# Please help me on how many watts?



## claykell (Jan 16, 2007)

Hello I am new to this. I have a 55 gallon saltwater tank since Dec. 2006. I have so far top fin 60 filter on the back, undergravel filter with 2 powerheads (that side has crushed coral) other side is live sand. Also I have a visi-jet skimmer ( which is junk). 
In my tank so far I have 4 medium to small live rock and some artificial rock. 4 blue-green chromis, 2 turbo snails, 2 hermit crabs. I don't plan on getting any soft corals just maybe adding later 2 clown fish, yellow tang and couple more live rock, and maybe a starfish. Nothing to hard. Just kind of on the simple side. My question is that I need different lighting in my tank and I am kind of stuck because I don't really want to spend a whole lot. Also I don't want to order anything because I don't want to order to many watts and burn my fish or other living things. So my question is can I just get a 48" compact fluorescent dual strip with 28 watt 10,000K and 28 watt true actinic 03 blue T-5. Or do I need more or less watts? Can someone tell me either way. Thanks! :fish:


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

*sigh* 

Sure, why not?

Okay, look... this is gonna be a big mess, and soon. Your choice of lighting is a very small problem in comparison to... let's back up a bit: why on earth did you set up your tank like that? Who told you that that was the way to go? Was it the same guy who told you a yellow tang and a pair of clowns would go together in a 55, especially with all those damsels?


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## fishkeeper1289 (Feb 20, 2007)

how much money are you looking to spend?


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## Bear (Jun 8, 2006)

...wow...just wow

I'd like to see a pic of the tank and how its set up to get a better clue on whats going on


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## vvolfe1 (Oct 9, 2006)

Well for lights depending on the kind at least 80 watts for now. Thats about as low as you can go. The lighting all depends on the live stock you want to keep though. Fish only tanks with live rock need less than a reef tank filled with corals. 3-5 watts is a general rule. It really depends on what you keep though. I have used a 4 foot shop light with 40 watt bulbs for a bit with just live rock. Once I put in some corals I fired up a 175 metal halide to go along with the 2 40's.
On another note though I understand that you are new. Being new you might want to think about doing some research on what you can do with your tank. Saltwater aquariums can be very beautiful and rewarding as a hobby. One great thing about the internet is the vast resources and knowledge you can access. I have yet seen anyone on the forums that would like to see anyone fail at this hobby. Research is the most important part of this hobby for new and old. I understand that being new to this that starting up is quite costly. The more informed you become the less mistakes you will make and the more money you can save.


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## claykell (Jan 16, 2007)

Why did you ask why I set my tank up like that? Did I do something wrong? Can I post a picture? Because I will glady show you what it looks like. I do not want to spend hundreds of dollars on lighting. I mainly got into the saltwater because I love how it looks and because my kids wanted to get a nemo fish like the movie so I decided to get saltwater. But it just isn't because of all those reasons I decided to go saltwater. I guess I enjoy watching also.
Also I went to the animart and they told be to go with the blue-green chromis instead because the are less aggressive than the regular damsels. Because once I add more fish the will not be aggressive to them. Is that true?


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## claykell (Jan 16, 2007)

don't want to speed alot but I found a couple on 247petshop.com for not a whole lot of $


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## leveldrummer (May 27, 2005)

why are you upgrading your light? are you trying to keep some coral? or do you just want the tank to look better?


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## claykell (Jan 16, 2007)

I just have bulbs from walmart for saltwater tanks and the pet store told me I need more lighting for my live rocks because it has some plants and corals on it in order to keep them alive.


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

Saltwater is not cheap. No way around it. You may be able to save a few $$ by buying used pieces (from reefers who are upgrading and whatnot) or sale items but if you do not want to invest $500.00 for startup and get the proper equipment, you will be throwing your money away on inadequate items. I dont mean to sound harsh so dont take it that way, but you are throwing money away on stuff that will not work together and risking the lives of your livestock.


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## claykell (Jan 16, 2007)

I am not going to take anything you tell me harsh. I am learning and have been reading on somethings but everyone has their own opinion on their own way to do things and I guess I was just asking again to get more information. I don't mind spending the money I guess I was never really told what equipment you really need to have except the basic to start. Sorry for all the questions. Thanks


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## harif87 (Jun 5, 2006)

Im shocked more by the flaming this guy got than the setup he has. Lets help the poor guy.


Clay, to start with the suggestions .... #1 ditch the undergravel filter. It will only clog up and make your nitrates high. I would also invest in a better skimmer. You might want more hermits/snails as a clean up crew. If your getting 2 clowns make sure their mated pairs. Also what kind of clowns are you keeping?

