55gal saltwater next to a window?

[Zrcalo]

Hello! I've got a few questions about starting up an aquarium next to a window...

I dont plan on having any fish (maybe a clown or something tiny?) just mostly coral and probably some invertebrates.

Probably a few years ago I had a 5gallon (yes. that's 5 gallons! It was an experiment for my marine biology course) with coral and some upside-down jellyfish. Had that for about 3 years before I sold it before moving. I'd really like to have a saltwater again.

Now, onto what I currently have..

I have a 1980's 55gal with a solid oak cabinet and original 1980's lighting hood. I also have a 75gal canister filter (probably wont use it at all. but it's in my arsenal and doesnt cost me anything since I already have it)

I'm thinking all I need is a protein skimmer... but my concern is the window and heat during the summer (I live in arizona. my house is usually 80 during the summer) although, the window faces north and is covered by my porch and protected. I never noticed it getting warm in my livingroom where the window is either. It's always our rooms since they face the west.

I guess I could try it, and see what happens...
I just wonder if I should stay away from certain types of coral, etc. or what I could do with this 55. I dont mind no fish.

 

[Zrcalo]

Just putting this here so I can keep tabs...

55gal aquarium - $30
55gal lighting - $7 (RIP?)
Nano 30 lighting - $5
Live sand and rocks - $43
saltwater mix - $15
RO water - $5 (20gal still need more)
Heater - $15
stand - $3
extra wood - $10

total so far: $133

total recently: $73

 

[wookiefever]

I am not sure about the heat issue but you will need one awesome CUC in order to deal with the algae blooms that will inevitably come due to the window. Make sure you post pics when you get it up, would love to see it.

 

[pyithar]

my tank is also next to a few windows and it gets some indirect sunlight in the mornings but no algae problem. i also don't see any rise in temperature as a result of getting indirect sunlight for a few minutes. but i need to run a chiller since it's very hot here in the summer.

 

[kmbyrnes]

Zrcalo, I also live in AZ and one of my tanks is directly in front of a 24" wide south facing window.
Like you, I keep my house between 78-80 in the summer.
My solution was a car window shade to cover the window up to the top of the canopy, so it's not visible. Along with a fan on my sump, I have no issues keeping the tank temp 78-82 all year long,
The only algae issues I have are when I go too long without cleaning the glass. Normally that is once a week, after that there's a film.

 

[Dkuhlmann]

For you that have tanks by windows I highly recommend that you replace your window screen with Sunscreen material. You can get it at most building supply like Lowes, Menards etc. They have it in 80% and 90%. I suggest the 80% as the 90% is so very dark you won't be able to have much of a window view.

 

[ZeeSparrow]

What is the lighting you have on the tank (or are considering)? Do you have any powerheads for circulation? Those are going to determine what kind of coral your system will support.

 

[heathlindner25]

I also have a 65 gallon tank directly in front of a window. Once a month I have to clean the back glass off ..not much trouble.

 

[whosurcaddie]

There are people that light their tanks with natural sunlight and there are also reports of people getting direct sunlight on there tanks and the corals expanding during that period.

Heres a pic of lighting with downtubes built into the house.

There are so many examples of beautiful reef tanks that get full or at least partial natural sunlight just google it. IMO you will be fine just control the temperature.

 

[Zrcalo]

What is the lighting you have on the tank (or are considering)? Do you have any powerheads for circulation? Those are going to determine what kind of coral your system will support.

This was in my oceanic hood before one of the bulbs went out.

https://www.1000bulbs.com/product/54670/FC55-G45851.html

So it looks like it's a 4 pin 2g11 base.

On ebay I can get a
"Philips 18w 55v Single Tube 4-Pin 2G11 2xT16 Actinic Fluorescent Light Bulb"
for about $15.
The other side is the
"The 55-watt GE 45851 plug-in CFL light bulb operates at 120 volts with a 4-pin 2G11 base. The 9325K color temperature creates a bright, white light with an initial lumen output of 4800. "

I also have the hood of a 30gal nano cube. the bulbs are half actinic, half bright white.

I also have...
actinic 420 zoo med coral sun 24" 17 watt t8
50/50 phosphor and actinic 420 24" 17 watt t8 (two)

but no hood for them, as the hood broke.

I'm unsure what kind of combination would be the best and/or cheapest to maintain. I come across more hoods with lights in them, than I do actual bulbs (I thrift store shop for ebay for a living). so I've just been buying hoods and then donating them back when the bulbs die on me.

 

[Zrcalo]

(hmm.. it wont let me edit my post)

I'll be buying this protein skimmer off ebay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/19177520339...97&_trkparms=gh1g=I191775203397.N34.S2.R1.TR9

It's made for a 150gal, but I have a 55gal. Should I replace the powerhead, or will it be fine? I'm pretty sure I can come across a powerhead rather inexpensively. Petco near me is going out of business and I think they have a few left for 60% off.

Their live rock and sand was 80% off so I furnished my entire tank for about $40.

It's basically set up with the water and live rock/sand plus heater. I can throw in a bubbler for water filtration until the skimmer comes in the mail. (It's located in cali, shouldnt be too much time)

I currently have the nano hood and my full spectrum lighting from my quail tank on my 55gal right now. But I'm thinking I may just buy another hood to fit the 24" t8 OR try to fix the one I have. Would I need two of them for the 55?

 

[Zrcalo]

*circulation, not filtration

I was rather upset when the light to the 55gal hood popped and the other went off because you need two to make the circuit complete.

I'm wondering if I should just sell that one. I also forgot! I have a tiny 5gal aquarium hood with two 50/50 four prong tiny lights. LOL. it's broken but I'm sure it's fixable. I think it's the starter for the lights.

wow. is there a way I could edit posts?

 

[Zrcalo]

Just got scammed. Person sold me a 24" hood saying it was for 24" bulbs, it is for 12" bulbs. brand new in box, paid $25. could probably resell for that price

 

[Zrcalo]

Another note...

I've had massive success in the past with pico and micro aquariums. I've never done something this large, I'm rather nervous about expenditures. I'm a coral enthusiast and love macro algae. Should I keep chugging along with the 55, or should I get a series of smaller aquariums?

 

[Dkuhlmann]

The dimensions of a 55 aren't that great for setting up rock aquascape at all since the tank is only 12"front to back. I would suggest that you look at the 40b it's 36x18x17. Here is a link to mine and you can see how much space there is for setting up lot's more coral and rock scape IMO Also the 40b is the most setup of smaller tanks due to it's size and dimensions. They are available often at the Petco $ per gallon sale. So $40

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2540376

 

[CStrickland]

+1
Besides the more friendly footprint, the shallower 40b is more forgiving re: lights. With less water to penetrate the lights won't have to work as hard and you'll have more freedom to place frags.

PS you can only edit posts for an hour or so after they're up. After that you'd need a mod to change it.

 

[Zrcalo]

There's a 29 gal biocube up on craigslist for $120 with upgraded LED lights.

I think I may just buy that and sell the 55 with stand and everything. I think I should be able to get $200 for it.