29gal Reef Setup After Long Hiatus, Some Questions

[Guy W]

Hello, I've been out of the aquarium game going on 10 years. Back then I had a 125gal FOWLR tank. I've been missing having a tank and have been wanting to setup something again. I wanted to go with a Reef this time but being a bit funds limited I couldn't jump back into a larger system so I'm in the process of getting everything together to do a 29gal.

I picked up a cheap Aqueon 29gal tank, glass top, and a inexpensive stand from my local big box pet store.

I've placed an order for some stuff and I'm hoping to have that in the coming week. I've got on order:

"¢ AquaC Nano Remora Protein Skimmer Hang-On
"¢ Current USA Orbit Marine LED Saltwater Reef Lighting System 24-36"
"¢ Heater, some power heads, Hydrometer/supplies, etc.

I'm hoping the Skimmer and a 3" Live Sand Bed w/ 30-40lbs Live Rock will be sufficient for my filtration needs. I'd rather not run and overflow and sump if I can help it.

Question: Should my filtration needs be met or will I need to think about other options?

I'm wanting to keep a pretty lightly stocked tank. A pair of Perc Clowns, I'm not sure if I want any other fish. Maybe a 6 Line Wrasse, a goby, or something similar, but not much more in the way of fish. I'll have a fair clean-up crew, snails/crabs, shrimp. My main focus for this tank is corals.

I'd very much like to keep SPS. When I was doing tanks before LED lighting wasn't really a thing. The light I choose, the Current USA Orbit Marine LED, had good reviews but I am not entirely sure what sort of corals it can support. I'll ofcourse have some mushrooms, zoas and polyps, and things like that and I'm sure those will be fine, but I'm not sure what else I can stock with this lighting system.

Question: With the light I've ordered can I expect to be able to maintain SPS and LPS corals? Current makes a small light strip product called TrueLumen, I imagine I could add 1 or 2 of those light bars on the tank as well if needed.

I'm not sure if I'll buy sand/rock locally or place an online order yet. I still have to shop around. My bigger concern is water. I don't really want to spend the money on an RO/DI right now, but I also don't want to haul water from the LFS. I suppose hauling some water won't be to bad after the first fill up, but moving 4-5 loads of 5 gallon buckets isn't appealing to my aching back.

Question: Can I get away with filling the tank the first time with Tap water, saving my back and wallet, or is that a recipe for disaster?


That's all for now I'll update progress as it goes. Thanks!

 

[Denbf58]

are you talking about using tap for a leak test ? you do not want to start off with tap water. why feed the algae use ro/di to start with .

 

[Guy W]

Yeah, debating filling the tank with tap water then mixing in the salt so I don't have to haul water from the store or invest $150 in an Ro/Di filter right away. Probably not worth it I'll just get some help hauling buckets. Just not looking forward to that day what with my already bad back.

 

[Guy W]

This thread needs pictures, so here's Day 1, 29gal empty tank on stand waiting for a leak test.

 

[kgood323]

Awesome man! I have picked up the same tank and stand about two weeks ago and am starting again myself after years! Look forward to seeing the progress! I am running at AquaMaxx HOB on mine. I was torn between the Remora and mine. The AquaMaxx is great other then a few large bubbles that hopefully go away!

 

[smtank]

For such a small tank I would not fill it with tap water. You can buy ro or distilled at any grocery store. Once you add sand and rock, the volume will decrease.

You can buy bulk water at Petco as well.

I have no clue with regard to the lighting.

Congrats on your new tank.

 

[Mr.Tan]

im in the process of setting up a 29g tank right now also after taking a long break from having a SW tank.

From my past mistakes, i'd bite the bullet and start with a ro/di, i picked a new 50gpd 5 stage up off ebay for $93 shipped from max water. No reason to deal with algae issues and then try to fix them... The money you would spend on water would probably eventually pay for the ro filter.. I battled algae in my previous tank and it was the main reason i took it down; i used conditioned tap water and purchased water from the store

 

[ReefWreak]

Question: Should my filtration needs be met or will I need to think about other options?

Filtration you'll be fine, but you'll probably want to add powerheads to keep flow high in the tank. High flow improves existing filtration IMO. There is (almost) no such thing as too much flow.

I'm wanting to keep a pretty lightly stocked tank. A pair of Perc Clowns, I'm not sure if I want any other fish. Maybe a 6 Line Wrasse, a goby, or something similar, but not much more in the way of fish. I'll have a fair clean-up crew, snails/crabs, shrimp. My main focus for this tank is corals.

