If You Are New to Reef Central, Introduce Yourself Here!

[mmoore644]

<img src="/images/welcome.gif" width="500" height="62"><br><b><i><big><big>To Reef Central</b></i></big></big>
I would definitely look into keeping the wet/dry sump off line and replace it with a sump or refugium. as for everything else you seem lime you're on the right track.

This is exactly the type of feedback im looking for. Thank you. Why would you choose a refugium or sump over the wet/dry system? From what I read it was my understanding the wet/dry was high on efficiency and ease of use.

 

[stevebaker]

Hello Reef Central, I have been a member of this site for a number of years but have never made my way on here nor into the salt water fishkeeping. Well that is about to change as I have aquired a 72 gallon bow front tank with a sump system. I am looking into lighting and trying to figure out what would be a good setup for my first try at this. This tank will be in my master bedroom or my office. I have an RO water system in my house so I am hoping that will help with some of my work. I will be sure to post my progress. Have a very Merry Christmas everyone.

Steve

 

[Clink51]

Ive been doing cichlids for about 6 months now. Salt water always seemed out of reach because of the "to expensive" myth. Once im done setting up my 75 gallon cichlid tank, i plan to break down my 29 and build it into a nano reef with a 10g sump. JUST WANTED TO SAY WHATS UP!!

 

[blakecorcoran]

Hello Reef Central,

It's about time to introduce myself! I'm Blake. Several years ago I had a 50G mixed reef tank, but I've been out of the hobby for a few years. I'm anxious to get back into it and I've been soaking up all the info I can over the last 6 months to prepare for my new build. I've learned that I made a lot of mistakes in my previous aquarium and I'm hopeful to build a more thoughtful and healthy system this time. Thank you to everyone who offers their time, experience and advice to help new reefers like myself enjoy responsible reefing! Reef Central has been a wonderful resource!

I am currently finishing up med school and for the first time in many years, I actually have a fair amount of time to devote to this. However, I'll start my internship in July and 80+ hour weeks will not allow much tank time. So, I'm planning to automate with a Neptune Apex (I don't have the courage to learn Arduino...someday). I am planning a 80ish gal system with a 36x18x24'' aquarium and a 24x24x16'' sump/fuge/deep sand bed. Although I'll probably have a fairly mixed reef, I'd like to focus on NPS coral and automate feeding similar to Uhuru.

For my display tank, I had wanted to build an acrylic tank, but my research is suggesting polycast will be around $700 for the DT alone. So, I'm now thinking glass.

I'll be posting a lot of questions soon, but for now, could anyone offer advice regarding cheap peristaltic pumps or reputable glass tank manufacturers (sorry if this is not the forum to ask questions, I'll be happy to post elsewhere). Also, I love the old "talking reef" podcasts. Can you recommend any quality, current, educational podcasts?

I'm looking forward to starting a build thread and I appreciate all the help that has been extended and for the advice I'll surely receive in the future.

Thanks,
Blake

 

[Kryshah]

New to Reefing

New to Reefing

So, I figured it was past time to introduce myself. My name is Mat, I live in a very rural area in WV and I am wrapping up my degree in biological education. I've sort of specialized in zoology, taking far more zoology classes than my degree requires. The professor that tought my invertebrate biology class is a marine biologist and physiologist specializing in cnidaria... specifically anemones and corals... so she sort of introduced me to this world. I started my first marine aquarium 5-6 months ago when an ammonia spike killed off my cichlid tank. I have a 50 gallon DT with 2x 54W T5 HO Actinics, 2x 54W T5 HO 12,000K daylights and eight lunar LED's, Coralife 65 Superskimmer, tetratec PF500 HOB powerfilter, somewhere around 40lbs of live rock, 60lbs of live sand, 2 yellowtail damselfish, 2 chromis, 2 false percula clowns, 1 lawnmower blenny 10 margarita snails, ~30 assorted hermit crabs and 1 emerald crab, 1 sand sifting sea star and 1 hairy colored pincushion urchin. I need to boost my CUC a bit, but for now they help keep the algae down to managable levels. Alas, I have no sump yet. I also have a BB 5.5g QT. Hopefully in the near future I'll begin with corals. Probably some mushrooms and softies to start out, and after my tank has been established another six months or so, move onto an anemone or two.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

i''ve lurked for sometime but now i decided to go for it and setup my first salty. I'm just collecting equipment and reading like mad.

I'm live on the caribbean and my main concern is temperature but i know here i can find the solution.


but anyway i do have my patience....great site, lot of info.

[welcome]
Have you looked into getting a chiller? that will definitely keep your tank cool.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

This is exactly the type of feedback im looking for. Thank you. Why would you choose a refugium or sump over the wet/dry system? From what I read it was my understanding the wet/dry was high on efficiency and ease of use.

