fowlr vs reef

[ReefCowboy]

Interesting topic, thought would talk about my experience, maybe others have same point of view...

Ive started reefing as most out there, small tank with leathers, clownfish, GSP,...then you get a bigger tank, try a few sps, succeed...then you are all into sps and reefing.

I had an 80 gal with xlarge sps colonies growing really well, mixed with some rare lps that i picked here and there over the course of a year. I had to leave for a business trip and while i was gone for a week my return pump froze and being taht my reactor was down at the sump, my po4 and nitrates went up suddenly...when i came back like a domino effect colony after colony strated to RTN and i had all corals go downhill...
Keeping alk at perfect levels in my tank at times made some powerheads and pumps stop due to calcium build up.

I threw all dead pieces out and changed all sand and water. Kind of contemplated about leaving the hobby after thousands of $ and long time growing australian sps were lost.
Now, having switched to FOWLR, i feel i can go back and enjoy the tank, with MUCH less time making sure pumps, levels, corals, are like supposed to.

I upgraded the tank and have gotten all the colorful fish i always wanted to get but wasnt able to because of corals..like angels, triggerfish, some cool butterflies...

If you have LOTS of time during the week or weekends to monitor the system, then reefing is a good choice. It is rewarding to watch corals grow and the whole picture is really beautiful. The big issue is suddently the tank starts to hold lots of investment and you feel you cant take a trip due to tank maintenance. Im sure many here have gone though what i did recently.

This was the first time i lost corals and had my system crash like it did, but remember reading about many that had it happen too.

Now i come from work, get down to my basement, grab a beer, kick back and enjoy all fish looking at me for feeding time... I feed them and thats it! Every week i do a 10% wc and clean the skimmer. I can tell some fish have grown and im really enjoying the change.

 

[Fishy 1]

Interesting topic, thought would talk about my experience, maybe others have same point of view...

Ive started reefing as most out there, small tank with leathers, clownfish, GSP,...then you get a bigger tank, try a few sps, succeed...then you are all into sps and reefing.

I had an 80 gal with xlarge sps colonies growing really well, mixed with some rare lps that i picked here and there over the course of a year. I had to leave for a business trip and while i was gone for a week my return pump froze and being taht my reactor was down at the sump, my po4 and nitrates went up suddenly...when i came back like a domino effect colony after colony strated to RTN and i had all corals go downhill...
Keeping alk at perfect levels in my tank at times made some powerheads and pumps stop due to calcium build up.

I threw all dead pieces out and changed all sand and water. Kind of contemplated about leaving the hobby after thousands of $ and long time growing australian sps were lost.
Now, having switched to FOWLR, i feel i can go back and enjoy the tank, with MUCH less time making sure pumps, levels, corals, are like supposed to.

I upgraded the tank and have gotten all the colorful fish i always wanted to get but wasnt able to because of corals..like angels, triggerfish, some cool butterflies...

If you have LOTS of time during the week or weekends to monitor the system, then reefing is a good choice. It is rewarding to watch corals grow and the whole picture is really beautiful. The big issue is suddently the tank starts to hold lots of investment and you feel you cant take a trip due to tank maintenance. Im sure many here have gone though what i did recently.

This was the first time i lost corals and had my system crash like it did, but remember reading about many that had it happen too.

Now i come from work, get down to my basement, grab a beer, kick back and enjoy all fish looking at me for feeding time... I feed them and thats it! Every week i do a 10% wc and clean the skimmer. I can tell some fish have grown and im really enjoying the change.

Some good food for thought there:thumbup: thanks mate. As I don't have a lot of time during the week for maintaining a reef. I will just get the fish I want (coral beauty) and try a small $15 fast growing frag and if it gets eaten then I'll give up on the softies and try a bubble tip nem. I also don't want to shut myself out of going on holidays either
If anyone has question about this topic please post your question. I would love to learn from your questions

 

[SecretiveFish]

I think I have a fish list
2 clowns
1 flasher wrasse ( could someone please name a pretty one, so I can get my lfs to order one when I'm ready ) - Carpenter's Flasher Wrasse are very attractive
1 chromis
1 bangia cardinalfish
1 lawnmower Blenny - I much prefer the starry blenny (I hated my lawnmower blenny... worthless, worthless fish who only ate the meaty food I put into the tank)
2 cleaner shrimp or fire shrimp - Generally, if you want 2 cleaner shrimp you will need to get a pair or there is a good chance one will kill the other. I did keep 1 cleaner shrimp and one fire shrimp in my 65 without issue
Is that to many fish or is it all right

IMO, that is a good stocking list for your tank.

