starting a fowlr

[Dreamsofpeace54]

i have a 46 gallon bowfront tank im turning into saltwater.
i have all the fancy equipment and jazz.

now i just need some stuff.

after i get some liverock and substrate what would be my best bet for inverts?

i want some blue leg hermits and scarlet reefs. How many of each or what kinds? what about snails and shrimp?

like will be a community with 2 clowns, maybe chromis, and some other small friendly fish.

 

[sgriffin760]

first you need to let the tank cycle and get established start with two or three damsels. read and ask questions about salt water tanks. snails and hermit crabs are good first starters what kind of filters are youu running

 

[Dreamsofpeace54]

im not dumb, im planning ahead.

i was wondering how many would be a good number?
and non worries filteration is under control.

 

[Dreamsofpeace54]

bump

 

[alcohologist]

"fancy equipment and all that jazz?" no worries it's [filtation] under control?"
no one called you dumb, either
but it'd help a lot if you listed the specs of your system.
i'm not sure about stocking levels of crabs specifically, apart from bioload-wise. they might fight for shells, or starve if you don't feed them directly.
i'd do three to six small hermits in that size tank, four to seven snails. nassarius, astrea, nerite, cerith... there are loads to choose from.
as for shrimp, a pair of skunk cleaners would be nice, or if you wanna spend a bit more for some awesome colour, fire [blood/scarlet] cleaners are cool little critters too. i dont care for coral banded shrimp personally.

 

[Dreamsofpeace54]

running a fluval 404
3 powerheads (1x ac20, 1x ac30, and a 2214(i think) powersweep)
200w stealth heater
no skimmer, for now
plain old strip light.

thank you for the advice.

 

[sgriffin760]

you might want to look into a power compact so you can get the correct light spectrium and wattage it will help in the long run when and if you want to add corals fish need it as well

 

[BIGgourami]

i would think you'd need more than 4-5 hermits. i just picked up an EXTRA 5 for my 29.. i'd say like 10ish sam for the snails.. i have like 15 astreas in my other 29 and they still dont do as good a job as i like.. when picking out snails different ones do different jobs. like nassarius will sift through the sand, astreas will do glass and rocks, and turbos/margaritas will stay mostly on the glass

 

[Dreamsofpeace54]

just curious, how would spectrum or lighting affect the fish in anyway?
besides how they look?

and thanks big gourami.

 

[BIGgourami]

other than showing color better... it wouldn't