# new to this site and saltwater tanks



## jamie1985 (Oct 11, 2012)

First off hello everyone! I have had a 90 gallon african cichlid tank in the past and am now about to enter the saltwater world. I am about to receive a 29 gallon Oceanic BioCube and want to create a reef oasis! Because i am new to the saltwater scene, are there any major pointers you guys can give me? I have read the sticky on "so you want to start a nano tank" but i want to make sure i have everything i need. What already comes with the tank and what pieces do i need that i should purchase? Any advice would be very helpful! 
Thanks in advance everyone!!!


----------



## jamie1985 (Oct 11, 2012)

I guess i should add that i would like to have clowns (for my daughters) and possibly a seahorse or two and some other colourful fish that would be compatible with them. Any suggestions? Thanks everyone!


----------



## sig (Dec 13, 2010)

first I would say sell Oceanic BioCub and go with normal tank. Almost all who I know trow it out in few months and go with normal open tanks.

here is

*100% free webcam site! | Awesome chicks and it is absolutely free! | Watch free live sex cam - easy as 1-2-3*


----------



## jamie1985 (Oct 11, 2012)

Hey there! Well i am getting the biocube for free from my aunt who also has a smaller biocube and it looks great...because i am new to this i figured having most features i need included with the tank would start me off on the right foot? Whats the advantages of an open tank?


----------



## 50seven (Feb 14, 2010)

jamie1985 said:


> Hey there! Well i am getting the biocube for free from my aunt who also has a smaller biocube and it looks great...because i am new to this i figured having most features i need included with the tank would start me off on the right foot? Whats the advantages of an open tank?


Size and swimming room. You can fit more fish in a 30 long than in a 30 cube.

But its not a bad beginner tank. You may really enjoy it like many if us here enjoyed our first small tanks and end up upgrading to a larger tank in 6 to 9 months. But in the meantime you learn so much. After that point, caring for a marine tank will be a cinch. 

Seahorses would be for when you've been running a marine tank for a year already. They require a bit more skill. Clowns are easy to start with but there are a ton of other cool fish that aren't too hard to care for. Go to SeaUMarine in Markham on the weekend or to another marine specialized shop and see what's available.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2


----------



## jamie1985 (Oct 11, 2012)

Hey 50seven thanks for the advice...i figured it would be a good starting place anyways...yea the more i am reading a the more im thinking seahorses are for a later date haha big al's is the closest to me here in barrie so i will pop in there once i get the tank set up and see what fish will go well with clowns...do i need anyhing else other than filter, protein skimmer, lighting and a heater? do i need a power head? Thanks again


----------



## tom g (Jul 8, 2009)

*cube*

wait till u get the bio cube to see what u get with it .most come with protein skimmers heater ,etc lighting is part of the bio cube let us know what u get with tank ,surf th ebuy and sell section u will be surprised what people have 
cheers 
tom


----------



## klila (May 6, 2011)

I hated my bio cube, was pretty much useless, got rid of it in less than two months of getting it. Caution,mother replacement parts for these guys (such as oceanic) are VERY expensive.


----------



## smcx (Mar 31, 2012)

The best thing you can do for your biocube is remove the lid completely, and hang a par38 LED over it.

SMC


----------



## nso_168 (Sep 22, 2011)

jamie1985 said:


> I guess i should add that i would like to have clowns (for my daughters) and possibly a seahorse or two and some other colourful fish that would be compatible with them. Any suggestions? Thanks everyone!


From what you want to do now, the biocube should serve the purpose as the display tank. If you want to keep certain type of corals down the road, you may consider some upgrade for the lighting. Seahorses probably deserves a different tank by themselves - they won't be able to compete for food. This is the reason I never keep one.

The only thing that I would add is a QT. Ick can spread like wild fire in a nano.


----------



## Announce (Aug 27, 2008)

Hey Jamie,
First of all welcome to the hobby, you are about to learn a lot of information in the next couple months, whether you want to or not. The biocube is an awesome starter tank! It's not the ideal tank to keep a reef in, but it is a great tank to learn the hobby in, and like others have said, I won't be surprised if you soon upgrade. I certainly did, a 29g biocube was my first tank and I have now been working in the industry for 5 years. 

Doing your reading is the most important thing, and the one thing I can't stress enough is to take your time, and do your maintenance. The good thing is from keeping cichlids you are probably familiar with the idea of keeping waste levels to a minimum. Weekly or bi-weekly water changes are annoying, they are time consuming, and most people simply don't want to do them. As a result of this people have come up with a million and one ways to modify their biocube! But save yourself a lot of headache and just try to keep up with them on a minimum of a bi-weekly basis, at least for the first year or so. 

As for stocking, a couple clownfish should be more then happy in there. However with the seahorses i'd stay away from them. They are more of an expert level animal, and generally don't get along well with very territorial fish (like clownfish). I have taken care of 30 gallon seahorse reef set up, and for someone who is starting, its more trouble then its worth. 

The most important things I can think of for you just starting out, is to possibly upgrade (or purchase) a skimmer for the tank, try to avoid the biocube one, as it is a bit underpowered and ends up being a bit of a pain in the butt. You are going to start your tank by purchasing live rock as a seed for your tank, it is a heavy purchase but it is very important for creating a good bacterial structure in the tank (keeps things cleaner). I assume since you are located in Barrie your go to store is going to be the Big Al's. If I'm not mistaken, they currently will have Pukani live rock in stock, and it is really nice stuff if you are willing to spend the extra coin. If not many of the hobbiest stores in the GTA sell Indonesian rock for a good price.

Hopefully i covered some of the basics, and again, welcome.


----------

