Lowtech marine wetpet

[CrazyPhishMan]

In the past i kept a marine tank, it wasn't for me. i kept it running for 4.5 years.

At heart I'm a cichlid keeper, i like the big personable fish. Triggerfish drew me to marine tanks and harems of clownfish to a lesser extent.

I have a multitude of smaller tanks available (20L up to 105g) my 6 footers are occupied.

An acquaintance just offered me a 24"x24" water box setup, got me thinking what can i do with this?

I wouldn't mind running a low tech FO or FOWLR tank again with just a trigger or starting with a trio.
I really enjoy the huma humas but wouldn't be opposed to others, if they make sense.

Whats a simple lowtech, possibly hypo setup going to look like, is it possible?>

sorry for the fragmented questions, its a new idea

 

[Deadeye]

24x24 doesn’t offer much space for the big guys, but a pair of Occelaris clowns would do fine in there. They are very interactive (and frankly some of the meanest fish I’ve had). They, like many damsels, behave just like cichlids imo.
Smaller filefish (Pygmy white spot or aiptasia eating) could work and would be similar to the trigger.

 

[CrazyPhishMan]

24x24 doesn’t offer much space for the big guys, but a pair of Occelaris clowns would do fine in there. They are very interactive (and frankly some of the meanest fish I’ve had). They, like many damsels, behave just like cichlids imo.
Smaller filefish (Pygmy white spot or aiptasia eating) could work and would be similar to the trigger.

Yeah, I had feeling it would be limited to clowns. I've kept them before and they don't do much for me other then the gold striped maroons.

I really just want a single huma huma, no coral, no skimmer but maybe i can work out a deal with my LFS to grow one out and trade it in when it gets too large, or move it to a larger tank.

 

[Backfromthedead]

I would go with a pygmy angel like flameback and a host of inverts. I had a 36x24 with a solo bicolor angel and it was a very entertaining fish once it settled in. Flamebacks are among the smaller centropyge but are still quite vibrant and impressive when mature imo. Lightly stocked like this the tank should be maintenance friendly as well.

 

[CrazyPhishMan]

I would go with a pygmy angel like flameback and a host of inverts. I had a 36x24 with a solo bicolor angel and it was a very entertaining fish once it settled in. Flamebacks are among the smaller centropyge but are still quite vibrant and impressive when mature imo. Lightly stocked like this the tank should be maintenance friendly as well.

Thanks for the reply and suggestions. I was really just trying to shoehorn a Picasso trigger into a tank someone is giving me and as is typical, looking for confirmation bias.

I have so many tanks running and so many sitting on their sides in my garage i could easily setup a 120, 40b, 75 or 90, just trying to avoid all the high tech stuff i used in the past and attempt the K>I>S>S> method running at or near hypo

 

[Backfromthedead]

Thanks for the reply and suggestions. I was really just trying to shoehorn a Picasso trigger into a tank someone is giving me and as is typical, looking for confirmation bias.

I have so many tanks running and so many sitting on their sides in my garage i could easily setup a 120, 40b, 75 or 90, just trying to avoid all the high tech stuff i used in the past and attempt the K>I>S>S> method running at or near hypo

Only experience i have with triggers was a juvenile clown i kept for a short while. Ime triggers in general like a lot of swimming space and really show their best qualities when given such. My clown was only 4-5" and would zip back and forth across a 72x32 tank like it was too small for him.

Dwarf angels ime do little open water swimming and tend to dart between and amongst rock structures, territorially scouring their algae beds for morsels most of the time, though the bicolor i had would come out and perform spectacular dances when i walked up food in hand.

My fowlr setups were as simple as it gets...basically my freshwater tanks with saltwater in them lol. When i go fowlr again i will definitely have a skimmer involved and maybe even RODI.

 

[CrazyPhishMan]

Only experience i have with triggers was a juvenile clown i kept for a short while. Ime triggers in general like a lot of swimming space and really show their best qualities when given such. My clown was only 4-5" and would zip back and forth across a 72x32 tank like it was too small for him.

Dwarf angels ime do little open water swimming and tend to dart between and amongst rock structures, territorially scouring their algae beds for morsels most of the time, though the bicolor i had would come out and perform spectacular dances when i walked up food in hand.

My fowlr setups were as simple as it gets...basically my freshwater tanks with saltwater in them lol. When i go fowlr again i will definitely have a skimmer involved and maybe even RODI.

I've kept a few myself, Picasso, Niger, blue throat, pink tail.. favorite saltys for sure.

I've also kept a flame angel and coral beauty for most of the 4.5 years i had the salt tank.

i have two skimmers available, i just don't want to go that route.

I think I'll be sticking with freshwater for the foreseeable future.

 

[CrazyPhishMan]

Well now I'm debating converting my 125 into SW, adding overflows and sump hopefully this weekend, i already have the return pump just need to connect it and make a spigot or two into the tank... then move the male umbee that lives there and start the planning, could take months.

But i want a trigger or two, possibly an Asfur angel, zebra moray, some damsels to start things off and maybe a harlequin tusk or smaller grouper.

 

[Backfromthedead]

Well now I'm debating converting my 125 into SW, adding overflows and sump hopefully this weekend, i already have the return pump just need to connect it and make a spigot or two into the tank... then move the male umbee that lives there and start the planning, could take months.

But i want a trigger or two, possibly an Asfur angel, zebra moray, some damsels to start things off and maybe a harlequin tusk or smaller grouper.

Asfur, zebra moray, tusk...sounds like my dream fowlr tank lol.

You got a plan for drilling the overflow? Idk if thats a standard 125 or not but a lot of the common 72x18x20 tanks are tempered on the long walls and bottom.

 

[CrazyPhishMan]

Asfur, zebra moray, tusk...sounds like my dream fowlr tank lol.

You got a plan for drilling the overflow? Idk if thats a standard 125 or not but a lot of the common 72x18x20 tanks are tempered on the long walls and bottom.

An individual of discerning taste i see...

No plans to drill, i have equipment from eShopps, using an external overflow down to a 40 breeder equipped with their cliffhanger filter socks. and sicce return pump. jaboe cross flow wave maker