starting a 40 gal bowfront need some insight

[drowningoceans]

hey guys hows it going,

im starting a 40 gal bow front tank and i want to make it a reef, but i have a couple of questions that i would like to have answered for peace of mind,
(
1. if i buy all base rock and build the tank will i be able to seed it?
2. what kind of fish can i go with that are hardy and easy care?( i only ask because ive been on all kinds of sights and have never been able to get a true answer)
3. what kinds of corals would be recommended for a beginer?
4. and finally i have never had alot of luck with inverts (outside of snails) and hardy ones i can get?(that are reef safe)

 

[jay0705]

I can help w 1,2,& 4 lol first yes u can seed base. I would add maybe a 5lbs piece of lr to your base to seed. 2 fish. Ill only list reef safe ones. Royal gramma, fire fish, clowns ,flasher wrasse. Now once your tank matures 6-12 months, dwarf angels, draggonets are all excellent reef fish. 4 inverts. Acclamation can be tricky, u want to go slow. Pep shrimp, skunk cleaners, emerald crabs are all easy if acclimated correctly

 

[sweatervest13]

For corals, it will depend on your lighting. The better the light the more types of coral you can keep. Once you tank is stable and you have decent lighting you can start with some Mushrooms, and Zoa's. The sky is the limit from there. Good luck!!!


SV

 

[jay0705]

Hey sv. Are any of the led lights out now really suitable for corals?

 

[sweatervest13]

Quote:
Originally Posted by jay0705 http:///t/397186/starting-a-40-gal-bowfront-need-some-insight#post_3539306
Hey sv. Are any of the led lights out now really suitable for corals?
There are a lot of LED's out right now. Some are pretty cheap and don't really support much (check out the low watt LED's, .25 watts per diode). But there are a lot of quality units too. The higher end fixtures can grow anything. I have a pair of 3 watt (per diode) fixtures and they support everything from clams to SPS. You should probably expect to pay a few hundred dollars for a good fixture. If it seems like too good of a price the fixture is probably crap.

 

[jay0705]

Ok I was looking at the marine land reef leds. There in the $300 range. Ill have to look into there out put. Thank u sir

 

[sweatervest13]

Quote:
Originally Posted by jay0705 http:///t/397186/starting-a-40-gal-bowfront-need-some-insight#post_3539309
Ok I was looking at the marine land reef leds. There in the $300 range. Ill have to look into there out put. Thank u sir
I'd skip those. There should be better options for $300.00

I have not been doing a ton of research lately on LED's but when I did a bunch a year ago the Marineland Reef LED's were 1 watt diode's, they can support low light corals, like mushrooms and zoa's. But nothing light hungry. I have the reefbreeder Photon series and a year plus later, I am still pretty happy with them. No issues so far.

 

[jay0705]

Ah cool I ll look those up

 

[drowningoceans]

ok as far as my lighting i have a set of 24-34in fluval sea full spectrum marine and reef LEDs will they be ok on the 40 for corals, or should i start pricing new lights?

 

[sweatervest13]

Those may support low light corals... But nothing light hungry. I have a friend (who I'm trying to talk into buying decent lights) who had something like your, and he just lost a big Nem because it did not produce enough light. I gifted him some frags that are looking pretty bad because the lack of light that were thriving in my system.

 

[drowningoceans]

ok what would you suggest for the 40 then in the price range of about 300? i really dont want any corals that are super light hungry but i still want to keep them alive ya know, if i stuck with my current lights im assuming low light corals?

 

[sweatervest13]

Quote:
Originally Posted by drowningoceans http:///t/397186/starting-a-40-gal-bowfront-need-some-insight#post_3539321
ok what would you suggest for the 40 then in the price range of about 300? i really dont want any corals that are super light hungry but i still want to keep them alive ya know, if i stuck with my current lights im assuming low light corals?
There are a lot of decent LED units out there that would work for you. Google 3 watt diodes reef tank lights. Reefbreeders.com has some decent units for a good price. You may even score a used fixture with a premium name tag for your budgeted amount. The good thing with LEDs is if you buy a good fixture it should last for years without having any bulb replacement costs (not to mention the cost savings in lower power bills!!!). I like the LED units that have a full spectrum of color, if they are adjustable and controllable that is a very nice feature. Good luck!!

SV