Want to Start

[adam23]

Hey- ive done lots of research, but i still need help. I want to do a 29 gallon saltwater aquarium. Heres what i plan on getting so far- 29 gallon tank with full hood an light,MaxJet 400 power head, Rena Basic 300 W. heater,Glass Hydrometer, Visi Jet Protein Skimmer, Instant Ocean 50 gallon sea salt, 20 lbs live sand, Marine Basics Test Kit, Digital Thermometer, and a Whisper 40 filter. Do i need an undergravel filter? Can you even use one with sand? What else do i need. How much LR should i get. any info or forum sites are welcome. Any fish recomendations?Can you tell me about cycling? Sorry about the long post.
Can I see Some pics of you guy`s 20-29 gallon tanks?
Im new to this so any help is welcomed!

 

[littlebuck]

what kind of lighing are you looking at? Also what do you plan on having in the tank? I would look at getting Live sand and about 30-40 lbs of live rock. No undergravel fiters just trap nitrates which is very bad. Also what do you plan on donig for a sump or do you not plan on having one? Cycling takes anywhere from 4-8 weeks. Make sure you get a better test kit that test for everything. Also do not put anything in tehre untill your tank has cycled. Take your time...

 

[adam23]

Do you know anywhere i can get 30-40 lbs LR cheap. At my closest petstore that would cost $280. Im not sure about the sump. Like i said, im new. Im not sure what kind of lighting it is, it just comes as a set with the tank. I think the brand is sun-glo or something like that. Im need help getting started.

 

[adam23]

Also- do u think it would be better to get a 24 gallon nano cube? Would i have to get live sand?

 

[littlebuck]

well i would look at getting a good book to start. look on here for lr for sale or go look at some otehr sites for it. they sell it here on this site. and you can also look on that big selling site.... Also if you are gonig to keep corals you are gonig to need to get a new light and i would look at getting with vhos or MH which is gonig to run you anywhere from 150 on up depending on what you want. I would look at other post of people getting started and see how they are doing it. But one thing i would do is get the tank and then buy urself like 40 gallons of RO/Di water try nto to use tap water. Then get a big bucket of salt save on money. Then set up ur tank with the water and salt and have ur powerhead going and then ur heater. After thats all set and ur salinity is good around .024-.026 i would say then get ur Live sand and then Live rock. and then let it cycle for a while. People say you can use a raw shrimp to cycle it or just put food in your tank its up to you how you want to do it. while thats going i would look at what u are going to get in to weather you want corals or what. If you want corals you are gonig to need a diffrent light set up. if you just want fish then that will be ok. and just check out this site its very healp ful any more questions feel freee to ask. its alot of stuff to get started but its worth it. GOOD LUCK

 

[29galkid]

i have 29gal for sale in florida where are you located

 

[adam23]

Thanks for the help, i think im gonna just get fish- no coral. im not looking to buy a 29 gallon from anyone , but thanks for the offer.

 

[littlebuck]

well good luck. in a 29 gallon you have to watch what you put in there. alot of stuff is to big for them. so just and make sure the sizes b4 u get the fish.

 

[grumpygils]

I just bought a skilter 250 filter/skimmer ($50) and it seems to work well. I cut a hole in the skimmer box and inserted a small air hose hooked to an external ($10) pump to make it quiet as opposed to the standard air draw set up. It seems to work well and will do up to a 55 g tank. ANy one else have experience with skilter 250 filter and skimmer? I have 3 fish, 30 lbs of LR, and about 8 different hard and soft corals. Water tests fine. 20 G tank
gg

 

[jones]

Live rock is expensive. To get around that expense buy mostly base rock, from what I understand the best to get is figi rock, because its calcium carbonate based which buffers your PH and it's free from any traces of metal. You can buy just a few pounds of live rock to put in with the base rock and it will "seed" the base rock to become live rock. It takes longer but is definately cheaper. As far as the lighting, just use a 50/50 flourescent bulb that fits your current setup, under 20 bucks. From what I understand thats fine for fish and live rock, and since you wouldn't be able to add corals to your tank for several months anyway, you can wait and decide later if you want to upgrade the lighting for corals. As far as the water, I know people say to use RO/DI but I've yet to find anyone who has had problems using the RO water from the fill it yourself water machines at the grocery store. It's only like 40 cents a gallon. Feel free to correct me on that one if you disagree.

 

[adam23]

Thanks for the help everyone!
I think im going to get a 24 gallon nano cube though. They have one for sale at my petstore for $200. Im gonna get 40 lbs live sand, 15 lb live rock. Is base rock just any kind of normal rock?

 

[jones]

its just norml dry rock, but some rock can have traces of metals that are bad for your tank, tell the people at the fish store that youre looking for base rock, specify figi and specify aragonite or calcium carbonate (same thing). I saw some at some pet supply stores that didnt even carry saltwater fish.

 

[adam23]

will do, thanks. Anyone have a 24 gallon nano cube? If so, do you recommend it, and what all did you get to go in it?