As far as lights go, i would say that the PCs you chose would be good under the given circumstances, which is that you dont plan on keeping any corals. Just a tip, pracitcally, there is no such thing as too much light unless you had a whole sun right on top of your tank so dont worry about burning the fish. 
Also about what vvolfe said (no offense to vvolfe) about 3-5 watts per gallon, thats the most general rule there is. Its so general that its not meant to be taken litterally. It all depends on what type of lighting you have. PC's vs metal halides are a huge difference so i wouldnt go by that "general rule"

Another thing, how much live rock do you have in your tank? I get the vibe that you dont have that much so i would consider getting more.

Also if those damsels are different in size your going to have alot of aggression towards the smaller one. Its best that they not be housed together nor with other peaceful fish.

I would also forget about getting a starfish right away. If you have a young tank itll starve. Its also not realyl reccommended to get one in a mature tank without a refugium since itll wipe out the pod population, which is what the star fish feed on.

Hope this offered some help.


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## claykell (Jan 16, 2007)

If I take the undergravel filter out now. Can all of my stuff live with just the one filter on the back which is top fin 60 and my skimmer till I get whatever else I need to get?


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## harif87 (Jun 5, 2006)

Well your skimmer and live rock are your first defense against bad water quality. You dont really need much mechanical filtration, but you should keep water flow up so you dont have dead spots where you can have nitrate build ups.


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## claykell (Jan 16, 2007)

Here is a picture of my tank so far. Let me know if this works cuz I just signed up at photobucket. Thanks!


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## NewfieFishGuy (Jul 27, 2006)

It worked.


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## harif87 (Jun 5, 2006)

Try getting some Live Rock (its expensive but needed), not limestone or decorative rocks. Itll serve as chemical filtration. You generally need about 1-1.5 pounds per gallon depending on the type of rock


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## claykell (Jan 16, 2007)

I plan on getting more live rock but 2 out of the 4 rocks I have, they have those aiptasias on them and I ordered some joe's juice. But hopefully this weekend I will get it and get a couple more live rock. Thanks


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## i have crabs (Apr 30, 2006)

saltwater fish for dummies,go buy it and read it front to back and then get a part time job, your gonna need a lot of stuff in the future. i started with a 20g and now my smallest filter is 55g, its a bad curse but worth it


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## vvolfe1 (Oct 9, 2006)

claykell I'll send you a pm to a site with a guy with LR for sale close to you. I think it is $3/lb. He might let it go for less not sure.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Before you buy any more rock, carefully consider just why you want it and what you want it to do for you, and consider what you're willing to do for _it_, lightwise.

As for your green chromis, yes it's true that they aren't as bad as the other damsels, but they still don't belong in a tank with a tang and a pair of nemos. Actually, I guess they might be fine, as long as you lose the tang and give the clowns some turf to call their own on one end of the tank and some other turf on the other end for the damsels. 
By turf, I DON'T mean an anemone. An anemone would never survive in this tank. Never. Don't even think about it. Just some other clump of structure they can hunker down inside but still see all around themselves.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

Hey kelly, sorry I haven't posted yet... and sorry I didn't really ask you in depth about your filtration! Undergravel filters have been out of favor by most of the hobby for quite a while now. Really not necessary in a saltwater tank and more of a problem than they are worth. Who set you up with it???

Cheapish skimmers that work decent are hard to come by... but coralife super skimmers fit the bill. Also a yellow tang might be a stretch for a 55 gallon tank (Adults are the size of a dinner plate)... but you might want to look into the lemonpeel angelfish or the kole tang as they might be better canidates. I can order both so just let me know. 

As for the liverock, and I might have gone over this with you before. The basic function is biological filtration and creates places for the fish to hide. You can keep the "basic function" of liverock with out really expensive lighting, BUT some really cool stuff can come on it that needs a bit more lighting than your regular florescents. Used lights can be found on our club forum (CWRC - Central Wisconsin Reef Club) or Madison Area Reef society or Appleton Reer Society, which may help you out as far as price goes. Also people sell liverock on those sites. 

For now, I'd just do this one thing: get rid of the undergravel filter and use the power heads for flow. Wait for a good deal on lights, then wait for a good deal on liverock. And don't go to animart  they sold you apitasia without really warning you of what it could do... and thats not right.


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## claykell (Jan 16, 2007)

well I took out the undergravel filter and it wasn't as hard as I thought! Thanks for all the help. It seems to be doing great.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

Glad to hear it... and glad to hear that we haven't scared you off Kelly.


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