For your sand/rock/protein skimmer to perform all the necessary filtraion, your sand bed will have to be at least 4" deep, and you will need about 1.5# of live rock per gallon, or 68lbs. A protein skimmer is a device that removes organic waste before it has a chance to be broken down into harmful toxins. There are many different types and brands, so you will have to do some research on them to decide which will be best suited for what you will want to do with your tank. A sump is a tank that is apart from your display tank(usually inside the tank stand) where water from your display tank is circulated to be altered by any various forms of equipment. This would be what your wet/dry filter is sitting in, the main housing tank your wet/dry is made from. It allows you to place your heater, skimmer, and other equipment in a location that won't obstruct your view of the display tank. A UV sterilizer is a chamber where UV light bombards the water passing through it, killing algae, bacteria, parasites, and any other organisms. It kills indescriminately, so be careful in deciding if you would want one. Sumps and UV sterilizers are not a "necessity", but a sump makes a lot of things better looking and easier to use. A good protein skimmer is not necessarily needed, but is very beneficial, to the point that many say it is almost a necessity. Not all live sand will have visible life in it. The term "live" refers to the nitrifying bacteria that colonizes the sand, which performs your bio-filtration. Don't buy any more of the bottled bacteria, as you will not need it if you have live sand and live rock. You may also want to tounge-lash your LFS for preying on customers that don't yet understand all of the basics of the SW hobby. You will also want to take your livestock out and return it to where you got it, as adding more rock will cause another cycle, but will be VERY beneficial later. Be sure when you remove the sponge, not to expose it to air, as it will kill it. After adding the rock and sand, you will need to wait for 4-6 weeks for the cycle to finish. Get a good SW master test kit and become familiar with it. It will give you readings on pH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. After 2 weeks, begin testing your water every week to keep an eye on your cycle. The first you will notice will be an amm. spike, followed by nitrite, and finally nitrate. This is the "cycle", as the biofiltration breaks down organic material. Once your amm. and nitrite read 0, you will need to do a water change to bring your nitrate down, and then you will be ready for livestock. If you have any additional questions, post or e-mail me at
shadow6_78@hotmail.com HTH and good luck.
.