What light do i need to buy for my saltwater tank? also what kind of substrate?

Question

I will be getting a scarlet skunk cleaner shrimp and a blue damsel...

Also do i have to get live rock? or can the shrimp get its nutrients from the sand?

also how many pounds of sand do i need for a 20 gallon saltwater tank?

Answer 1

I would recommend Compact florescents at a minimum.  If you want to keep the shrimp he needs somewhere to hide in order to feel safe so you need either live rock or some good sized tank decorations.    No the shrimp doesn't get nutrients from the sand  it needs to be fed.  Generally rule of thumb for live sand is 1lb per gal so you would need 20lbs.  

Edit:  The generally will capture any food that floats to the bottom  from feeding the fish, However I hand feed mine about once a week with part of a bottom feeder tablet (I use Sera Plankton tablets for this)  to make sure they are getting enough food.   Shrimp can become quite tame and mine will come running when they see the aquarium tongs I use to feed them with.