New Tank

calphin

New Member
Well, I just started my very first saltwater tank. Its a 33gal. long. I really need some advice on what else I need. I've had it set up for about 2 months now with only one clownfish, about a week ago I added a yellow tang, about 5-6lbs. of live rock and some plants. All I have for filtration is an air pump run undergravel filter and a whisper 30-50gal. filter. I have no skimmer, powerheads, etc. Would someone please give me some advice on what I can get or do to get the absolute most I can out of my new tank. :) :)
 

taku

Member
Well it depends on what you plan to keep in the tank.
If you plan on a having live rock and fish ONLY... then I would suggest some sort of wet/dry system to hang on the back on the tank, maybe a skimmer altho it's not necessary. I would also suggest you invest in 1-2 pretty strong powerheads. Water movement is extremely important in this hobby. Lighting won't really be TOO much of an issue as the fish will do fine with standard lighting.. however the live rock may need a bit more lighting than can be provided by "stock lighting". Others may have a better answer for you on this one.
Everything is different for a reef tank however, because it will house corals and far less fish than a fish-only. The lighting needs to be upgraded, the filtration needs to be upgraded (maybe you'll want to stick with just LR and LS for filtration and a skimmer), the water movement via powerheads really needs to be upgraded for this tank.
So I guess the next question before I spend 10 minutes responding is... how much cash are you willing to spend right now to set up this tank properly?
No matter how DIY you get or how cheap you get some products.. it's STILL going to cost more than you anticipated so be forewarned :) But it's more than worth it!!
Also... I would ditch the undergravel filter personally. Those work great for freshwater tanks, but not for saltwater IMO.
This is all my opinion on what's worked for me so far so take it with a grain of salt :D
ps- reef tanks are awesome! fish-only are cool.. but there's almost nothing more rewarding than a healthy tank full of coral :)
 

kris

Member
For sure lose the air pump. Run your ug by placing powerheads on top of those tubes. Much more effective that way. After that you should decide on what else you want to have in there. Also you amy want to check if your lfs will take your yellow for trade on something more suitable for your tank as it is way to small for him regardless of what size he is now.
Good Luck
 

calphin

New Member
i am willing to spend whatever it takes over time, i am open for any suggestions. also, it at all possible, could anyone e-mail some pictures of some reef tanks and/or some fish-only tanks?
calphin@vt.edu
 
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