welcome to the boards. i will try to answer where i can, you asked alot of questions! :Originally Posted by FANCLAN
I am new to saltwater, but have a couple of freshwater tanks that I have been maintaining for a couple of years. I am ready to take the leap into the Ocean now.
I want to build a 75 - 150 gl reef.
decide which you want now. there is pretty big difference, but all pretty good starter size tanks if you have the money. 75-90 are usuall 4', 110-150 are usually 6' long. The larger the tank, the more forgiving and stable the water quality is, however more work to do water changes and move - should you have to
Could someone give me some ideas on contents for the tank. i.e qty of rock, wattage of lights, size of sump and gph, type of substraight, number of power heads.
One good rule of thumb is around 1.5 LBS of LR / Gallon size of tank. You can save money by buying cheaper 'Base Rock' for the bottom 50% and the good LR for the top 50%. the other rock will be come live in time. Lights isnt about wattage really. if you arent getting a tall tank (over 30") your best bet for lighting will be either Metal Halide (MH) or Reflected T-5. Power Heads are used to increase Flow in the tank. this can be done a number of ways, but your overall flow you should aim to achieve 15x-25x the gallons of your tank. so if you got a 100 gallon tank, you want to achieve 1500-2500 GPH (gal/hour). this can be done many ways, and you need to count your sump (the bigger the better, Adding a fuge is a great idea. research Refugium) your return Pump, your protein skimmer Pump, Powerheads, Closed Loop Systems etc etc.
My goal is to have it stocked with the following:
Fish -
Clowns 2-3
keep to one species and only get 1 or 2. if you buy 2, get them at varying sizes.
Tangs 2-3
if you get three different species thats fine, just make sure your tank is large enough, do your research, and the shapes or Genus are not the same. If you want say, multiple Yellow tangs, go with Odd number.
Gobies 2-3
Coral -
green brain - 1
chili coral -1-2
Goniopora - 1
Avoid Gonio, or flowerpots, because they usually do not do well after a year. You should wait about 6 momths before you start adding corals. at least.
Inverts -
Hawaiian Red Anemone - 1
dont know abou these, but anenomes can be tricky and difficult. research!
Long Tentacle Anemone - 1
this is a common anenome and relatively easy to keep. like corals, wait at least 6 months.
Derasa Clam - 1
Cleaner Clam - 1
Shrimp -
various - 10
10 large shrimp will be too much, start 3 and see how they do.
Snails -
variious - 10
multiply by 100 for an appropriate sized clean up crew
Crabs -
various - 10
careful here. do your research on each type (sense a theme yet?) a lot of crabs can get mean and are not reef safe.
Well thats is my starting point, please let me know positive and negitive points you may see.
Thanks,
FANCLAN :notsure:
