Helo with getting started

[NewToMarie]

I have just recentlly started collecting equipment/tank for setting up a marie aquarium. So far I have a 30 gallon tank, a canister filter and a good thermometer. I know that I still need to get a protien skimmer and a good heater before I can start to put my tank together. What are other items that are required for having a reef tank and what are some item that are optional. I have the book "Saltwater Aquariums for Dummies" That has helped with getting started. But the things it doesnt tell you, like what brand of salt mix is the best, or what types of products work best for adding to your canister filter media. My canister filter didnt come with much info by means of setting it up. It has three shelves inside of it, but what materials do I put on them and does it matter in what order they go? I know about mechanical, biological and chemical filtration but what products do you recomend using to achieve those levels of filtration?

If anyone knows of any good marie aquarium books, please let me know about them. Thanks!

 

[Chrsnwk]

Before we can answer you questions... you have to answer ours, or at least help us answer yours...

1.) do you want a reef, or fish only?
2.) if you want a reef, what kind of coral do you want to keep?
3.) are you planning on having a sump, or all your equiptment in or hanging on the back of your main tank?

I'll start you off with an answer to the filter question.... Return the canister filter if it's unused and use that $$$ to purchase live rock. you don't "need" mechanical or chemical filtration in a reef, and the live rock itself is your biological filter. as for brands of salt, it's an ongoing debate, but suffice it to say that they are all good. personally, i use instant ocean or reef crystals.

there are lots of good books. Deebok & Sprung are considered the bibles that every reef owner should own.

http://www.amazon.com/Reef-Aquarium...9734512?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1173467795&sr=1-5

(i know they are expensive)

GOOD LUCK!!!!

 

[sir_dudeguy]

[welcome]

First thing...did you just purchase the canister filter, and was it bought from a store? If so, and you still have the receipt, take it back. It really is not needed in a reef tank, and it can actually end up doing more harm than good. Filter media (weather it be a canister, hang on back, or a wet/dry filter) can all cause high nitrate problems, which will kill a reef.

Your best filtration in a reef is gonna be live rock, and at least 1 pound of it per gallon of water. So around 30 pounds for a small-medium fish load. Live rock breaks nitrates down one more step, where filters cannot.

The ONLY thing i'd use a canister filter for is stuff like carbon, which isnt always needed, but helps the water look cleaner.

You'll also need a heater. I suggest the visitherm stealth heaters.

drsfostersmith.com sells them for 18 bucks for the 250w one...thats oversized but thats a good think. Thats a 45 dollar heater in all the stores near me. I've got one and like it a lot since it has a plastic case, so it cant break if you drop it (like my glass one did).

For your skimmer...do NOT get a cheapo one. For that small of a tank i'd say go with the Bak Pak skimmers, or possibly a Coralife Superskimmer 65 (but i have one of those and dont like it at all...everyone seems to say they're good for their price tho...but i've yet to see that). But if you can afford it, i'd strongly recommend an Aqua C Remora skimmer. Its about 160 or so online i think. I've got one and i used it on my 55, 40, and 29g tank and will be using it on my 16g tank when its set up. Great skimmer in my book. You can also find it on hear for much cheaper. It will be used, but thats how i got mine and its been good for over a year now.

That all being said, a skimmer is not 100% needed depending on what type of tank you want. If you just want to do soft corals, then i'd say you dont really need one for that small of a tank. I'm not running one on my 40 gallon tank right now which is mostly soft corals and a few lps and everything has been great so far. But if you want to do SPS type corals (like those branchy lookin ones ) then you'd need a skimmer for sure.

hope this helps, and again, welcome to Reefcentral

 

[sir_dudeguy]

oh, and i also use reef crystals salt (which is made by Instant Ocean, just a "higher version" if you will). I used IO a while ago but its levels arent quite as good as RC's

 

[NewToMarie]

I had planned on getting live rock also, though in the book I have "saltwater aquariums for dummies" it says for a reef tank that a cansiter filter is recommended... And I bought it ebay So I am not sure if I can return it or not. But what about a canister filter makes it not good for a marine tank? Is my using it going to hurt my tank? I am trying to put my aquarium in pieces, buying equipment a couple items at a time, obvislly buying the fish after I have gotten all the required equpiment. So thanks for the info on heater, I have been looking to make that one of my next purchases.

