Im setting up an aquarium

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yae4volcom

Guest
I am going to set up a new aquarium in the next month or so. I was looking at a 20-30 gallon SeaClear acrylic Tank.
Theres A pic......30 Gallon SeaClear tank without filter, light, heater ect.
There are two different kinds of 30 gallon tanks they make......Tall and rectangle shape. I would fill it up with live rock and sand and some critters and some small fish and corals.......There is an upgrade called the eclipse 3 ....Picture and description below
Upgrade which includes light and filter
If anyone has used this could you tell me a little about it. If I did get the eclipse 3 what other things would I need to keep the tank clean and running properly?
I'm not a seriouse

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aquariust so I dont need the best stuff but I would still like a nice tank that doesnt break down every week. Any help would be grrrrreeeeatttttly apreciated, This whole aquarium things getting confusing :confused:
 
overanalyzer

overanalyzer

Active Member
First: WELCOME!! This is a wonderful board!
Second: If you want to keep a saltwater tank I would suggest reading up a bit more on it then start trying to determine which type of tank you want. You will get a lot of people giving you their opinion about your tanks. Probably a ton of people telling you to go bigger - as bigger is better. WHATEVER - it comes down to your tank your choice.
I would suggest reading some books: The Conscientious Marine Aquarist is a good one and pretty standard in most libraries and book stores. There is also a Saltwater for Dummies book - which has a lot of basic solid info. To help further your education I would continue to hang out here and ask questions and read up (I have almost put down a down payment on my tank ... after doing about 8 months of research).
Third: You said you want corals - if you use an eclipse you will have to use a retro fit lighting system
Lastly: I have never met someone who just does this hobby a little bit ....
Personally I started out wanting a 30 and have talked the wife into a 72 Gallon Bow Front .... i think
 
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yae4volcom

Guest
About a million peoplehave told me to read books and research.......I am not the type of person that has patience for thos type of things.....I like to learn as I go......people also say bigger is better but I know i dont want a big tank because im not into big fish......I want like a mini reef.......i dont really like the big tanks......aLL i need is some info please just give me want i want......not to read and think about it but to actually do it.
 
bdhough

bdhough

Active Member
Bigger is better in the sense that everything will be more stable with a larger tank because there is a heck of alot more area to cushion changes. A small 12 gallon reef tank could be thrown off by one little change, such as a stable temperature. i.e. my tank...
The problem with an eclipse tank is two fold.
One you have to upgrade the lights somehow and the canopy that comes with it doesn't really allow for that.
Two with a 30 gallon tank or higher you really need a protein skimmer which the eclipse tank also doesn't allow space for on the back.
If you plan on getting corals you have to address both of these problems. If you want just fish then you don't need to worry about this.
BTW your impatience could kill fish :) Seriously though. You have to wait a few weeks between adding new things to saltwater tanks or you risk overloading or underloading in various ways and wasting alot of money on expensive items.... There are several steps you can take that are pretty easy to follow and insure everything is ok. I can list them if you wish.... Or you can post questions as you get things.
One last thing if you do serches on a topic you can find almost anything on this board....
 
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yae4volcom

Guest
Well that was a lot of help.......Now that I know the eclipse is crap, I don't think I'll be getting the sea clear acrylic tank.......I still want a 30 gallon tank though.
Where can I get a nice tank like that online? What else do I need. If you could be sposific on which product I should get than I love you. I dont have a lot of space and am not going to get a stand.....If everything could just hang on the side of the tank it would be all the more helpfull.......or where can I get a full setup with filter, tank, ect. online besides ----.....please some help
 
bdhough

bdhough

Active Member
That i can't really help you with since i have a 12 gallon eclipse :). I don't have a protein skimmer either because its a small tank. As far as lighting goes go to ahsupply.com or petsolutions.com and look there. That should give you an idea.
ah is a lighting company and petsolutions has a variety of items. As far as whats good i don't know that. The thing you really need to figure out is how indepth you want to go with the tank like i described earlier. Do you want just fish? Or do you want corals? Or just fish and inverts? Fish only tanks require much less than a full reef tank.
So figure that out first and get back to me.
 
cells

cells

Member
I think 55 is a good start. I setup my 29 and and realize that it is too small after I learn more about salt water tank. like my tank, the most I can add is 2-3 more small fishes and that's it. There are so many beautiful fishes I want to add.... :mad:
 
cells

cells

Member
true, they can't even live in harmony among themselves! I'll wait a couple more months for my tank to mature, and then trade them in for some nice colorful fishes... like the violet/red firefish, maybe a mated clown pair, hehehe :D
 
