Lots of Questions

Hello, this is my first post. I have had many freshwater tanks from a simple betta tank to a 60g planted with injected CO2. This tank would be my first SW, I was planning to purchase a JBJ 28g nano cube with PC lighting and keep soft corals. I would have 30-40lbs of live rock and 30lbs of live sand. my first questions is if 3.75wpg is enough light? my second question is about what I would like to stock it with, would a pair of occeleras clowns, 1 kauderns cardinal, 1 six line wrasse, 1 royal gramma, and 1 neon goby get along fine? What would you recommend for a clean up crew? another thing, whats the difference between different grades of sand and different types of live rock? What are some common things that as a beginner i should know and is it a good idea to have an anenome?

 

Hello and Welcome.

There are a couple of members on this forum with the JBJ 28 gal, me amoung them.

You will enjoy it I am sure.

All questions and pictures are always appreciated.

Three fish is pretty much max for that tank IMO. The clownfish pair, the royal gramma and the cardinal would be the best choices.

You can grow some nice soft corals as well as some easy LPS under the pc lighting of that tank.

 

Hello, this is my first post. I have had many freshwater tanks from a simple betta tank to a 60g planted with injected CO2. This tank would be my first SW, I was planning to purchase a JBJ 28g nano cube with PC lighting and keep soft corals. I would have 30-40lbs of live rock and 30lbs of live sand. my first questions is if 3.75wpg is enough light?
Yes
my second question is about what I would like to stock it with, would a pair of occeleras clowns, 1 kauderns cardinal, 1 six line wrasse, 1 royal gramma, and 1 neon goby get along fine?
That could be too much.
What would you recommend for a clean up crew?
Contact Reef Cleanrs one of our sponsors. Awesome prices and assistance.
another thing, whats the difference between different grades of sand and different types of live rock?
Finer grade sand is considered better because it prevents waste from getting stuck in the bed and creating nitrate problems. I suggest using sugar sized or slightly larger.
What are some common things that as a beginner i should know
Follow the motto take iet slow and let it grow. Feel free to ask questions for any purchase or action you wish to take. Buy test kits and test regularly and get a reverse osmosis de-ionization filter.
and is it a good idea to have an anenome?
Difficult animal to keep with low success rate of long term survival. They normally kill off a tank when they die.

 

Welcome to 3reef BTW

 

Welcome to 3 reef Brennan

you will be fine for many/ most species of softies under that lighting IMO
But you will want to change the lamps every 6 - 9 months probably - as they lose colour temp and output quicker than other forms of aquarium lighting

the stocking list seems like to many fish to me - general rule of thumb is 1 inch of fish to every 4 gallons of saltwater, allowing for adult size
thus your looking at a capacity of about 7 inches of fish in total, so a pair of clowns and 1 other fish would be about right IMO in a 28 gallon

Clean up crew, a mix of snail species that work on different areas ( rocks and glass and also the sand dwellers) Reef Cleaners a sponsor of this site will create a custom clean up crew based on your tank size and type

rock - base rock = dry rock
Live rock - rock thats come from water and there are 2 types - cured and uncured
cured rock has been left to allow any die off to occur but still has bacteria colonising it
uncured rock is direct from the water and has many life forms on it

live rock of both types can lead to issues with unwanted hitch hikers and algae menaces etc
so dry rock is best, with a couple of pieces of cured live rock that you inspect to remove any nasties , added to held seed the dry rock and colour it up etc

sand, fine grade is best IMO - as long as your water movers, pumps and powerheads dont blow it about, then the finer the better for me

anemones are not good additions to any set up under 6 months old IMO
and many species would require more lighting than you would have in that JBJ

Steve

 

Welcome to 3reef,i also have the jbj28 with the cp lighting and i grow softies and lps with no problems,you'll also be happy with that tank itself,it's a pretty nice all-in-one.Don't hesitate to ask questions,i've been in saltwater for a little while now and still learn something new all the time,the forum section is a great place to obtain alot of great info as well!Good luck with it and post pics when you get it!

 

thx for all the quick responses! I will probaly not get an anemone then, what would you recommend as a mix for live rock for example like 10lbs cured 20lbs uncured? and what do you mean "remove nasties" from the uncured rock? If I didnt get the wrasse then would the stocking be ok? if not should i get rid of the cardinal or the basslet?and finally, will the neon goby actually eat parasites off my fish like ich?

 

I would get dry base rock and then about a couple of pounds of LR. Amount is a personal preference but 1-1.5 lbs should provide you with a good medium for biological filtation.

The neon goby will not survive in that tank and is not an effective treatment for Marine Ich. It does not feed on the parasite despite reports of the opposite.

A sixline is a very active fish and can become aggressive as it gets older.

 

okay so my new stock is a pair of clowns, 1 cardinal, and 1 royal gramma? could i add a small goby? any species will do.

alright ill go with 1.5 pounds then, but what should i try and pick off or watch out for when adding uncured rock?

 

I wouldn't i would stick with 3,4 max depending on adult size of the fish and compatability.When your bio load is that high in small a reef tank,the fish produce more waste than the bacteria can consume and you can easily end up with excessive nutrients in the water that can cause all kinds of problems such as poor water quality,algae issues,high nitrates,etc.