More tank start up questions

mandy

mandy

New Member
Now that I've realized I am going to be
saving for this tank for a looooong time,
I would like to have some recommendation
on the exact items I need for a new reef
tank. I do live in the south, so halide
lighting would be hard for me without
a chiller. (It would be a decade before
I could afford one.) I have heard that
VHO combined with Actinic will support
corals and fish well. Also, I just
saw an article about a type of lighting
called SHO. What is it and what are
it's pros and cons? The tank will be
75-100gal. What is the best filtration
system for this size? If anyone can
give me a list of equipment I would be
grateful. Also, any websites that sell
aquaria and supplies would be cool. All
I have found so far are Pet Wharehouse
and Pet Solutions that have competitive
prices.
Thanks!
Mandy
 
reptilicus

reptilicus

Member
Hi,
good to see you being patient and waiting to get the right equipent in the first place, it is one of the keys to successful reefing. Metal Halides do not generate that much heat, blow fans across the surface and you should be right. However, unless you're going to invest in 250-watt MH's it's probably best to go VHO. PC=Power compact and I have seen some very nice reefs lit with this type of lighting, these are also sometimes referred to as SHO, although VHO seem to have a higher output the SHO. You'd probably want 4 VHO lights, 2 actinic 03 and two 50/50.
For filtertaion, buy a big chunky protein skimmer like a ETS, I'm not an expert on American skimmers so I don't know for sure. Make sure it's big though, rated at twice the tank vloume i.e. rated for a 200 gallon system. Then, get some live rock, Put in a 3-4" sand bed and you will have a stunning reef in the future.
Regards,
Tom
 
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