MonkeyClaw
New member
Hi All-
I'm looking at starting my first SW tank. I've been doing a ton of research and looking into equipment, etc. I've had a 38g FW African cichlid tank for many years but all of my fish recently died off when I moved to a new house near my old one but turned out to be on completely different water. Oops!
My wife and I decided it was the perfect time to switch to saltwater. I found a nice 150g starphire glass tank on CL and it is now sitting in my living room waiting to be cleaned and filled. My plan is to eventually use the old 38g as a refugium underneath the main tank however I'd like to get the main tank started prior to the refugium being completed.
As you can imagine, I have a million questions!
First question - can I start the deep sandbed and live rock with just an HOB filter (came with tank) and powerheads to move the water? Since I'll be building the refugium which will contain the protein skimmer, central area with chaeto and mud (or DSB...) and a 3rd compartment for the return I don't want to get a duplicate temporary HOB skimmer. After everything has cycled I'd like to get a cleanup crew also.
Second question - I see a lot of fancy sump refugiums with various flows going into the skimmer area vs the refugium area. My plan is a simple flow from skimmer area -> [bubble trap] -> refugium -> [baffle] -> return. Is this an issue? What sort of flow rate should I be looking for through this set-up?
Third question - I'm not planning on drilling the tank. Is using all HOB stuff OK? Mostly it will just be the filter to start and eventually that will be replaced with an overflow to the sump/fuge.
Fourth question - There was no lid included with the 150g, just a piece of glass to support the light. Where can I get a lid without paying a fortune?
That's it for now.
Thanks!
I'm looking at starting my first SW tank. I've been doing a ton of research and looking into equipment, etc. I've had a 38g FW African cichlid tank for many years but all of my fish recently died off when I moved to a new house near my old one but turned out to be on completely different water. Oops!
My wife and I decided it was the perfect time to switch to saltwater. I found a nice 150g starphire glass tank on CL and it is now sitting in my living room waiting to be cleaned and filled. My plan is to eventually use the old 38g as a refugium underneath the main tank however I'd like to get the main tank started prior to the refugium being completed.
As you can imagine, I have a million questions!
First question - can I start the deep sandbed and live rock with just an HOB filter (came with tank) and powerheads to move the water? Since I'll be building the refugium which will contain the protein skimmer, central area with chaeto and mud (or DSB...) and a 3rd compartment for the return I don't want to get a duplicate temporary HOB skimmer. After everything has cycled I'd like to get a cleanup crew also.
Second question - I see a lot of fancy sump refugiums with various flows going into the skimmer area vs the refugium area. My plan is a simple flow from skimmer area -> [bubble trap] -> refugium -> [baffle] -> return. Is this an issue? What sort of flow rate should I be looking for through this set-up?
Third question - I'm not planning on drilling the tank. Is using all HOB stuff OK? Mostly it will just be the filter to start and eventually that will be replaced with an overflow to the sump/fuge.
Fourth question - There was no lid included with the 150g, just a piece of glass to support the light. Where can I get a lid without paying a fortune?
That's it for now.
Thanks!
