Any advice?

[jaws22]

I am new to the board but I am glad I found it. There seem to be a lot of very knowledgable people here. Anyway, I need some help.
I used to have a saltwater tank setup about 10 years ago. I had a 38 gallon tank. It had an undergravel filter with two powerheads, crushed coral substrate, Whisper (hang on the tank filter? I think it was a whisperIII?). In it I kept a Flame angel, Hippo tang, Yellow Tang, Sebae clown, a cleaner wrasse & a cleaner shrimp. I know from reading the posts on this board that I probably should not have had so many fish (or any Tangs) in this size tank. Fortunately, the fish did very well. I never lost any or had any diseases. I did regular water changes and was pretty consisitent with the tank maintenance. I tore down the tank and got rid of all my fish and equipment when I moved.
Now, 10 years later I am married and have two daughters (9 and 5 yrs old) and would really like to set up another salt tank for us to enjoy. I would really like to have a clownfish or two, a flame angel, a small yellow tang, a cleaner shrimp, and maybe something else? I think I am limited in space (and budget) to about a 55 gallon tank. I would really appreciate some advice on how I should go about setting up this tank.
Filtration: Undergravel?Power filter?Cannister? I saw one in the pet store (Tetratec I think?) that allowed you to put the heater into a compartment inside the filter..sounds pretty cool. I also saw a cannister (fluval 304) that looked pretty nice. How many, what types, etc.
Lighting? I am thinking the kids would really enjoy seeing the clownfish playing in an anenome but I now that would require more lighting. What type would be ok? Would a twin tube light hood with a full spectrum bulb and an actinic bulb be sufficient?
Anyway...any advice would be greatly appreciated. Suggestions on filtration, lighting, livestock, live rock, sand? would be great.
Thanks.

 

[killafins]

I would recommend a power filter, personally i don't think it's a good idea to put the heater anywhere near the filter. with the current, the water moves and because of the energy moving the water is warmer. Now, if you place the heater farther from the tank it will read it's coldest temp and keep that spot, the coldest spot, to the desired heat. At least, that's what i was taught.
For a anenome you should at least get 6 watts per gallon, or once again i was told from this site actually ....
The lighting you listed should be okay but make sure u get the right amount of watts.
As for your fish discussion. I think a 55 would be fine for a yellow tang. everything else should work out too... gl

 

[infalable]

Hey Jaws. Welcome to the board. You are absolutely correct. There are a lot of terrific folks helpings out. Two things. I suggest getting a book or two and read up on saltwater tanks. Mine has been invaluable. Second, do a search on this board about topics you wish to learn about. Most concerns you have have already been discussed. It is a great tool. good luck.

 

[jaws22]

Originally posted by killafins
personally i don't think it's a good idea to put the heater anywhere near the filter. with the current, the water moves and because of the energy moving the water is warmer. Now, if you place the heater farther from the tank it will read it's coldest temp and keep that spot, the coldest spot, to the desired heat.
Thanks for your reply.
I don't quite understand what you are saying about the heater issue. Are you saying that the temp in the tank would get too warm with this filter?
Thanks

 

[beaslbob]

first of all it sounds like your experience 10 years ago could be put to good use. It should work today also.
You also may want to start out by establishing a good growth of macro algae or marine plants. That way the tank will be balanced out and help control other types of algae.

 

[jlem]

Welcome to the board. I think that the most important thing is the type of system you want. Do you want a simple fish only (FO). Do you want live rock (LR), a combination of both or do you want a reef tank. Do you want everything that it takes for every tupe of coral or what it takes for some of the less demanding corals as far as lighting and feeding requirements. I ask these questions because every different setup can be run with many different filtration methods and a ton more or less money.
Honestly I would start with a simple FO system with moderate lighting, some live rock, Crushed Coral or a Shallow sand bed, and a good canister filter like a magnum 350 pro system. A huge sump and lots of live rock with high intensity lighting is all fine and dandy but it is also a ton more money and you should first get back into the groove before you even try to go reef which most of us do. The lighting can always suppliment MH if you eventually change and a bag of C/C won't break your wallet anyways if you eventually move it. It never hurts to have a good backup filter so that won't be a waste. I would rather you spend less and have some back ups if removed then spend a ton more and decide that the more expensive way is not worth the money.

