Brand Brand new, hows my plan for stocking?

Hope1155

New Member
I have a 36 gallon bowfront. About 30 pou ds of live rock. 1and 1/2 inch of sand (was not live), a marineland 220 canister filter. I still need to get a proetin skimmer and a power head.
Questions... what powerhead should i get at what speed for this 36 gallon FOWLR tank?
...what protein skimmer will do the job without it being crazy expensive?
...my stocking plan ...
-2 clowns (i have already but by adding these two fish my tank is going through another mini cycle... im wonder if it wasnt ready like i thought after 6 weeks since my ammonia is ready 0.25 at the moment)
- 1 yellow watchman goby with pistol shrimp
- 1 royal gamma
- 1 purple firefish
- and lastly but maybe not i might add a midas or bicolor blenny after my tank is older and has more food for them.

Im thinking 5 fish no more than 6 for this size tank.

For CUC im thinking some red legged hermit crabs. Nassarius snails. And with the pistol shrimp i was also thinking a scarlett cleaner shrimp (which i read since they are on different levels they should be fine.)

Iv been doing alot of reading on each fish but personal experience i would love to hear. My one clown mostly sticks to the corner while the 2nd one is more active and the smaller of the two. Im wondering if i should have held off on getting the clowns last but honestly heard they were the hardier of the fish i wanted and needed that with being a beginner. Let me know what you think and if you have any advice on protein skimmer, powerhead, and compatible fish for my smallish tank. Thanks again.
 

Uncle99

Well-Known Member
Clowns are fine and a great choice in my mind. It is not unusual for them to stick to the corner when there is no host. Sometimes the corner, maybe a next to a heater, some structure that makes them feel safe.

I liked your list of livestock. Perfect in my mind.

By powerhead, I assume you mean something to create current.
I see no corals so a ton of movement is not required, but you want some movement for the exchange of gases process.

Hydor makes some reasonable priced wavemakers.

I use a coral life 65g skimmer, and while it works, it's a bit bulky.

The trick is once you have cycle, add things slowly so the bacteria can catch up to the newly added waste.

Nice job so far, and good luck
 

Hope1155

New Member
Clowns are fine and a great choice in my mind. It is not unusual for them to stick to the corner when there is no host. Sometimes the corner, maybe a next to a heater, some structure that makes them feel safe.

I liked your list of livestock. Perfect in my mind.

By powerhead, I assume you mean something to create current.
I see no corals so a ton of movement is not required, but you want some movement for the exchange of gases process.

Hydor makes some reasonable priced wavemakers.

I use a coral life 65g skimmer, and while it works, it's a bit bulky.

The trick is once you have cycle, add things slowly so the bacteria can catch up to the newly added waste.

Nice job so far, and good luck

Yea i just want it for movement for oxyenation. I cant have coral because i live in hawaii and its illegal to keep corals :( which sucks. So you think the five fish is good?... but would adding a blenny top me over ya think? Or i could get by with weekly or bimonthly water changes? Im not too worried about salt water because i get it FREE here.
 

Uncle99

Well-Known Member
Blenny is fine to the list of your fish only tank.
Some of my friends don't even have a filter because they have live rock and frequent water change.
Your canister will likely provide enough flow as there are no corals.
If you find your PH dropping below 8, this is a sign of poor water movement for the removal of carbon dioxide and the addition of oxygen.
A 20-30% water change would remedy this...
 

Hope1155

New Member
So I have been having issues with my ph dropping and i was assuming it was because of not enough water movement which was my thought process with adding a powerhead... or wavemaker. Iv been having to add a ph buffer daily just to keep it about 8.0 and that has been my official first problem im trying to solve as a newbie to saltwater tanks.
 

Uncle99

Well-Known Member
8.0 is fine for PH, you can try opening a window a bit to let in some fresh air, add an airstone, or the wavemaker pointed at the water surface. It's the surface agitation you need.

Mine never gets above 8.0 unless I add buffer, but that only lasts a day.

Try not to "chase" the numbers but find stability.
 
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