29-gallon diversity...

[postie]

Soon I will have a 29-gallon tank empty and ready to start from scratch. I will also have an empty 20 and 10. Obviously I will cycle the 29 properly. I'm looking for ideas for a tank that size. I've considered doing something like only 1 boxfish, or try a seahorse/pipefish tank....but that takes mega-work. Now I'm thinking I will put in a starfish (non-reefsafe), something like a chocolate chip or similar, a sea urchin, and that's as far as I've thought. I'll probably throw a little sand on the bottom for looks, not a DSB and some fake decorations...although I refuse to use dead coral decorations as that promotes profit for those who fail keeping corals.

What fish would fit properly and compatibly in a 29 and also be attention grabbers. I have a reeftank already, so not looking for LR or reef situations.

Other ideas for the setup of the tank are welcome also....such as substrate ideas, filtration, etc....I have mechanical filtration that I will probably need and I will use an internal Lee's skimmer. Trying to use up all the parts and pieces I've acquired over the years.

I do have a 2 65-watt PC fixture and a florescent actinic for the tank.

Thanks for any ideas!!!

 

[SnowManSnow]

Your first order of business is to determine what type of lighting you will keep over the tank. The 130W fixture you have will limit your posibilites. You also want to consider what flitration you will use. For the MOST part people will agree that you can ditch the mechanical filtration if you have adequate skimming and LR. I would suggest (if budget allows) a AquaC Remora HOT skimmer for your size tank. As for your substrate you can't really beat your basic argonite sand.

If you DO decide to go with what you have you should be fine with most shrooms, zoas, and some leathers for corals.

Make sure you have adequate circulation inside the tank (a few MaxiJet 900's should be fine in addition to your skimmer) and you should be set!

Good luck!

B.

 

[postie]

I'm not really looking to add LR or any corals. I have a reeftank already. I guess this would be a FO with some sort of decoration to provide hiding/sleeping for fish/inverts.

Just looking for some uniqueness...with the reeftank, people always go there first, so with this 29, I would want something to attract attention.

 

[Anonymous]

If I were you, I would pick one region, (like "carribean" or "red sea" )and do a small collection of little fish that would naturally occur in the same environment, adding whatever starfish, urchins, or whatever other neat inverts that hail from the region.

 

[mattstewart]

you can use the live rock as filtration still and not do a reef tank, wouldn't the inverts benifit from the life in the rock. like a fish only with live rock tank.