Newbie Here with a really stupid question..Please help if you can :-)

[dapaman]

Originally Posted by jdragunas
Just make sure you always research any coral before you buy it to make sure you have the proper lighting to support it.

Hope i don't come off rude or forceful, because i'm not at all

, just want to make sure you do the best thing for your tank, and you waste as little $$$ as possible. This hobby is expensive enough as it is so there's no need to go wasting $ if it's not necessary.

jdragunas, Not rude or forceful at all....

just exactly what we need to hear! Hate to waste money!!We have power compact with 2 65 watt daylight, 2 65 watt actinic and 4 moonlights. So, we should be okay with the colt coral or mushroom/leather corals? How do we feed them, since the LFS will tell us we need supplements?
And, w shop at the same LFS as ann&mel, thought LR was overpriced, which is why decided to try DIY. (sorry ann&mel, not trying to cut you down, I am just kind of frugal!) But, apparantly we need some better LR with more growth on it to seed the DIY stuff! Have you been the the new LFS on the other side of the bay? I wanna check it out!)
I appreciate your input too, mr bill!

 

[ann&mel]

BTw dapaman...This is kinda funny but...after we left the LFS and got home we realized we forgot the salt! lmao...Yeah I know how is that possible..but we did it! Anyhow...I call the other store on hillcrest and they had the Instant Ocean salt I wanted..I ran up there and they were 10-20 bucks cheaper on alot of stuff...Specifically the Emporor filter I want..I would never buy a fish from there but on some of the dry goods it might be worth a look

 

[dapaman]

Originally Posted by Ann&Mel
Hubby does thou...maybe he can check it out
If he does let me know...although I dnot have 5 kids (wow, you must be busy), i work alot, so I don't go to far too often, or they are closed when I can go. Too bad wallyworld (my second home) doesn't have this stuff! LOL

 

[dapaman]

also, ann&mel, to save $ check out the online auction site. I got the hood and lights for the tank for > 50% off our LFS price, same brand and everything. Thats also where we got our filter and protien skimmer.

 

[ann&mel]

Lordy they would make a killin off me if they did! I am there so much they know me by name lol...I am very busy ...I like my pups and fish thou..they dont backtalk me and no diapers

!

 

[ann&mel]

oh yeah...I LOVE the auction site...I gotta couple bids going right now lol.....Is Jebo a good one? I saw some of them when we were getting our pond stuff...I think I saw a protein skimmer for 30 or so....

 

[dapaman]

I am definately the wrong person to ask about brands...we just got lucky! Need jdragunas or mr bill to answer that one!

 

[mr_bill]

AquaC are a good skimmer to go with, I wouldn't trust the 30 dollar one. You'll want to get a skimmer that is setup to be placed into a sump, make sure you specify that when asking around. My skimmer is made by small company who doesn't have very wide distribution, cost me 85.00 and it works great. I can get the exact name and model number when I get home.
Skimmer setup is whole other thing you'll want to be patient with. They have a burn in cycle for about a week where they throw alot of bubbles around. Just let that thing run for a week before really worrying about fine tuning.

 

[mr_bill]

almost forgot..
Most of these pumps, skimmers, and powerheads are very over rated in GPH(gallons per hour). Don't pick pumps that just barely meet your needs, go above be 50-100 GPH to be safe.

 

[ann&mel]

OK..i GOT A HEATER...oops caps lock...So that should be good to go...refugium? hmm...I dont have a clue...so are you saying a bio filter type isnt nessesary or get a better one?

 

[mr_bill]

What you can do is work a refugium into your sump. They are for absorbing nitrates and you probably wouldn't see any for quite a while, but may as well think about it in the beginning while your doing all the setup.
It's basically a small area of space in your sump which you add live sand, micro algaes. It needs to be lit and have your tanks water flow through it. There are alot of diagrams and plans in the DIY forum as well.
So if you wanted to do this in your sump you will need to section off a part before the water gets to your return pumps for the refugium.