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yae4volcom

Guest
Well after all these posts I still want a small tank with corals and live rock and sand........a few fish and a few crutastients..........I dunno what to dp anymore......Is there a way you could tell me exactly what to buy to start a tank.....not for fish but all the supplies.....I cant do this on my own
 
robn70

robn70

Member
You could just stop at your LFS and see what packages they have I picked up my 38 gal with Oak canopy and Oak stand for around $250.00 not including lights, filters etc. They should be able to put a package together for you that will be in your buget. Be prepaired to spend at least $500.00 to get started. Even the smaller fish are not that cheap.
 
bdhough

bdhough

Active Member
You need several things if you are going to do corals
1) tank...
2) lights - you need at least 3 watts per gallon and if you want to do the more exotic corals you need around 5 watts
3) filter system - Ask the fish store about this because it varys with whatever tank you get
4) protein skimmer - This will clean your water as well but in a different way as opposed to the filter system.
5) power head - this will move the water around inside your tank. I think some protein skimmers come with power heads built into them
6) Live rock and Live Sand - Both of which sustain micro life in your tank and will assist in the growth of your corals and maintenance of the tank. I would get enough sand for a 3-4 inch sand bed ie about 1.5 lbs per gallon and you can get about 1.5 lbs per gallon of live rock.
Buy everything except the protein skimmer at first. You don't need the skimmer until you get corals. Theres more to this but thats the gist of it. Once you get these things you have to cycle your tank. Ask the fish store about this. If they can't answer your question then find another....
 
overanalyzer

overanalyzer

Active Member
Y.
OK I understand researching to great depths is not for everyone.
Some basic items you will need:
Hydrometer, Salt Mix, Protein Skimmer, Lights, Powerheads (probably 2 for a tank you are wishing to get), heater, thermometer, test kit and Sand.
Start with that - get it setup and stable (you won't need the protein skimmer right away).
I'd suggest getting at least one book that explains the tank cycle and what to expect and watch for. (no need to buy - use hte local public library)
IF you are going to use all live rock then wait - if you are going to use base rokc then put your base rock in now.
Get it set upand the salinity and temp stable then get your live rock.
Good Luck - and as BDHOUGH states - look on this site by doing searches.
~ Patience is a virtue ......
 
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yae4volcom

Guest
Well that really helped......now i just got to get my parents to lend me a thousand dollars or so to get all the stuff:D great this is gunna be the hard part......
oh mooooom.....your looking so nice today.....well I was just er um wondering if you could uh......NO .......but mom.....:(
 
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yae4volcom

Guest
Well my mom and pops said no.....guess this is where I relize it was all a huge ass waste of time......ahhhhhhh :( :( :( :( :(
 
F

fishkid1000

Guest
Hey join the party. It sucks butt. I am a kid too. Stupid child labor laws grrrrr.:mad:
 
overanalyzer

overanalyzer

Active Member
c'mon now - I started working when I was 13. Heck - I made more money my junior year of High School than I did my first year out of college as a teacher .....
 
j21kickster

j21kickster

Active Member
Just a quick tip- It is glad that you are starting SW- or want to anyway- but the number of questions you have tells us that you still have a lot of learning to do- We are there to help but, we cant tell you step by step everything to do- I guess we could but then again that it why people write books. SW take time and if you arent willing to give it- It will just take it- meaning if you want to jump in and start a reef and put everything in in one day sure you could-It would look nice for about a day or two, then things would die and you would have to start all over- so like i said if you dont give this hobby the time it needs it will end up taking it right back- slow down, do some research and you will be fine- And about learning as you go- just ask any one on this board- this is not the hobby to use those tactics.HTH:)
 
blue fishies

blue fishies

Member

Originally posted by YAE4Volcom
Well my mom and pops said no.....guess this is where I relize it was all a huge ass waste of time......ahhhhhhh :( :( :( :( :(
ya i know how you feel im 13 and im trying to get money by asking for a few bucks here and there and a tip SAVE YOUR MONEY dont spend it on little things that are for a dollar because it adds up and you'll be left were you started from $0
oh ya get a's on your tests and all your classes, they will be so happy that they'll that you need a reward and say i wana mini-reef tank
 
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