will this be ok!?

[reefr23]

hi. im about to set up a 25 gallon fish only tank. i have a artificial coral reef insert and im gonna put a little bit of live rock in it. i have 2 power filters that i ran on my FW tank and i want to kno if i can use those too. im also gonna get a seaclone protein skimmer for up to 100 gallon tanks. is there anything else i have to have or will i be ok? and wile im askin, that artificial reef is very porus like real live rock. do u think i could seed it? and if i can, how?

 

[natclanwy]

Save your money and skip the Seaclone, your power filters should be fine just be sure to replace the media with new.
The artificial background can be seeded but the variety of species that will call it home will depend on how closely it replicates LR it will definetly support bacteria though. You can seed it just by adding a few pieces of LR to your tank.

 

[reefr23]

ok, well let me just ask this. if u were setting up this tank how would u do it on a budget?

 

[natclanwy]

Are you planning on housing corals?
It looks to me like you have a good start, the seaclone skimmers are worthless you would be better off using the money to buy extra powerheads or save it for better skimmer down the road. A skimmer is not required for a successful saltwater tank it only helps to remove organic waste before it breaks down into ammonia and nitrates and reduce the load on the biological filtration. I would definetly add a powerhead or two the power filters by themselve won't provide adequete flow throughout your tank, probably 2- koralias nanos or #1's or if you are planning on keeping SPS coral you probably want 2- koralias #2 powerheads.
Also don't worry about buying more than a pound or two of livesand and don't bother if you can't get some out of an aquarium. The stuff that comes in a bag is just sand, water, and bacteria. Dry sand is much cheaper and will become live in a few months if you mix some "true" live sand with it or live rock. Same deal with LR, you can save some money if you buy base rock (dead rock) and then seed it with a few pieces of LR.

 

[reefr23]

so your saying i can run a 25 gallon fish only saltwater tank with just 2 ordanary power filters? ive been told that u need more than that. r u sure? and what media to put in them?
this is all i need?
-2 power filters
-live rock
-sand
-powerhead(s)

 

[natclanwy]

What type and size power filters do you have? If you use a DSB, have enough LR and a good cleanup crew you could actually run the tank without the power filters. This would not be an ideal setup or an easy to run setup as you would have to be very careful with your feeding practices and keep your bioload light. You also would have to be faithful in performing water changes.

 

[reefr23]

they r for up to 40 gallon tanks. they r a tetra brand i think. very cheap ones.

 

[natclanwy]

The only choice you really have with those is the filter floss and carbon combos which is fine, you just don't want to use old pads from your FW tank on your new SW tank.

 

[reefr23]

ok, but scence im new to this i dont really kno what u mean. im only 15 and i want this for christma and im trying to decide what i need. can u make a list of the things i need and then go from there. that would be much easier for me to understand.
and thanks for ur time by the way

 

[natclanwy]

So here is a basic list:
1. Replacement cartriges that fit your Tetra powerfilters
2. Test kits for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, phosphate.
** You want actual titration test kits not the strips that you dip in the water.
*** You can add a calcium, alkalinity, and PH test kit if you want they are good to have but not all that important at the begining.
3. Refractometer for testing salinity, they are more expensive ($45) than a hydrometer but way more reliable and accurate.
4. 1- Koralias #1 power head
* add a second later if you need additional flow
5. 30lbs of Rock does not need to be added all at once so you can start with 10-15lbs and add more later as funds allow. It can be any combination of Live and base rock.
6. 40lbs of dry sand, and you can add 1-2lbs of live sand to help seed the dry sand.
7. Salt, Instant ocean is decent salt and is fairly inexpensive.
Thats all I can think of off the top of my head, I'm sure I am missing something but this should give a good start.