a few questions with my new sw tank

[jimmybling31]

so i set up a saltwater tank today with my 29 gallon i was housing my convicts in. i drained it, cleaned it completely, painted the back black(forgot to do it when i set it up before), rinsed the live sand i bought, put it in the tank, filled up the tank enough to use my filters, and added the recommended amount of salt (going by the package). for filtration, i am using a wisper30 and a penguin 250.

first question: did i do anything wrong so far?

second question: what is the minimum lighting required for a little bit of coral in this tank and what type of coral could i do? i don't want a ton of it. and I am not set on anything yet.

third question: is 5 pounds of live rock enough to start with, and should i just go ahead and add it soon or wait a bit.

fourth question: you guys have any ideas for stock. something neat. i like dwarf lionfish, but don't know if i could buy one around here.

 

[alcohologist]

1. you shouldnt have rinsed the live sand. it has been colonized by bacteria, if you had bought it live. unless you washed it with saltwater, which i have no idea why one would. also you should test the salinity if the water with a hydrometer or refractometer, more precise than going by weight.
2. you should decide either what kind of light or coral you want, then tailor the other around the choice. T5s would be good for some "starter" coral like zoas and mushrooms.
3. 5 pounds is fine, but i would add as much of the total rock at the start as i could. you dont want to add a load at a later date and have more die-off from a larger quantity of rock. you can add rock as soon as your salinity is right.
4. i like dottybacks for smaller tanks, hawkfish, and dwarf angels.

 

[jimmybling31]

1. you shouldnt have rinsed the live sand. it has been colonized by bacteria, if you had bought it live. unless you washed it with saltwater, which i have no idea why one would. also you should test the salinity if the water with a hydrometer or refractometer, more precise than going by weight.
2. you should decide either what kind of light or coral you want, then tailor the other around the choice. T5s would be good for some "starter" coral like zoas and mushrooms.
3. 5 pounds is fine, but i would add as much of the total rock at the start as i could. you dont want to add a load at a later date and have more die-off from a larger quantity of rock. you can add rock as soon as your salinity is right.
4. i like dottybacks for smaller tanks, hawkfish, and dwarf angels.

well the one i did rinse it said to rinse it on the bag. it was argonite when i looked back at the bag. i checked it with a hydrometer(i bought one just did use it because i wanted the salt to disolve first)

i was looking at a dual t12 bulb set? would that work? could i just use one of those "coralife" bulbs that shows as blue until i have the money for a nicer fixture? this is a budget tank. i have a guy i can get the coral from for basically nothing, but i don't want to kill the coral. he said if i had an actinic bulb i could get away with just a cheap fixture for what he could give me cheap. should i trust him on that though? the guy does supply fish stores with coral and has plenty of coral at his house.