I'd very much like to keep SPS. When I was doing tanks before LED lighting wasn't really a thing. The light I choose, the Current USA Orbit Marine LED, had good reviews but I am not entirely sure what sort of corals it can support. I'll ofcourse have some mushrooms, zoas and polyps, and things like that and I'm sure those will be fine, but I'm not sure what else I can stock with this lighting system.

Question: With the light I've ordered can I expect to be able to maintain SPS and LPS corals? Current makes a small light strip product called TrueLumen, I imagine I could add 1 or 2 of those light bars on the tank as well if needed.

I think you'll be able to maintain them, but don't be disappointed by the colors of your SPS. You'll probably be able to get brown with slight coloration, but nothing really popping. You'll see how things go, the 2 TrueLumen might help, but probably a waste of money versus, just upgrading to a RapidLED (particularly for DIY), Kessil, Ai, or Ecotech. It's one of those things (like powerheads) that you'll probably waste a lot of money in the beginning on crap, then one day buy an expensive one and kick yourself for wasting so much money on crap ones when you should have bought the expensive one to begin with. That's how this hobby goes...

Question: Can I get away with filling the tank the first time with Tap water, saving my back and wallet, or is that a recipe for disaster?

Just buy distilled water from the grocery store, or catalina water from a pet store, or whatever, but don't use tap. Not the best way to start off the hobby, by starting off on the wrong foot.

You'll probably end up using about 20-23 gallons if that helps. For what it's worth, you can buy a cheapo RO Buddie system for like $85? If you bought catalina water from the LFS, I think they're around $16/5 gallons, so 4 of those and you're at ~$65 (plus hauling them all around), which is almost the cost of the RO unit? And whatever, if you don't like the hobby anymore, you can use the RO for drinking water, use it for hydroponics, use it for freshwater, use it for lots of different things.

Welcome back and good luck!

 

[soulpatch]

Did you get the cheaper current marine light or the current marine pro?

I would have gotten neither but the the Pro should be able to handle SPS higher in the tank. The regular orbit marine will be able to do shrooms, zoas, and some lps if the LPS is higher in the tank as it has HORRIBLE output. The more concerning thing about the regular orbit marine light though is that the corals while surviving lose color quickly and do not experience much growth. Couldn't talk my dad out of his and he struggles with a basic hammer I gave him to keep it in color. It is near the top of his water column.

Even with supplimental basic LED light strips you are in for a world of hurt feelings if you want tons of color and to raise SPS. You would could suppliment with a t5 strip if you wanted to keep costs down and not replace your current fixture but that sort of defeats going LED in the first place.

I would suggest asking Santa for a new LED light this year. I know my wife...er santa will have a shopping list for my new tank build...


As for water do it right or dont do it at all. Get an RODI unit as you know you will need one. You will need to do a water change or have top off water at a point when the stores are closed and the ability to make in house is a life saver.

You posted hydrometer. Take that back and get a refractometer.

Unless you are thinking live rock aquacaltured like from Tampa Bay Saltwater I would suggest dry rock. A lot of instances the live rock from LFS has more pests or issues then benefits. Bacteria is the main draw and easily gotten with a bottle of ammonia and some time. Dry rock comes pest free and can be aquascaped easier out side of the tank. TBS rock however comes with tons of sponges and life and minimal pests (notice I did not say pest free as you will get some bad crabs, potential for mantis and pistol shrimp).

 

[ReefWreak]

Unless you are thinking live rock aquacaltured like from Tampa Bay Saltwater I would suggest dry rock. A lot of instances the live rock from LFS has more pests or issues then benefits. Bacteria is the main draw and easily gotten with a bottle of ammonia and some time. Dry rock comes pest free and can be aquascaped easier out side of the tank. TBS rock however comes with tons of sponges and life and minimal pests (notice I did not say pest free as you will get some bad crabs, potential for mantis and pistol shrimp).

Sounds like the tone of your TBS recommendation is changing a little bit.... :hammer:

Also, I noticed that BRS has imported pacific man-made liverock (made in pacific, aquacultured in the pacific, and mailed to US), so now there are rocks available with pacific life (or what's left of it after el nino).

 

[soulpatch]

Sounds like the tone of your TBS recommendation is changing a little bit.... :hammer:

No not at all. I just have issues with the live rock and esp the prices from LFS when you really gain nothing in terms of life outside of bacteria and pests. True aquacultered rock however has a ton of beneficial life and bacteria with the caveat of some minor pests (crabs and shrimp are easily caught and at least TBS does not come with some of the other more nuisance mojanos and such)

I do struggle to suggest rock with some known pests to a newcomer to the hobby who might not know what to look for. If there is a reefer to come over and look that helps but otherwise can be a bit much for some. I am still a noob myself though has seen a lot in my short time in this space to know some things to look for. Going through Tim's rock for his set up we kept nearly half of the crabs and got perhaps 5 pistols out of the tank. Otherwise it was pretty "clean" rock.

