Beginner Shopping List

[blackgrouper]

First, I'm very exited to get into this hobby. I've been a Scuba Diver for more than 10 years and I truly love and enjoy the sea and reef creatures.
This site has a wealth of information, and I'm very thankful to those who contribute and help new hobbyist like me.
I'm planning to start a FOWLR with either a 55gal or 40gal tank. This is the shopping list I have so far:
0. Conscientious Marine Aquarist and New Marine Aquarium books (ordered online, should get within the next few days)
1. Tank, hood, stand
2. 5 inches DSB (Tropical Play Sand (where to get in South Florida?), with 20-40lbs of LS
3. 1 pound/gallon Live Rock
4. 2 x Maxijets 900 (if 40gal tank do I need one or two?)
5. Filter - Do I need mechanical filtration? I was thinking of saving the money and starting with Protein Skimmer right off the bat. Or do I need something like an Emperor 400?
6. Lights ? (I'm clueless on this area. I would like to get into reefs later, but that could take me 1-2 years)
7. Heater ?
I'm open to any suggestions and comments.
Thank you and I appreciate the assistance,
Black Grouper

 

[beaslbob]

Originally posted by BlackGrouper First, I'm very exited to get into this hobby. I've been a Scuba Diver for more than 10 years and I truly love and enjoy the sea and reef creatures.
This site has a wealth of information, and I'm very thankful to those who contribute and help new hobbyist like me.
I'm planning to start a FOWLR with either a 55gal or 40gal tank. This is the shopping list I have so far:
0. Conscientious Marine Aquarist and New Marine Aquarium books (ordered online, should get within the next few days)
1. Tank, hood, stand
Welcome to hobby. Nice to see someone asking questions before purchasing. I don't know how handy you are but you can save a lot of money by building you own stand and hood. A major portion of the tank's cost is for the glass itself. I do recommend you get the largest tank you can afford that will fit in the location you want it to wind up.
2. 5 inches DSB (Tropical Play Sand (where to get in South Florida?), with 20-40lbs of LS
5" may be a little deep. 3-4 should be fine and allows more water room for the fish. I use play sand from Home Depot but that is a brown color. You may prefer a sugar white sand.
3. 1 pound/gallon Live Rock
I don't use live rock or live sand so I can't advise.
4. 2 x Maxijets 900 (if 40gal tank do I need one or two?)
5. Filter - Do I need mechanical filtration? I was thinking of saving the money and starting with Protein Skimmer right off the bat. Or do I need something like an Emperor 400?
My experience has been that during the initial cycling I had periods where I needed mechanical filtration. After the initial cycling, there was less need as the tank stabilized. I do have a mechanical filter running on my 55g but only a powerhead on the 20g and no filtration on my 10g freshwater tank. Using something to circulate the water does make for a more interesting tank.
6. Lights ? (I'm clueless on this area. I would like to get into reefs later, but that could take me 1-2 years)
It will take more than you think at first. I use a cheapie 4' utility floursecent light under my hood with 2 40 watt 3300 lumen tubes. that apears to be a minimum as using 1600 lumen "plant/aquarium" tubes did not provide enough light for the algae.
7. Heater ?
optional if your house is confortable to humans.
I'm open to any suggestions and comments.
Thank you and I appreciate the assistance,
Black Grouper
Now the very next thing that will happen is everyone that posts will have a different view as to what is right. As a scuba diver, if you can collect macro algae that would make excellent decorations for your tank. You might be able to reduce or eliminate the live rock costs that way. Hope you enjoy.

 

[califishdude]

Im glad your here and welcome aboard...
I have 55 gallon Tall. i think this would be a perfect tank. 24hx36Lx18w. It wide and deep to really arrange a good setup. For my LS i put 20lbs of playsand and a cup of LS from a LFS personnel tank. That saved me alot of money, For my Lr i bought 100 lbs of Lr here and there from differnet stores to get me a variety and then i bought some good Hawaiian Island Base rock of ---- 50lbs for $50. I moxed the LR and BR around my tank and 1 month later critters everywher and my corraline Algae growth is Great. The Light setup i got i ended up with just 2-96watt PC. I found 4-96 watt retrofit PC for 350 on ---- so it all depends on what you want in your tank. IFor my filter i got a fluval 304 which works good but im not sure what it compares to any wet/dry. I have a 250wat heater with a remote, and my Ph have a turnover rate of 12x. So the maxijets would be a good choice. The skimmer i got is a prizm and it works good. When iget my 240 up and running im keeping this the way it is and buying MMH and Vho with a wet/dry and the works. I hope this might be helpfull to you.