Hey There A New B With Some ?'s

[j-ro]

I have been thinkin about getting into the Saltwater fish part now for sometime, rite now i have a fresh water 75. So i know the basics, but i dont know about the basics of salt water tanks. Im thinkin about maybe a 75g tank just not sure if its gonna be custom 75 or not. One of my ?s are what are some good FiltersUGF ad protein Skimers. What would u suggest? Now i am planning on starting with just a reefcoral tank at first maybe some crabs and snails and things like that first b4 i add my fish. Is that a good place to start? Now my next ? is what would i need for lighting to make this all work? In the future i would like to have starish oyster or clams also. I know for some speciments u need some pretty powerfull lighting. And i looked through a couple of posts that guys were getting there tanks pre-drilled on the bottom> Whats that used for? Is it recomended due to filteration? There are some ?s for u i know to u they must seem like pretty stupid ?'s but to me there impoertant.So if u could post some thoughts and opinions that would be great cause the more info i get the better for me in the long run.

 

[j-ro]

Do u think i should start small b4 i go big?

 

[bang guy]

Hi! Welcome to the board!!

There are about 87492 different ways to do a Reef Tank. You started exactly right by asking before buying. That's wonderful and that kind of patience will take you far.
First item is to forget about what equipment you should buy. We need to determine what it is you want your aquarium to house and look like. I strongly suggest owning a good saltwater book for reference and also to give you information about acronyms and general principals of reefkeeping. The Conscientious Marine Aquarist is an excellent starter.
You've stated reef/corals. You need to go a little beyond that. Look around at pictures of peoples reef systems on this board, that will help.
That being said, I think a 75 is a great starter tank for building a reef. Metal Halide lighting is the accepted system for maintaining all types of coral, it's also the priciest in terms of startup cost. For filtration, I'm a fan of natural filtrating using live sand and live rock. There are many many opinions you need to read before making that decision for yourself though. For not, do not buy any filtration until you know what approach you are going to use.
Drilled tanks are very nice and for me, well worth the extra money. They allow the use of a sump with less risk than hang-on-the-back overflows. A sump is a convenient place to store equipment like heaters and skimmers as well as increasing water volume and simplifying water changes.
How are you with building and fabricating your own equipment vs how deep are your pockets. This is an expensive hobby but if you build a lot yourself you can save a lot of money. I'd recommend never sacrificing quality for bucks though.
I'm around a lot so feel free to ask as many question as you'd like. Listen to lots of opinions but don't accept an opinion only because it's easiest or cheapest, it needs to be the right thing to do.

 

[bs21]

First off welcome to the hobby. You are definately getting off on the right foot by asking questions. To answer your first question about filters let me say to stay away from undergravel filters. You will have much better success with a sand substrate and live rock as your primary filter source which can be supplemented by protein skimmers, wet/dry filters, and the list goes on. As far as starting with a reef most people will probably agree that it is better to start with fish till the tank becomes more established and your levels are more stable. Also you will have a better understanding of the maintenance you will need to do. Rushing things and not researching what you are adding to your tank is probably the number one reason people have bad experiences in saltwater and deem it to hard to do. This doesn't mean that you can't start there but there will be a greater possibility of something happening if you don't stay ontop of waterchanges etc... As far as lighting there are alot of choices Power Compacts, VHO, T-5, Metal Halide. Fish only need a basic light to simulate day/night but certain corals/inverts can need some pretty strong lighting like clams, anemones. It will depend on the type of corals you want also. Drilled tanks are for overflows to filters beneath the tank(sump) like wet/dry filters, refugiums, and protein skimmers that sit in the sump. I really recommend you purchase one of the following books along with continue researching here in the archives and on the forums. Two of the books i have found most helpful which answered most if not all the questions i had when first starting were "the concientious marine aquariest" by Fenner and "the new marine aquarium" by Paletta. These will be great references and any questions you have about info in them can be easily answered here. Besides those books in the Archives there is a section on setting up a tank which covers filters and all of that stuff, along with a plethora of other info. Good luck and Welcome to the boards.

 

[earlybird]

Lots of good info and people on here that are willing to help. I racked up over 1,000 posts before I even added water to my tank. I'm currently in my 4th day of my cycle. My advice to you is to go get some books from the library but keep in mind that some are outdated. Like Bang Guy said, "The Concientious Marine Aquarist" by Fenner is the best starter book.
Good luck

 

[j-ro]

Im thinkin a 30g to start me off in the rite direction, now i need to know what sizefilter should i go with? i know the bigger the better. And how many can u fit in a tank this size, Im thinkin, clown fish thosetypes of fish. nothing that grows big and is agressive.

 

[kanicky]

Originally Posted by J-RO
Im thinkin a 30g to start me off in the rite direction, now i need to know what sizefilter should i go with? i know the bigger the better. And how many can u fit in a tank this size, Im thinkin, clown fish thosetypes of fish. nothing that grows big and is agressive.
Why'd you go from 75 to 30 gallons? If it's because of money, I understand, but if not, definitely go for the 75 gallon. You might wish you had later on down the line

That said, if you plan on doing live rock and live sand, a filter is not necessary, as LR and LS are natural filters. Instead, invest in protein skimmer. Perhaps the Coralife Super Skimmer or the Aqua C Remora Pro- both good skimmers. Get a skimmer that's rated for at least twenty gallons more than you have as sometime they are under-rated.
In a 30 gallon, you could probably do a pair of clownfish, a royal gramma, firefish, and a small blenny or goby of some sort, as well as your clean-up crew of snails and hermits.
You really couldn't do sea stars in a 30 gallon, unless you did a Chocolate Chip Star, but from what I've heard and observed, they are typically not reef-safe. Other sea stars require a lot of sand and a lot of room to wander as well. I'm not too familiar with the needs of brittle and serpent stars, but perhaps our resident sea star expert will add to this thread

Oysters and clams require excellent lighting (MH's all the way) and pristine water conditions, so you may want to wait a while on those.
Keep asking questions. We are all here to help!

 

[j-ro]

So if i go with live coral and live sand there will be no need for a filter? Or a sump?

 

[am00re34]

i would go with the 75 gallon, but of course the larger you go, the more money it costs to start. but! it will be more stable and much easier to keep things alive in.
for filtration you would want about 100-150 lbs of Live Rock and about 60-80lbs of sand (dont buy live sand in a bag, buy regular sand and seed it with a few cups of live sand from your LFS or a friend). Like said above you want a skimmer as well. beyond that you are set. i dont know what you have in tems or lights, heater, and powerheads, but you might be ok since you had the 75 before.
sumps are always a plus. they add more water volumn for more stability and give you a place to hide things like your heater and skimmer. you can also set up a fuge which is great as well.... overall sumps are great, but not needed.
any questions just ask, we are all here to help!

 

[kanicky]

Originally Posted by Am00re34
for filtration you would want about 100-150 lbs of Live Rock and about 60-80lbs of sand
Not if you're going to go with the 30 gallon, of course. It's usually recommended to have 1.5 lbs of LR per each gallon of water. For example, in our 45, we have about 50 lbs of LR...