10 Gallon tank

There are a ton of small fish you can keep in a 10 gallon. As said before...gobies are great for small tanks.

 

Its not really about how well you can take care of it, or how many water changes your willing to do to not make the tank a toxic wasteland. Its about the fish, the fish would not be happy in such a small environment.

 

Sigh.

Yet another.

 

I think you may have misunderstood me. I didn't mean it was going to be easy, I just meant that I would have some help from someone who knows about reef tanks.

 

So basically it boils down to: I already knew what I was going to do, over stock a tank?

This is the frustration, why even post an opinion based on years of experience when your just waiting for the answer you want to hear.

Really it's not just you, it's also the other new hobbyist that do not care. You posted a thread and you got good advice, leave it at that.

 

i would take whatever help someone with a 14g with 6 fish in it with a grain of salt, they obviously do not know a whole lot, or if they do, they simply do not care.

 

Here is the deal, you are new to SW. Everyone here is trying to steer you in the path of success, both for you, and for the health of your future livestock. You are on the right track thinking about doing a 55 instead (a 75 or 90 would be even better with the extra 6" depth!). As a newbie, you want to make it as easy as you can. To do that, you need to start with a larger tank. Those are just the facts. You will find plenty of people who have smaller tanks with too many fish, but that doesn't make it right, nor should they be advocating for anyone else to do the same (especially not to a newbie).

IMHO, 3 non-nano sized (i.e. 1" in length) fish do no belong in a 10 gallon, just as much as 6 do not even close to belong in a Biocube 14 (which is actually a couple gallons less since they include the sump area IIRC). These are my opinions of course, and not trying to start/continue any controversy.

Please keep researching, and hopefully keep looking for a larger tank. A 55 is definitely a good starter tank (I started out with one).

 

Agree with Corailline... I have an 8gal. and it is home to one small black ocellaris. I doubt I will be adding anymore fish to this tank. If anything it will be some type of small goby.


Through my experience with this tank (been running for about 4 months) the hardest thing to keep stable was the temp. I ended up modding a computer fan by wiring it to an old cell phone charger. That allowed me to plug it in when the temp was too high. It worked a little bit too well though because I would have to constantly unplug/replug it in multiple times daily due to temp fluctuations. I ended up buying an apex controller which was the best addition to the tank. I have it programmed with the fan and the temp is always stable between 77° - 79°. I also was able to add the BO box to it and get float switches for a DIY ATO which now eliminates the need for me to add 2 - 4 cups of water daily.

IMO if you're going to start a tank this size and plan to keep coral you will want a controller. It makes it so much more enjoyable and easier to maintain!


My suggestion would be using a sump to add water volume. That way you can still have the smaller tank but it won't be as difficult to keep your parameters stable. You will also have much more room for filtration and media. If you aren't comfortable drilling it yourself some LFS's will drill for you. Or buy a reef ready tank.

 

I agree 100% with all you have written. And to that end, by the time you are done buying a controller, ATO, etc, you should be able to buy a used, larger tank where these won't be necessary (at least to start).

I have an 8 gallon tank as well, but also need to setup a controller for the fan and an ATO. So no livestock until then.

 

If he has the money to buy all that equipment (controller, ato if not a DIY) why not just buy a bigger tank with that money? Easier and more stocking options available.