Screwed by Local Fish Store, Please Help!

[wpost2]

Alright, so basically I went to my two local fish stores and told them the fish I wanted. I originally wanted a lionfish, a puffer, and an eel. I then started leaning towards an angel, butterfly, tang, green mandarin, and a few inverts. Long story short is my 40 gal tank is too small for these fish. The local fish stores told me it would be plenty of room. So, now I have a decision to make, which is where I need the advise.
I just got the tank a couple of weeks ago, so I'm pretty sure i can return it.
- 30 lbs of live rock - I can keep this in my old 20 gal tank temporarily, with the live sand and saltwater, right?
- 40 gal tank - have receipt, can most likely return
- glass top and light fixture - have receipt, can most likely return
- Eheim Professional II Canister Filter - I have the receipt for this but i doubt they'd let me return it because it is used for a week now.
So here's the two biggest problems..I'm pretty sure I can return everything except for the canister filter. Can that filter handle a 75 or 100 gal?
Secondly, can I get a 75 or 100 gal tank that would fit on a 32x19 inch surface? If so, PLEASE link! I really don't want to have to buy a tank with a stand.

 

[see money]

Im pretty sure what you need to look at is the wieght issue for your stand. A gallon of water is roughtly 8.8lbs i believe. so 100 gallons is going to weigh in at about 880lbs + live rock - displaced water. they recommend 1-2lbs per gallon for reef setups. so your looking at 1000lbs. can your 32x19in stand hold a thousand pounds?
(32 in) x (19 in) x (36 in) = 358.680057 liters
358 liters = 94.5735947 US gallons

 

[b0b82]

Put the Aheim Professional II Canister Filter on your 20 and take everything else back if you can. Keep the rock it will be ok in your 20.Then stop buying anything until you learn what you need/want. Look on this form and find out everything you can before you buy anything.

 

[b0b82]

Sorry forgot to tell you to stop learning to your LFS

 

[see money]

i may be good with numbers but im still a noob when it comes to marine aquariums. i jumped right into the hobby like yourself and wanted all the cool fish also. after reading and reading and reading about these "cool" fish i relized i wasn't comfortable with spending a couple hundred dollars on a single fish that is "hard" to care for. ive got over 800$ into my setup so far and i started a month ago. im still cycling my rock and i dont even have all of it...i have no fish...no lights...and no refugium...this hobby is a sloooow process and i to wanted to upgrade my 30 gal tank right after buying it. but i figured id see if i can get a 30 gal to support life befor i try a 100 or 200 gal.
my advice to you is to try your 40 gal first. you have everything for it....try setting it up and cycling your rock. and pick some easy to care for fish and inverts. if they live and you feel comfortable with it then upgrade to a bigger tank.

 

[fishfreak1242]

Originally Posted by See Money
http:///forum/post/2837985
i may be good with numbers but im still a noob when it comes to marine aquariums. i jumped right into the hobby like yourself and wanted all the cool fish also. after reading and reading and reading about these "cool" fish i relized i wasn't comfortable with spending a couple hundred dollars on a single fish that is "hard" to care for. ive got over 800$ into my setup so far and i started a month ago. im still cycling my rock and i dont even have all of it...i have no fish...no lights...and no refugium...this hobby is a sloooow process and i to wanted to upgrade my 30 gal tank right after buying it. but i figured id see if i can get a 30 gal to support life befor i try a 100 or 200 gal.
my advice to you is to try your 40 gal first. you have everything for it....try setting it up and cycling your rock. and pick some easy to care for fish and inverts. if they live and you feel comfortable with it then upgrade to a bigger tank.
+1 to that.
To anwser your original questions you could get a custom made acrylic 75 gal or 100 gal tank to fit your dimensions. As for the filter, put it on the 20 gal and get a good protein skimmer that can handle more than 100 gals. It's usually good to get a reallyyyy big one that way if you ever want to upgrade, you won't have to keep buying new skimmers. You will also have to get more live rock and live sand if you want a 75 or 100 gal tank.

 

[wpost2]

i would agree with you See Money, if i didnt have the option to return everything. in my opinion the amount of learning required to correctly run a 40 gal tank as compared to a 100 gal tank is not a huge amount. if i am going to mess up im going to mess up. no point doing it on my 40 gal and then realizing after 6 months that i dont like it and need a bigger one, and no longer have the option to return it. i would rather learn on a 100 gal tank with hardy fish and just have a lot of extra space in it while im figuring out what im doing.
as for the weight issue, i dont have a stand, i have my tank on a chest of drawers.
once again, someone tell me if an Eheim Professional II will work for a 75 or 100 gal tank, so i can try to figure out if i need to return that too.

 

[fishfreak1242]

Originally Posted by wpost2
http:///forum/post/2838032
i would agree with you See Money, if i didnt have the option to return everything. in my opinion the amount of learning required to correctly run a 40 gal tank as compared to a 100 gal tank is not a huge amount. if i am going to mess up im going to mess up. no point doing it on my 40 gal and then realizing after 6 months that i dont like it and need a bigger one, and no longer have the option to return it. i would rather learn on a 100 gal tank with hardy fish and just have a lot of extra space in it while im figuring out what im doing.
as for the weight issue, i dont have a stand, i have my tank on a chest of drawers.
once again, someone tell me if an Eheim Professional II will work for a 75 or 100 gal tank, so i can try to figure out if i need to return that too.
The eheim filter should work for a 75 or 100 gal tank, but that would not be the preferable route. IMO, return it and get a good Protien skimmer. If you can't return it, you can probably trade it to someone for a good skimmer.

 

[nwdyr]

I would say go big if you can , having said that I would also NEVER put a tank on anything other then a fish tank stand that is rated for that kind of weight. For the few bucks you save it is not worth the mess and cost of a tumbling tank. JMO

 

[subielover]

Originally Posted by nwdyr
http:///forum/post/2838065
I would say go big if you can , having said that I would also NEVER put a tank on anything other then a fish tank stand that is rated for that kind of weight. For the few bucks you save it is not worth the mess and cost of a tumbling tank. JMO
+1 I literally just cringed thinking about a large tank falling.

 

[chilwil84]

learn to keep the 40 balanced and decide what you want in the future and work towards it as you can afford it. with the 40 you could have a dwarf angel, a clown or 2 (depending on species) and a couple other small fish and work toward having some soft corals as you progress. research these boards for some info and answers for your questions(ask if you cant find them). after researching you should be able to decide if you want to purchase stuff from your lfs or not.

 

[reefnutpa]

Originally Posted by wpost2
http:///forum/post/2837966
can I get a 75 or 100 gal tank that would fit on a 32x19 inch surface? If so, PLEASE link! I really don't want to have to buy a tank with a stand.
Even if you can, a 32" x 19" tank is not big enough demensionally for the fish you're interested in. Tangs, large angels, lionfish, etc would all benefit from tanks longer than 32". Additionally, it's not the water volume that is an issue... it's the semi-small demension you're dealing with. Your fish would feel cramped. You really need a standard 75 or 100 gal with stand. Think of it this way.....you could have a 1000 gal tank that is 24" x 24" x 50 ft high and it STILL wouldn't be suitable for those fish. Dimensions are just as important as water volume IMO.
Tom

 

[spanko]

According to Eheim literature the smallest model #2026 is for aquariums up to 92 gallons.
Common standard size tanks that will fit the dimensions above (32 x 19) are 20 long, 29 and 37 gallon.