As far as a Coral Beauty, when I had one the CB would not stop nipping a toadstool leather to the point of almost killing it (I had to move the leather to save it). It really depends on the fish.

 

[Fishy 1]

IMO, that is a good stocking list for your tank.

As far as a Coral Beauty, when I had one the CB would not stop nipping a toadstool leather to the point of almost killing it (I had to move the leather to save it). It really depends on the fish.

I think I'll just have to look past the CB as I would like a toadstool. I like the look of the Carpenters flasher and the starry Blenny, the Blenny looks so cool
Could I add another fish. And if so I'd like a center piece fish, that is reef safe. Any suggestions welcome. Or have I got too many fish as is :what:

 

[drej424]

There is a sticky post in the beginners forum that reviews people's stocking list. I've found a lot of great info there - even if I'm not a beginner! I have a 55g specimen tank that has a mated pair of clown fish hosting in a large sebae anemone. I have only 2 other small fish in the tank because mated clowns become territorial. I got this info on that forum and it certainly proved to be accurate in my case. I've also purchased specific fish based on things I've read there. It's a great way to get additional feedback on your stock list.

 

[Fishy 1]

Could you guys please post why you went reef or fowlr.
I'm still looking for people's experiences to help me.

 

[RatReef]

I am going to jump in here, not trying to hijack the thread. other than the lighting needs, what other equipment differences are there? I am looking at setting up a 300g FOWLR, and was wondering about the sump needs. Would a fudge still be recommended for some nutrient export, or just some mechanical/biological filter....I hope this is still somewhat relevant to the OPs questions.

 

[Fishy 1]

I am going to jump in here, not trying to hijack the thread. other than the lighting needs, what other equipment differences are there? I am looking at setting up a 300g FOWLR, and was wondering about the sump needs. Would a fudge still be recommended for some nutrient export, or just some mechanical/biological filter....I hope this is still somewhat relevant to the OPs questions.

I don't mind thread jacking as other people's experiences and questions is what I'm after.
From what I have read you don't need a fudge but they are almost always great to have.
Please keep us updated on how your tank is going:thumbup:

 

[Fishy 1]

I think I have made my decision and it will be a fowlr. But I will add some shrimps too
Towards the end of the year I will build a nano reef, too satisfy my need for corals.
Main reason is I can't afford to buy all the salt mix that this tank needs, and since I live right next to the ocean, and have access to unpolluted, Christal clear water, I will be using this water in the tank and I don't think it will work for corals. I really want a coral beauty and don't want to risk it with corals.
So the nano will satisfy the need for a reef tank

 

[reefermike1]

Go fowlr with reef-safe fish and inverts, then let the tank mature that way. If you decide in the future to go reef, youre already 3/4 of the way there. Hang some lights, maybe an extra powerhead and start adding coral.

Many people make the hobby way too complex... for new-comers reading those post and taking it all as fact can be over-whelming. What ever you do just start slow, move slow, don't panic.

 

[Jasanden]

+1. My first lesson 22 years ago was "nothing good happens fast in this hobby" so be patient and pay attention. Your tank will talk to you and you'll understand what you can get away with. Sounds crazy, but I can tell something is not right or not gonna work by looking at my tank. If anyone else looks at it they say it looks amazing oblivious to what I can see.

 

[Shellyfish]

I have a reef and a fowlr. I started with a reef but then decided I wanted some fish that weren't reef safe so now I have both. IME a reef with softies and lps isn't really too much work once you get it established. However, there is way less to go wrong in my fowlr and maintainence takes way less time!

