HELLO Birmingham....

[JunkinaBox]

I've been out of the hobby for a few years now(freshwater), and I'm considering my first SW tank. I don't know the first thing about corals, SW fish, or SW setups but I'm researching my butt off.

I do have 8 years experience with freshwater so I think it's just a matter of initial research before buying to get my feet wet again. I kept most of my tanks and supplies so that will help keep a little green in my pocket.:fun4:

I still have the following tanks that are currently in storage....

29 gal
36 gal (which is for sale... it's older but still holds water)
55 gal
180 gal Oceanic RR

I sold my 75 and 125 gal.


I'm considering a coral tank with just a few basic fish like gobies, blennies, maybe a flame angel. Nothing extravagant when it comes to the fish, but more towards the coral side.

I don't want nothing smaller than a 30 gal and nothing larger than a 75. Though I do have 3 tanks in that category but they are not the depth I'm looking for. I really like the square style tanks(keep me in mind if you have one for sale).

Anyway, thought I would shout out to the locals and see who all lives near me. And if anyone has any tanks or supplies that they are selling.



-Jamie

 

[dubaygv]

Set up the 180 as a reef tank and you'll save money in the long run. If you go with something smaller than a 75 you'll just be setting another (much larger) tank up within a year. I thought I'd be happy with a small tank but it's beyond full and I'm currently upgrading from a 29 gal biocube to a 350+ gal system.

 

[JunkinaBox]

Set up the 180 as a reef tank and you'll save money in the long run. If you go with something smaller than a 75 you'll just be setting another (much larger) tank up within a year. I thought I'd be happy with a small tank but it's beyond full and I'm currently upgrading from a 29 gal biocube to a 350+ gal system.

LOL, I've been through the upgrading and wanting more and more phase when I dealt with freshwater. It got to the point to were I was doing 250 gallons worth of water changes every Sunday and had extremely rare SA Cichlids that only myself or just a handful of people had in captivity in the U.S.

My job is too demanding now for me to go through all that upkeep again. I have two Poison Dart Frog tanks setup in my living room right now and thats it!!

Let me know if you decide to sell the biocube.... at most, I will have two tanks. One for display and another for quarantine/growout purposes.

 

[ScottB]

I have had 27s, a 40, 55s, and a 75. I got out for a while and am just now starting over. the 40 and the 75 were my favorites so far due to the good front to back depth. I chose to do a 60 cube this time for style, aquascaping possibilities, and that I can do a water change with a 7-gal food service bucket.

Maybe you could do a 45-cube and use the 180 as a sump

 

[JunkinaBox]

I just visited OCEA in Oxford and they had some really good deals on tanks.


Is OCEA a trustworthy company and tank manufacturer?

 

[hmoore]

I have a 37G cube like tank.

 

[Tomoko Schum]

Yes, Ocea is great!! I have 180RR and 75 rimless tanks custom built by them.

 

[JunkinaBox]

I have a 37G cube like tank.

How much? My Dart Frog tank is the same size. I really like the dimensions of it. Do you know if the bottom glass is "drill-able" on those tanks?

Yes, Ocea is great!! I have 180RR and 75 rimless tanks custom built by them.

They had a few nice rimless tanks there but not near as big as a 75! sounds cool!!

They had a really good deal on a 100 gal(48"x24"x22" w/overflow) I really liked the width of the tank but I hate to go that big because that means more $$ for larger pumps, lights, etc.

Thanks for the feedback..... I am originally from TN and a company called glasscages, you may have heard of it. Well, lets just say I would only buy a tank from them if I was keeping reptiles. :thumbdown

 

[Tomoko Schum]

Two 14000K 250W metal halide bulbs can light up the 100G tank pretty well. You don't really need a big return pump as long as you have a few good powerheads. The initial investment is much larger for a big tank, but as you know, it's a lot cheaper to go big in the first place than keep upgrading.

 

[yoda]

Hard to beat an Oceanic RR 180g. Plenty of room for corals to grow, tangs and other large fish would have some swimming room. I vote you should put your time and resources into the 180 and never look back.

 

[JunkinaBox]

Two 14000K 250W metal halide bulbs can light up the 100G tank pretty well. You don't really need a big return pump as long as you have a few good powerheads. The initial investment is much larger for a big tank, but as you know, it's a lot cheaper to go big in the first place than keep upgrading.

Hard to beat an Oceanic RR 180g. Plenty of room for corals to grow, tangs and other large fish would have some swimming room. I vote you should put your time and resources into the 180 and never look back.

you guys need to quit with the peer pressure I already have bad enough self control. I would sink $5k into that 180 in the first year, easy! I'm saving up for another passion of mine so I need to stick with the small stuff.

on another note.... are there any local meetings coming up soon? or any locals around B'ham that may want to eventually do a group buy once I get my tank(s) up and running?

 

[JR's Reef]

I have a 45g cube 24x24x18 F/S It has a PVC bottom,3 sides starphire glass,oak stank and comes with a glass sump and a mag 7 return pump. Ill take $500 for it. I just took it down yesterday I had 4 tanks going and 1 had tp go

 

[ScottB]

I would sink $5k into that 180 in the first year, easy!

OMG! I am within a few pennies of that with my 60 and it doesn't even have water in it yet! It isn't even here yet. It is still on a truck in OK.

I need to reevaluate my priorities.

 

[hmoore]

Would you want to work out something on the 180?

 

[hmoore]

Re: Drilling

I don't think that the bottom can be drilled but I have a bulkhead at the top/back/left of the tank. I have a sump, stand, starboard, two Tunzes, a 6 bulb T5 fixture, and return pump. It's a complete setup.

 

[JunkinaBox]

for those that have sent me PM's...... please be patient until I have 10 posts in the forums. Forum rules won't even let me reply to PMs until I have the 10 post minimum.:uhoh3:

 

[scapes]

browse the other forums and reply to some. you'll get your post count up in no time.

 

[FraggleWhat]

Some good advice, Look for a good used copy of the "Conscientious Marine Aquarist" 2nd edition by Robert Fenner. This book has an Immense wealth of knowledge and is a good read all around. You can get in on amazon used for around 30 bucks and new for about 45. Trust me the knowledge inside is truly amazing. Just my two cents.