I need help

[rizzamatic]

I have a 20 gallon that has been running for over a month. I have crushed coral in the bottom and live rock. I'm using a power head and a bio-wheel (for up to 50 gallons), and a heater of course. I only have one light fixture, which is the standard fixture that came with the tank. I have a 50/50 bulb in. I want to upgrade my lighting, but I'm very confused. It's a fish only tank. Does anyone know anything about the T5 light from Energy Savers. It's a 10000K & atinic blue. Would this work? Or what do I need? How long should I be leaving the light on? Also, any recommendations for a protein skimmer? The tank is small, so I was considering a skilter.....any suggestions?

Help please!!! :confused:


Thanks

[viowyn]

The good news about fish only is that you dont need intense lighting. I would think that if you are keeping only fish than a 50/50 bulb fitting your aquarium would be fine. Maybe two at most. Lights should be on 10-12 hours a day. I would not go with a skilter for the skimmer..bakpaks work extemely well for small aquarium though they can be pricey. Follow link to skimmer choices. http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=Bakpak

[Matthewdmueller]

I agree, the lights are not an issue in a fish only tank. You don't need high intensity lights unless you want to keep corals. As far as the skimmer on a tank that small shouldn't be to hard to find. Bigger is going to be better and I would recommend getting something larger than rated for 20gal only just in case you want to upgrade to a larger tank later. Really when it comes to skimmers a larger one only cost a little bit more than the size below from the same manufacturer. Just stay within reason of course, I wouldn't get something for a 100gal and put it on a 20gal but you know what I mean. I had one of the corallife skimmers on my 15gal quarentine tank and it did a great job for me. It was rated for a 60gal and I never had any problems with it. It was one of those hang on the back jobies too, it was nice and compact and easy to tune. Godd luck

[rizzamatic]

Thanks to both of you!!

If I was considering adding an anemone or feather duster in the future, would I need better lighting?

[glck19]

Yes, when you add an anemone you then need to worry about ur lighting. I know plenty of people that use 3 watts per gallon with anemones and do just fine. But more lighting can't hurt. I'm not as sure with the feather dusters, but I think it may be the same rule. Probably one of the best ways to do that is to go with a compact bulb. A bunch of different companies make them. I think even Corallife makes one. But I'm sure you could find them from Zoo Med as well. They are basically two bulbs in one fixture. Kind of like ur 50/50 bulb, only they are much higher in wattage. Usually about 45 watts or so. You could get a compact bulb and then a 15 watt 6500K bulb and be just fine. That would give you ur 60 watts of light. From what you were saying I'm guessing you'll have to change the cover of ur aquarium. You'll probably need to get a full glass cover because you're going to need two fixtures, one for each bulb. There are other ways of setting up a lighting system, but this is probably the least elaborate and easiest for a 20gal tank.

Another thing you have to consider is the circulation in your tank. The circulation is what brings food to the anemones. What kind of powerhead do you have? Make? GPH? The only reason I ask is because you wanna make sure that you don't have any dead spots in the aquarium. You may need to get another one and just angle it in a different direction so as to not make the water too chaotic. Some choas is good, but not to the point where the fish are having trouble of course. Zoo Med makes a powerhead that has a rotating head with adjustable speed. They are great for small setups such as yours.

I hope all of this helps. Sorry it was long, but there is a lot to cover. Good luck.