As for the coral beauty... I'd go for it. I've had one in my reef now for 3 years, model citizen.

 

[Fishy 1]

I think I have made my decision and it will be a fowlr. But I will add some shrimps too
Towards the end of the year I will build a nano reef, too satisfy my need for corals.
Main reason is I can't afford to buy all the salt mix that this tank needs, and since I live right next to the ocean, and have access to unpolluted, Christal clear water, I will be using this water in the tank and I don't think it will work for corals. I really want a coral beauty and don't want to risk it with corals.
So the nano will satisfy the need for a reef tank

Changed my mind. I picked up a twin t8 unit today for cheap, too good to pass up so that makes three t8s that I have. I was going to use a led floodlight but am using it on my sump instead.
My question is, are there any low light corals that I could grow under the three t8s If they are close to the surface?
The globes I have are a brand new marine blue, a15000k that needs replacing and a daylight bulb.

 

[Fishy 1]

I have a reef and a fowlr. I started with a reef but then decided I wanted some fish that weren't reef safe so now I have both. IME a reef with softies and lps isn't really too much work once you get it established. However, there is way less to go wrong in my fowlr and maintainence takes way less time!

As for the coral beauty... I'd go for it. I've had one in my reef now for 3 years, model citizen.

Do have him in your reef or fowlr?
I just love coral beauties, so pretty :thumbup:

 

[Shellyfish]

He's in my reef. He is actually my second coral beauty, I had one in another tank I had years ago, also a reef, and also well behaved. However I have mostly softies/lps, no clams. I have an eibli in my FOWLR, also really like him, but not sure how he is with corals.

 

[Fishy 1]

He's in my reef. He is actually my second coral beauty, I had one in another tank I had years ago, also a reef, and also well behaved. However I have mostly softies/lps, no clams. I have an eibli in my FOWLR, also really like him, but not sure how he is with corals.

Do you think if he wasnt fed for a few days(if you were out of town) he would nibble some corals:what:

 

[MAGNUMDIVER]

I started with a 15 gal fowlr then wanted to keep corals and a flame angel my favorite fish. Bought a red see max 130d kept soft corals and LPS but my flame was killing my corals so I kept the reef and started a 90 gal fowlr with a refugium. I maintain the fowlr like it was a reef tank I may convert it one day. My dream would be make the 90 a reef and do a 180 gal fowlr so I could keep some bigger fish like a queen angel my second favorite fish. I think your best bet would be like you said do the fowlr and a small reef you get the best of both worlds. Be careful if you do mushrooms they have taken over my tank.

 

[Fishy 1]

I started with a 15 gal fowlr then wanted to keep corals and a flame angel my favorite fish. Bought a red see max 130d kept soft corals and LPS but my flame was killing my corals so I kept the reef and started a 90 gal fowlr with a refugium. I maintain the fowlr like it was a reef tank I may convert it one day. My dream would be make the 90 a reef and do a 180 gal fowlr so I could keep some bigger fish like a queen angel my second favorite fish. I think your best bet would be like you said do the fowlr and a small reef you get the best of both worlds. Be careful if you do mushrooms they have taken over my tank.

Thanks magnum, I will probably end up with a few softies in the 60gal, my lighting sounds like it should be fine for low light softies. But I'll defiantly be doing a nano reef at the end of the year and will try some LPS and SPS corals in that and most likely leave the easy softies in the 60gal were they can do what they want
Please keep the comments coming it has helped me no end, but there is so much more to learn :reading:

 

[Shellyfish]

Do you think if he wasnt fed for a few days(if you were out of town) he would nibble some corals:what:

Do you mean the coral beauty or the eibli? The coral beauty has gone a few days with no food and hasn't eaten anything in my reef. The eibli I don't know, his tank has no corals so it hasn't been an issue.

 

[Fishy 1]

Do you mean the coral beauty or the eibli? The coral beauty has gone a few days with no food and hasn't eaten anything in my reef. The eibli I don't know, his tank has no corals so it hasn't been an issue.

I meant the CB, that is good to know, I might end up getting one.