Also in my book, it mentions a fluidized bed filter. I guess now knowing that I dont NEED everything that the book suggests having, would that be a good investment?

 

[sir_dudeguy]

But what about a canister filter makes it not good for a marine tank?

if you're doing a fish only tank, its fine (but still not even needed since you're buying live rock as well).

But if you're doing a reef tank it can be bad. The media that you put in them can and usually does produce lots of nitrates. Mine went from like 2 to 100 over 4 days when i was out of town with my canister. All i did was remove the media (since i had live rock) and they went down.

Nitrates kill corals and other inverts tho, if they get too high. Thats why filters are not used in reef tanks as much.

Since you bought it on ebay, maybe try to sell it on here.

I'm not positive on the fluidized bed thing...is that just like a deep sand bed?

One thing to take into consideration....anybody can write a book and publish it. That doesnt make the info correct tho. Especially since its that "for dummies" company...i've never had that book, but its pretty dang easy to just get info from anywhere and publish it yourself. I'd venture to say that that company didnt actually set up a tank even and just used other's info. I've never had it tho, so i cant say for sure. Just a heads up to let you know that not all the books are up to day and/or accurate.

 

[NewToMarie]

What types of filter media were you using that created excessive nitrate? It's not from the filter itself, just from what you put in it that was causing the problem? And for a fluidized bed filter, it says that it has a sand filled chamber that sits outside the tank. But it is seemingly un-needed if you have a successful tank without one, it seems as though it's not needed. I don't want to waste money on things that are not necessary.

 

[SquidHC]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9438281#post9438281 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by NewToMarie
I had planned on getting live rock also, though in the book I have "saltwater aquariums for dummies" it says for a reef tank that a cansiter filter is recommended...

I just started my tank about a month and a half ago so I wont go as far as to tell you what to do with your tank as far as what to buy and so on. The best thing I can tell you is THROW AWAY THAT BOOK and just stick with this forums. My tank is going wonderful, its very healthy and I just put my first fish in it about a week ago. They are doing very well. I have got almost all of my info from these forum pages.

This is THE BEST rescource you could possibly ask for. Filter through the info and ask as many questions as you need. You will often get very fast and clear answers. Best of luck wit your tank, I hope you enjoy it.

Oh one thing... Going with such a small tank is pretty hard, the bigger the better especialy when your starting. I dont know if your dead set on going with such a small tank but you should look into many of the "Nano" units available on the market. They look nice, have everything you need built in already, and are very cost efficient from what I have found.

 

[sir_dudeguy]

What types of filter media were you using that created excessive nitrate? It's not from the filter itself, just from what you put in it that was causing the problem?

Basically the only media that i WOULD run would be carbon and some sort of phosphate/nitrate reducer.,..at which point you could get a cheap HOB filter to do that.

But any media that is meant to grow the bacteria that breaks down amonia and nitrite (your biological filtration medias in other words) will build up the nitrates.

The particular name brands that i've done this with is the hagen/fluval "biomax", but anything else that is meant to do what that does will have the same problem.

And i know what you're reffering to about that fluidized bed now. I've seen them for sale at the stores but never gave them a second look. Most people on here dont bother with one. You'd be fine just getting like a 4+ inch sandbed in your display. Also, if you have a sump/refugium, you could put an even deeper sandbed in there. It will help filter the tank (i'm thinking nitrates but i could be wrong), but again...not 100% needed.

 

[NewToMarie]

Since I am searching for a good protein skimmer, what makes a good one good? So I know what to look for. Also, With live rock, I have read that you should go with about a pound per gallon of water. Is that correct?

 

[sir_dudeguy]

its a 30g tank right? I'd just go with an aqua c remora (if you can afford it..about 160), a cpr bak pak, or a coralife superskimmer 65 (i have one tho and dont like it much...but people swear by it).

and yes, that is correct that 1 pound of rock or more is needed. I had 25lbs in my 29g tank and everything was fine, but i only had 2 fish.