# can i swing it with out a protien skimmer?



## Patbmx (May 4, 2010)

i have a 40g tank proper filtration 
im ganna have 4 maybe 5 green chromis and 2 clown fish (i heard there will be problems between these 2 is this true?) and 2 scooter blennys.
live rock and anemone (these need light i know so this will be in line of a window will this be sufficent?)

can i swing it with out a protien skimmer or is it mandatory?


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

Patbmx said:


> i have a 40g tank proper filtration
> im ganna have 4 maybe 5 green chromis and 2 clown fish (i heard there will be problems between these 2 is this true?) and 2 scooter blennys.
> live rock and anemone (these need light i know so this will be in line of a window will this be sufficent?)
> 
> can i swing it with out a protien skimmer or is it mandatory?


i dont know anything about compatibility but i would think the amount of fish you are thinking about is too many in a tank that small which ive heard when it comes to saltwater basically anything under 55 gallons can be concidered nano and if you overstock it the entire tank could crash where if its a larger tank it is able to bounce back most of the time. I dont think the chromis and clowns are gonna be a problem together because we have about 4 chromis and 1 clown in in our "show" tank at work and yes it is a poor excuse for a show tank thats why there are chromis in there. now i do think the two clowns could potentially be a problem as they do get aggressive as they get older and don't like other clowns. I dont know lighting requirements of anemones but i do know that putting it by a window is not sufficient source of UVB. The glass of windows filters out almost if not all UVB whatever UVB might be left is then filtered out by your glass aquarium and the water. to achieve the sufficient amount of light you need specialized lights made with specialized glass that doesn't filter as much light. I read somewhere that anemones dont require metal hallids but it is better for them. as for the protein skimmer yes you need one unless there is some method of doing it yourself that i am unaware of but i dont think so lol. sorry if any of this information is incorrect as i said i dont know much about salt water and i am just going of the best of my knowledge hopefully soon enough i will move into a more permanent living arangement and be able to start up my own tank and build some knowledge.


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## petlovingfreak (May 8, 2009)

A skimmer is a VERY GOOD investment! Without it you will have to do many more water changes, and the water chemistry won't stay as consistent, I highly recommend one!! It will pay for itself in the long run, trust me!


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## kay-bee (Dec 6, 2006)

What type of anemone do you have?

Somewhat off topic:

How long have you had your scooter blenny's? (they're actually dragonets), or are you just plannig to get them?

Scooters tend to be exclusive consumers of 'pods (copepods, amphipods and other live micro-crustaceans) and usually require larger tanks (75gal+) with lots of live rock to support a sustaining population of pods. Unless you have a fuge or some remote pod population to replenish what's being consumed in the tank a single scooter can wipe of the pod population in a 40gal in fairly quick order. 

Two scooters may be too many for the typical 40gal. If you haven't gotten them yet you may want to omit them from your list of fish to get (most usually starve to death if they don't have access to adequate numbers of live pods or aren't conditioned to eat other types of foods). Even if they manage to be adapt to eat other foods they're easily outcompeted by most other fish during feeding time.


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## Osiris (Jan 18, 2005)

I have ran quite a few reef's without skimmer, and strictly refugium's, skimmers take awhile to get set correctly and keep overflowing.

With proper water changes, it can be achieved. As for scooter blennies, yes, they do eat pods, but they do eat frozen food too, they aren't as picky as their mandarin cousin's and are easier to get to eat frozen foods.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

The chromis are a bad idea with the clowns... why does everyone want green chromis? they are ugly, so many better fish out there.


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## Patbmx (May 4, 2010)

kay-bee said:


> What type of anemone do you have?
> 
> Somewhat off topic:
> 
> ...


i dont have any living thing in my tank yet this i what im planing to get.



as for the scooter blennys or dragonets. i am well aware of there diet situation. i was ganna get them started as the first thing in my tank and im ganna try to get them to eat brine shrimp. and then adapt them to another type of food. such as sinking pelets possibly?

as for the anemone i plan to get Sebae.


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

Fishfirst said:


> The chromis are a bad idea with the clowns... why does everyone want green chromis? they are ugly, so many better fish out there.


sooo true green chromis suck lol.


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

Patbmx said:


> i dont have any living thing in my tank yet this i what im planing to get.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


you most deffinetly wont want to start with the scooters because they are a lot more delicate and if you are gonna get green chromis start with those its a much wiser decision because they are much more hardy and are pretty much intended for balancing a saltwater tank out. What we tell everyone at work is cycle your tank first with nothing in it for about a month then get green chromis/damsels keep them for about 4 weeks then switch to your more expensive fish. as for the anemone clowns seem to take to bubble tips a lot better.


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## Tallonebball (Apr 6, 2009)

I would suggest just staying away from an anemone unless you feel like getting a nice lighting system. The window will not cut it. The only type of anemone you can get away with this a condy which is not the type you would want.
Also It takes a salt tank around 4 to 6 months to be fully stable. Anemones need a fully stable tank.
As people said the dragonets are hard to keep, they normally will only eat copepods and its hard to get them to switch onto any other food. It could take you a while to build up a live copepod base as well.
The two clowns are fine as long as you get them young. Clownfish "chose" their sex as they get older, so if you get two young ones, they will most likely turn male/female.
Look into gobies, cardinals, and blennies and see what you like and ask us about them.
Oh and invest in a protein skimmer, it will help you in the long run.


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## Osiris (Jan 18, 2005)

I 2nd the anemone comment by tallon, they need superior lighting and a well established system. And more experience as in a few hours of owning one they can get sucked into your filter system without you knowing.


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## Tallonebball (Apr 6, 2009)

Also if an anemone dies and you dont see if fast enough, they will pollute your tank and kill most everything in your tank.


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## Patbmx (May 4, 2010)

moved questions


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## Patbmx (May 4, 2010)

Tallonebball said:


> I would suggest just staying away from an anemone unless you feel like getting a nice lighting system. The window will not cut it. The only type of anemone you can get away with this a condy which is not the type you would want.
> 
> Also It takes a salt tank around 4 to 6 months to be fully stable. Anemones need a fully stable tank.
> 
> ...


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

At least you asked first instead of just going and buying all that stuff, so that's good. 
Most everything else is not so good.

Time it takes to get 40 pounds of live rock able to support a single dragonet----> six months.
Cost of feeding a scooter that won't eat non-live food--- about 30 bucks per week!

Odds of keeping a sebae anemone alive in a new tank with bad lighting---> too low for me to even compute. 
In a tank with good lighting-----> not much better. The sebae is one of the worst anemones you can get.


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## Osiris (Jan 18, 2005)

Nah i think $30 a week is pushing it unless ur feeding it steak! LOL

Frozen foods, you can usually get a deal some stores sell them in packs, like 3-5 packs for a decent price, which is best so you don't run out right away and find yourself having to get another pack. Hmm I miss my reef tank, i can't wait until next year. I wonder if the wife would let me buy one of them Zero edge aquariums :/


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## Tallonebball (Apr 6, 2009)

Those zero edge aquariums are pretty cool besides the fact that they are so expensive and you can't keep fish in them.
My store has one but it evaporates 1 to 2 gallons every day and we haven't been able to keep any fish in it. Bad investment.
Keeps corals well though lol


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## Osiris (Jan 18, 2005)

Yes! Im more of coral kinda guy over fish... 

My 210g, would lose approx 10-13gallons a week, crazy how fast that stuff evaporates under halides!


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

I was referring to those live 'pods you can buy nowadays. Pricey little suckers.


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