new to salt water tanks..

[~Silly~Spy]

i know absolutely nothing about reef tanks or even salt water tanks. what i do know is that they are beautiful and a would like to try to start up a reef tank. nothing crazy just a plain hopefully colorful reef tank with some clown fish or something. i'm gonna start off small, with a 29 gallon tank. and if i like it i will upgrade in the future.

this is a list of what i have right now that i want to use:
2x65 watt compact coralife light fixture. with a 10k lamp and a 65k lamp.
29 gallon all glass aquarium.
emp 400 or an ac 70 ( 2 filters that i have right now of fresh water tanks)

will that stuff be sufficient enough to run a reef tank? will i need a skimmer on a small tank like a 29?im not worried about a rodi, because a lfs 2 secs from my house sells rodi water 5 gals for 1$. if im missing any important equipment please let me know. and any helpful info would be great . thanks for lookin.

 

[~Silly~Spy]

oh ans what kind of substarte should i use for a reef tank? live sand or crushed coral?

 

[Scuba_Dave]

Welcome to the club!!

Some people say (I agree) that smaller tanks can be just as much problems as larger tanks. But with a steady water change & top off schedule you should be fine
Myself the Min tank size I would want to start off with would be 40-60g with a 20-30g sump. But more, more expense for top-off & water changes

Many people have 29g tanks, someone just posted a thread/pic of an anemone they have had for 17 years
Starting with water from an LFS is good, better then tap water. A good investment is a TDS meter. When buying water I would always test at the store before leaving

I have sand as a substrate, my next tank will be barebottom. Some people run crushed coral, but that can trap detrius & cause problems
PC will be a nice starter light, but look at the cost of the PC VS a T-5 setup
I would not go MH on a 29g without a 20g+ sump & fans to keep it cool
OH - nevermind - you already have the light

I started w/ a 29g SW FO tank, my wife ran it for over 2 years
Then we upgraded to a 60g hex, upgraded the 29g to a 55g...and then moved & bought a 125 - soon to be replaced with a 180g
Now I have a 360g that I need to pu

It's an addictive hobby

 

[~Flighty~]

Welcome to the BRS!

It sounds like a good start. Be aware that you are on the low end of gallonage and that can pose some chalenges. Things like keeping the water a consistant temperature and salinity can be difficult.

You may want to consider a sump to add water volume and room for ugly equipment.

See if you can check out a few hobbiest's tanks in your area to get an idea of what works and what you don't like. That will help you purchace the correct stuff for the setup you want.

Also, keep an eye out here for deals on complete setups. Sometimes the best way to get your feet wat in the hobby is to get going on something already put together.

 

[ZReef]

Welcome!

One of the most helpful sites that I have used is Melev's site.

He has some basic information for beginners as well as some complicated projects for experts. Also lots of fun stuff to look at like his Identification Page. I just used his site to build a sump for my 46g reef tank.

The lighting you have right now might be a little yellowish in color. You might want to swap that 6.5k bulb (which is the color of sun light) to an actinic bulb to get some more blue color. Actinics also bring out the fluorescent colors of fish and corals sort of like a blacklight.

A 29 gallon tank is big enough where you might want to get a skimmer and do monthly water changes instead of weekly water changes without one. A remora pro or cpr bak-pak to name a few.

I would use the aquaclear and try to stay away from sponges or bio balls and such because they end up becoming nitrate factories which is a bad thing. You will probably need more flow so get a few small powerheads.

The sand is your choice. You can do a bare bottom, deep sand bed, or shallow sand bed. You will definitely need to get some live rock because that is your main source of filtration.

Good luck!

-Dennis

 

[this is me]

You didnt know that it cost a fortune?
Welcome to the club!
You're need a skimmer. And start out slowly. When you're ready, I can give you some hammer coral or gsp to try it out.

 

[~Silly~Spy]

thanks for the info/ideas guys. so it looks like i will be going with a sand bottom. from what you guys are saying all i really need it a 20 gallon sump? humm that shouldn't be too bad. anyone have a cheap one for sale? lol. oh if i run a sump will there be a need for a skimmer?

 

[this is me]

A skimmer will be needed no matter what.

 

[~Silly~Spy]

ok thanks. this is gonna be a stupid question (for you pros lol), but what exactly does a skimmer do?

 

[Scuba_Dave]

A skimmer takes waste out of the water, you end up with a brown crud in the skimmer collector cup. This keeps your water much cleaner, and allows for a greater Bio (fish) load in most cases

Basically a skimmer intakes water = powers it thru w/ a mass of bubbles, the bubbles take the junk to the top of the water column & "overflows" into a collection cup

Think of wave action on a beach, and the bubbly crud that can build up at times as a result

 

[OceanGuy]

Welcome to the club....the skimmer takes all of the waste water out of the tank and keeps the water clear. Where are you located? There are club members all over New England and someone near to you may offer help.

Let me know when you are ready for some beginner corals. I could frag you a couple for your tank.

I have a 220 gallon tank with a 175 gallon sump in my classroom at the middle school. We set it up last August and a lot of people helped me get going. I would be happy to help when I can.