Also, I noticed that BRS has imported pacific man-made liverock (made in pacific, aquacultured in the pacific, and mailed to US), so now there are rocks available with pacific life (or what's left of it after el nino).

I struggle with this as it is not same day to you so the die off would be similar to any other fuji live rock or such brought in that is air shipped. You are still looking at a minimum of 3-5 days turnaround before it is in your tank from when it is pulled. Couple that with the fact that most of the mojano and aipstasia that we all struggle with are from indo waters and I dont see much benefit.


Dry rock has its place and it depends on your comfort level of known pests to decide what you want to go with. I, myself, could very well still go with dry rock but it is doubtful...

 

[Guy W]

Thanks for all the feedback.

Question regarding lighting. For reference I did order the Current USA Orbit Marine PRO model. I'll try it out and if I don't like it perhaps I'll return it, but that was at the top of my budget.

So my question, since I really don't know what I'm looking at in regards to LED lighting (it wasn't a thing really 10 years ago when I had my last tank), can you recommend specifically what LED light I should be shooting for?

Brand/Model/Link to Product would be awesome.

Keep in mind it's for a 29g tank, and I have no way to hang/suspend it above the tank it would need to have the capability to sit on top of the tank. I also don't have $600-800+ to spend now but knowing what I should be saving up for would be very helpful.

Thanks

 

[soulpatch]

The pro model is supposed to be able to have more par and such so it should do LPS fine and perhaps some SPS. I think the jury is still out on them as to whether they fixed the spectrum they are putting out. Regardless they seem to use lesser quality LEDs. If new I would return it as you are most likely out $200 or so for it which is 80% or so of most other lights.

IE you could get a kessil A360We for 350 or something like an AI Hydra. Plenty of options out there around the 350-450 marks...

 

[Newstead]

Totally agree with hoing with the good lighting as soon as you can. 3 1/2 years into reefing I am now replacing piece by piece some of the equipment I bought when I didn't know any better.

 

[Guy W]

The cheapest I'm seeing the Kessil A360We is around $390 and that doesn't include a mount or any controller. I don't know if I "need" a controller or not, but I can't hang the light from my ceiling so I would need a mounting solution. I picked up that Current Orbit Pro Marine for around $275. I'll try out the Current Light when it shows up and see how I like it, my budget's getting pretty thin and I haven't bought live rock yet.

 

[soulpatch]

They can be found in our classified sections for around 300. On ebay they are 350 from reputable sellers as I bought on on there. A mount is all of $28 bucks or so if you dont want to do your own fab. No controller is needed persay but you wont get ramp up and down without one. They start at 100. The ramping is more for our enjoyment as honestly we all had MH or T5 before which was simply on and off.

Go with the current I guess but you are $75 away from a top line light that is already proven to handle all coral types...I think you will regret not spending the few extra dollars now on a better fixture like the AI, Kessil, or others.

All comes down to what you want. If you are ok with spending the money twice later when you are ready for SPS then that is fine. Many of us went that route. Hell I am on my third light on my cube right now after the stock PC lights, swapping to rapidled puck, and now the kessil. If I only count the rapid led light sitting in my basement as wasted I am out couple hundred.

We all need to make difficult decisions based on our budgets..

 

[Guy W]

Thanks for all the feedback and advice.

To be honest I was looking at the ecotech radion xr30w pro, which is around $750, before a mount. It looks pretty interesting and I'm thinking maybe getting this tank setup and moving up to something like that in the future, my birthday is only 9 months away

does the Ecotech Radion beat the Kessil by that much though, is it worth nearly double the money and should I just save up for something like that?

 

[soulpatch]

I dont believe the Radion beats the Kessil at all personally. I looked at both heavily before buying the Kessils. With the Radion you can change the individual colors and with the kessil it does that for you. Otherwise they are both puck based LED lights with high quality LEDs.

 

[Guy W]

2nd update. The Current Oribit Marine Pro LED fixture came today. Unboxed it and set it up on the tank to get a look at it. Hard to tell if I like it without water in the tank. But I tossed a blue background on the tank and fired up the lights and it doesn't seem bad. I'll try and get sand, water and rock in the tank this weekend. Still waiting for the Skimmer and some powerheads to show up in the mail.

I did a 24 hour leak test with fresh water, everything looks good on that angle. Drained the tap water and dried out the tank last night. Should be ready for salt soon.

 

[ReefWreak]

Looks good. But blue background?