 

[jaws22]

Originally posted by jlem
Welcome to the board. I think that the most important thing is the type of system you want. Do you want a simple fish only (FO). Do you want live rock (LR), a combination of both or do you want a reef tank. Do you want everything that it takes for every tupe of coral or what it takes for some of the less demanding corals as far as lighting and feeding requirements. I ask these questions because every different setup can be run with many different filtration methods and a ton more or less money.
What I would really like is to have a tank with the fish mentioned in my first post, some live rock, and one anenome for my clowns to hang out in.
Honestly I would start with a simple FO system with moderate lighting,.
Please define "moderate lighting". Is a 48" twin tube with one full spectrum bulb and one actinic bulb sufficient to keep my anenome and live rock healthy?
some live rock,
How much live rock would you recommend?
Crushed Coral or a Shallow sand bed,
Which is better?
and a good canister filter like a magnum 350 pro system.
How does the magnum 350 compare to the Fluval 304 in performance and cost?
A huge sump and lots of live rock with high intensity lighting is all fine and dandy but it is also a ton more money and you should first get back into the groove before you even try to go reef which most of us do. The lighting can always suppliment MH if you eventually change and a bag of C/C won't break your wallet anyways if you eventually move it. It never hurts to have a good backup filter so that won't be a waste. I would rather you spend less and have some back ups if removed then spend a ton more and decide that the more expensive way is not worth the money.
I have no desire to set up a reef tank. The kids and I are really interested in the fish and anenome. Thank god I am not trying to set up a reef tank...I couldn't afford it.
Thanks for all your help!

 

[ajroc31]

Persoanlly I would suggest something with a sump, for extra oxygen. Power filters are useless in marine setups( opinion only).
Cansiter filters are pretty much for chemical and physical filtration. Trickle filters provide all three types of filtration, so with some live rock you can have a pretty potent system set up. Add a skimmer ( a must have) and you are on your way. I dont like undergravel filters. However the plates that they provide I used. Just put them on the bottom, so that critters can freely move around with out any problems. On top of that I put crushed coral, and finally live sand. I never had my nitrates exceed .15 ppm. Spit...Spit..Spit.. sorry for spitting I do not want to jinx myself.

 

[michaeltx]

a FO system is the easiest to care for and maintain but once you start adding any corals then you got a slue of things to consider.
as soon as you add ANY coral to a tank its considered a reef or semi-reef.
the main thing to consider now is doa search on anemones, alot of people will tell you that they are not all that hardy and survival rates arent that high for them. others will tell you that they are good and that they have great success with them.
but a few things about what they will need
1- they need excelent water quality and stabilty
2- they need higher end lighting ( which can cost a lot of money)
3- and most important is that in the wild they live for (reportedly) 100's of years and until recently people have actually been able to keep them longer and longer but with some effort.
Most will advise not to add a anemone to a tank untl the tank is mature about a year to get the most stable water that you can.
I am sure thers will add to it.
IMO
Mike

 

[killafins]

Originally posted by Jaws22
Thanks for your reply.
I don't quite understand what you are saying about the heater issue. Are you saying that the temp in the tank would get too warm with this filter?
Thanks
Not at all... okay if u want to stay warm, what do u do? You move around... pretty simple right. Now, if you have alot of movement in the water it will be warmer. So basically u want to find the coldest place in the tank to put the heater in so u get the accurate temp of the water. I hope this makes more sense....

 

[lesleybird]

Hi,
I have a Rena Filstar under the cabinet cannester filter on my tiny 40 gallon fish only tank and I love it as it is so easy to maintain and works really well. I wanted to add a wet/dry element to the tank so I recently bought a biowheel by marineland that you can hook up to almost any cannester filter. I really don't care for the magnum filter, but liked the idea of the biowheel that hangs on the rim of the tank for the return flow. The biowheel really adds a lot of oxygen to the tank too. I have had the tank up for almost two years and have never lost any fish except a couple during the cycle when the tank was new. I never even used a protein skimmer in the tank because the first on that I bought was a prism, and it never really worked, so I left it off and just changed 15 gallons of new water in the tank every two or three weeks. I use something in the filter called biochemzorb instead of charcole as it is suppose to remove a lot of disolved organics. I did buy a different skimmer last week by Seaclone and will set it up next week.
Now I am treating for ich that came in on my new flame angel. I am using a product called Kick Ich which is reef safe and does not destroy your biological filter. I have to wait until this treatment is over to add the skimmer. Everyone on the disease site says that this product does not work. I just think that they may not remove the carbon or skimmer, and may not treat long enough. I am using it for an entire month, not just two weeks like it says as the life cycle of these pests is three weeks or more. Anyway, my fish, crabs, shrimp, snails and brissle worms are all doing fine now.
I know that a lot of people on this site like sand on the bottom, but I have crush agronite with shells in it from Florida that does very well for me. I didn't use sand because I am afraid that I would vaccuum it out of the tank when I clean. I think that a lot of people with reef tanks use sand, but I think that they only rake it, not vaccuum. I may be wrong. Good luck with your new tank!
Lesley