 

[~Silly~Spy]

now i see why skimmers are so important, thanks.

and i'm located in Lawrence, but i just bought a house in Salem, NH. i'm gonna be moving in 2 weeks. i want to set this tank up in my new house, so i'm trying to learn as much as i can, before i do

 

[JayM]

If you want to get corals, go to a frag draft, get some free frags from other members, etc.

While you are compiling your wish list, a very important addition to your arsenal is a quarantine tank, or QT, as they're called here. That's a tank to keep any new critters separate for a quarantine period will prevent a lot of heartache later. Any number of us can speak from experience on this...ICH, red bugs on corals, etc.

Welcome to the club, and good luck with the new tank

 

[Firefish]

welcome to the club.. look forward to seeing you at one of the meetings

 

[aquamom]

Welcome. And Welcome to NH. I have a 40 gallon that is currently being upgraded to a 70. I started with a 20 and found the maintenance of a small tank to be "over the top". Send me a PM and drop by, I live in Windham.

 

[ZReef]

Looks like you will be making frequent visits to Aqua Addicts seeing as they are in your new hometown. Those guys should help you out with whatever you need, which might just be the answers to all your questions.

Be patient and don't be afraid to spend some money and you should have a successful tank.

 

[naturebatslast]

i know absolutely nothing about reef tanks or even salt water tanks. what i do know is that they are beautiful and a would like to try to start up a reef tank. nothing crazy just a plain hopefully colorful reef tank with some clown fish or something. i'm gonna start off small, with a 29 gallon tank. and if i like it i will upgrade in the future.

this is a list of what i have right now that i want to use:
2x65 watt compact coralife light fixture. with a 10k lamp and a 65k lamp.
29 gallon all glass aquarium.
emp 400 or an ac 70 ( 2 filters that i have right now of fresh water tanks)

will that stuff be sufficient enough to run a reef tank? will i need a skimmer on a small tank like a 29?im not worried about a rodi, because a lfs 2 secs from my house sells rodi water 5 gals for 1$. if im missing any important equipment please let me know. and any helpful info would be great . thanks for lookin.

Get some cured live rock and a skimmer, about 1 pound/gallon. Get a total dissolved solids(TDS) meter to test your LFS water. Get the filter to mechanically strain and hold carbon, that's it, no biowheel. Get new bulbs for the light, they last 6 months.
And your good to go.

 

[Sunni]

New to the Sea

First, I'd like to say Hi to everyone!

I am also new to salt water aquarium....

While I was reading a few of the postings, I had some trouble figuring out some of the abbreviations that all the "pros" use! But I'm sure that a better understanding will come with time and experience.

Nonetheless, I need help! I bought a 72G Bowfront tank from a friend 3 weeks ago. The tank came with 9 Damsels (2 blue, 2 yellow-tail, 3 4-stripe or zebra, and 2 dominos), a Koran Angel, a Gold-Rimmed Surgeon (Tang), a Maroon Clown, snails, hermit crabs, about 50-60 lbs. of live rocks, and the substrate consists of curshed corals.

The tank also came with an Emperor 400 power filter. I added a 403 Fluval canister filter after I bought the tank and have just installed a sump/pump with overflow 2 weeks ago. I am not sure how soon to start using a Protein Skimmer and whether I need power head to increase the water flow, especially under the live rocks. Some people also said live sand is better than crushed coral...

I guess the major questions for now are:
1. With the filtering system I have right now, how often should I change the water?
2. How useful is it or can I add charcoal and ammonia remover in my sump?
3. Is a Protein Skimmer in immediate need and what kind/brand works best without costing me a fortune?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[JayM]

First, I'd like to say Hi to everyone!

I am also new to salt water aquarium....

While I was reading a few of the postings, I had some trouble figuring out some of the abbreviations that all the "pros" use! But I'm sure that a better understanding will come with time and experience.

Nonetheless, I need help! I bought a 72G Bowfront tank from a friend 3 weeks ago. The tank came with 9 Damsels (2 blue, 2 yellow-tail, 3 4-stripe or zebra, and 2 dominos), a Koran Angel, a Gold-Rimmed Surgeon (Tang), a Maroon Clown, snails, hermit crabs, about 50-60 lbs. of live rocks, and the substrate consists of curshed corals.

The tank also came with an Emperor 400 power filter. I added a 403 Fluval canister filter after I bought the tank and have just installed a sump/pump with overflow 2 weeks ago. I am not sure how soon to start using a Protein Skimmer and whether I need power head to increase the water flow, especially under the live rocks. Some people also said live sand is better than crushed coral...

I guess the major questions for now are:
1. With the filtering system I have right now, how often should I change the water?
2. How useful is it or can I add charcoal and ammonia remover in my sump?
3. Is a Protein Skimmer in immediate need and what kind/brand works best without costing me a fortune?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

First, welcome to the hobby, and the club. To answer your questions:

1) With your bioload (the number of fish you mentioned), you need to do a water change every week.

2) Carbon can be added right away, but when you change it out, you should only change 1/3-1/2, because it will have become part of your biosphere. Ammonia remover should not be as necessary, your live rock should help with that

3) a. yes. for the second part, I would drive over to CRA (one of our sponsors) in Seekonk and buy one of his skimmers. I have 2, and they work very well

 

[Conlius]

Welcome to the club!

I started with my 20 long just about a year ago with a 10 sump, 29 is a nice tank to start with I think, its small and you don't need too many expensive parts to run it