=184

http://sea.sheddaquarium.org/sea/fact_sheets.asp?id=108

Can't help but wonder (since you have one post) if you are for real and honestly don't know any better or just attempting to get a rise out of people for having and talking about inappropriate set ups.

[gridley]

Welcome to Canreef. As you are here in Calgary a good help are the folks at Concept Aquatics - they will be able to you help think through the requierments for a healthy system.

[tim the toolman]

I agree with Laurie. Tanks sizes are much too small for what you intend on putting in them. Canreef is a great place place to inquire about anything you may need to know going forward. Welcome to the hobby. And welcome to canreef. And welcome to the jungle.

[Sengerseahorse]

Well wasn't that a nice warm welcome!

Dear Fishaholic;

YES I am for real, no I wasn't trying to get a rise out of you but obviously did.

I like to live by the old adage of if you don't have anything nice to say then don't say anything at all.

YES this was my first post on this particular forum whether you want to believe it or not, that is your choice. Everyone had to start at 1. Even you.

Wow.

[Baldy]

She wasnt trying to offend or make a rude comment. the tang issue is one that is hotly debated on this and many forums. what fishaholic is trying to say is more research into what your trying to keep is needed. if you put a tang in a 30g, it might be fine for a little while but it will very quickly outgrow the tank. at that point they get very stressed and wont live long. i cant speak for the garden eels myself. liveaquaria is a good starting place when researching new fish. there are many other good resources on the internet. research is key to keeping a successful tank!

[rayjay]

Yes, you do elicit responses when you post stating you have/propose conditions that hobbyists who truly research their hobby already know are not optimal or recommended.
Your 30g tank would be suitable to move a pair of standard seahorses to as the minimum recommended tank size for one pair is 29/30g, and an EXTRA 15g for each ADDITIONAL pair. This is without other tank mates.
Seahorses need the larger volume because in short time, they "dirty" the water so much that it feed bacterial beds like vibrio species, especially if the temperature is over 74°F. You don't really see the "dirty" but it comes from the eating habits of seahorses in that they masticate the food as they snick it up, passing particulate matter out through their gills and into the water column.
Also, any unseen uneaten food that can be trapped, also provides bedding for the vibrios and low volumes exacerbate the problem.
If you are interested in learning about your new seahorse keeping hobby, and are interested in doing the best you can for your charges, you can read the links at the BOTTOM of the page linked in my signature, "My Thoughts on Seahorse Keeping", written by experienced keepers and by probably the most respected seahorse breeder in North America.
Included in the links there should be a "tank mates" link which if you check it out, will show that garden eels are a threat level four, where zero is good and four is worst case scenario.
http://www.seahorse.org/library/arti...tes/eels.shtml

[fishoholic]

Originally Posted by Sengerseahorse

Well wasn't that a nice warm welcome!

Dear Fishaholic;

YES I am for real, no I wasn't trying to get a rise out of you but obviously did.

I like to live by the old adage of if you don't have anything nice to say then don't say anything at all.

YES this was my first post on this particular forum whether you want to believe it or not, that is your choice. Everyone had to start at 1. Even you.

Wow.

This is why I offered advice first before asking if you were for real or just new to the hobby and didn't know any better. Sadly there are people out there who create accounts and say things the most aquarists disagree with just to get a rise out people and start a hot debate. It sometimes gets to the point were you don't know if it's a newbie really seeking advice or if it's someone upset with canreef creating a new user name and account just to stir up trouble. Honestly the later does happen. I've overheard people in the fish stores brag about going to their friends house (in order to have access to a different ip address) and create a new account just to make posts that would "stir the pot" so to speak. So sorry, but I was curious and had to ask.

Originally Posted by TheNewGuy

She wasnt trying to offend or make a rude comment. the tang issue is one that is hotly debated on this and many forums. what fishaholic is trying to say is more research into what your trying to keep is needed. if you put a tang in a 30g, it might be fine for a little while but it will very quickly outgrow the tank. at that point they get very stressed and wont live long. i cant speak for the garden eels myself. liveaquaria is a good starting place when researching new fish. there are many other good resources on the internet. research is key to keeping a successful tank!

Thank-you, I was trying to give helpful advice for the OP to be aware of.

[Sengerseahorse]

Originally Posted by rayjay

Yes, you do elicit responses when you post stating you have/propose conditions that hobbyists who truly research their hobby already know are not optimal or recommended.
Your 30g tank would be suitable to move a pair of standard seahorses to as the minimum recommended tank size for one pair is 29/30g, and an EXTRA 15g for each ADDITIONAL pair. This is without other tank mates.
Seahorses need the larger volume because in short time, they "dirty" the water so much that it feed bacterial beds like vibrio species, especially if the temperature is over 74°F. You don't really see the "dirty" but it comes from the eating habits of seahorses in that they masticate the food as they snick it up, passing particulate matter out through their gills and into the water column.
Also, any unseen uneaten food that can be trapped, also provides bedding for the vibrios and low volumes exacerbate the problem.
If you are interested in learning about your new seahorse keeping hobby, and are interested in doing the best you can for your charges, you can read the links at the BOTTOM of the page linked in my signature, "My Thoughts on Seahorse Keeping", written by experienced keepers and by probably the most respected seahorse breeder in North America.
Included in the links there should be a "tank mates" link which if you check it out, will show that garden eels are a threat level four, where zero is good and four is worst case scenario.
http://www.seahorse.org/library/arti...tes/eels.shtml

I understand your point of view and respect others points of view but asking if I am for real or just trying to get a rise out of people was an outright insult to me. I may not be a "professional hobbiest" and some may not agree with what I have in my tank, but that doesn't warrent rude and disrespectful statements as such.

My dwarf seahorses and eels are living in harmony right now with perfect water params. I do plan on moving my 2 eels from my 2 seahorse tank as soon as I am cycled, but none the less they are all doing great. My biocube was the tank that was recommended to me for my horses which is why I bought it and the reccomendation was from a guy I have known for many years who knows his saltwater. It is specifically planted and built just for them.