I sent you a private message.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Hello Reef Central, I have been a member of this site for a number of years but have never made my way on here nor into the salt water fishkeeping. Well that is about to change as I have aquired a 72 gallon bow front tank with a sump system. I am looking into lighting and trying to figure out what would be a good setup for my first try at this. This tank will be in my master bedroom or my office. I have an RO water system in my house so I am hoping that will help with some of my work. I will be sure to post my progress. Have a very Merry Christmas everyone.

Steve

[welcome]

My first reef tank was a 72, it's a great tank to have. Not sure if you just have an RO or an RO/DI. if you don't have the DI then I would recommend you start off right and incorporate that to your system.

Merry Christmas to you as well.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Ive been doing cichlids for about 6 months now. Salt water always seemed out of reach because of the "to expensive" myth. Once im done setting up my 75 gallon cichlid tank, i plan to break down my 29 and build it into a nano reef with a 10g sump. JUST WANTED TO SAY WHATS UP!!

[welcome]

Once you get your salt water tank set up, you're not going to want to mess with fresh water anymore, which is good because once you get your feet wet with the 29 you can step up to the 75 and make it a full blown reef tank...

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Hello Reef Central,

It's about time to introduce myself! I'm Blake. Several years ago I had a 50G mixed reef tank, but I've been out of the hobby for a few years. I'm anxious to get back into it and I've been soaking up all the info I can over the last 6 months to prepare for my new build. I've learned that I made a lot of mistakes in my previous aquarium and I'm hopeful to build a more thoughtful and healthy system this time. Thank you to everyone who offers their time, experience and advice to help new reefers like myself enjoy responsible reefing! Reef Central has been a wonderful resource!

I am currently finishing up med school and for the first time in many years, I actually have a fair amount of time to devote to this. However, I'll start my internship in July and 80+ hour weeks will not allow much tank time. So, I'm planning to automate with a Neptune Apex (I don't have the courage to learn Arduino...someday). I am planning a 80ish gal system with a 36x18x24'' aquarium and a 24x24x16'' sump/fuge/deep sand bed. Although I'll probably have a fairly mixed reef, I'd like to focus on NPS coral and automate feeding similar to Uhuru.

For my display tank, I had wanted to build an acrylic tank, but my research is suggesting polycast will be around $700 for the DT alone. So, I'm now thinking glass.

I'll be posting a lot of questions soon, but for now, could anyone offer advice regarding cheap peristaltic pumps or reputable glass tank manufacturers (sorry if this is not the forum to ask questions, I'll be happy to post elsewhere). Also, I love the old "talking reef" podcasts. Can you recommend any quality, current, educational podcasts?

I'm looking forward to starting a build thread and I appreciate all the help that has been extended and for the advice I'll surely receive in the future.

Thanks,
Blake

<img src="/images/welcome.gif" width="500" height="62"><br><b><i><big><big>Back... Sort Of To Reef Central</b></i></big></big>

That is a good plan, my tank is as about automated as I possibly can get it. I have a neptune ACIII, that control my top off, my RODI refill, lights pumps, heaters, etc... I also have my calcium, alkalinity, magnesium and vodka that is dosed by peristaltic pumps. I use a bubble magus which retails for $299 and it comes with 3 peristaltic pumps you can add up to 1 pumps each additional unit would have 4 extra peristaltic pumps for and extra $250, they are great, but for the same price you can buy individual stand alone peristaltic pumps through Bulkreefsupply.com for $80-$99 and since you said you were going to get an APEX you can definitely control them with the controller and not have to worry about using a separate controller (bubble magus) to control the pumps. Those are the 2 best options in my opinion for peristaltic pumps.

as for a good pod cast, I wish I could help you, reef addict dot com hosts a good one. I really enjoy Marc's pod cast, they are a bit on the light side though. You make your own judgment.

Good luck and good luck with your internship hope you get things set up to run smoothly before then... you should, you have plenty of time.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

So, I figured it was past time to introduce myself. My name is Mat, I live in a very rural area in WV and I am wrapping up my degree in biological education. I've sort of specialized in zoology, taking far more zoology classes than my degree requires. The professor that tought my invertebrate biology class is a marine biologist and physiologist specializing in cnidaria... specifically anemones and corals... so she sort of introduced me to this world. I started my first marine aquarium 5-6 months ago when an ammonia spike killed off my cichlid tank. I have a 50 gallon DT with 2x 54W T5 HO Actinics, 2x 54W T5 HO 12,000K daylights and eight lunar LED's, Coralife 65 Superskimmer, tetratec PF500 HOB powerfilter, somewhere around 40lbs of live rock, 60lbs of live sand, 2 yellowtail damselfish, 2 chromis, 2 false percula clowns, 1 lawnmower blenny 10 margarita snails, ~30 assorted hermit crabs and 1 emerald crab, 1 sand sifting sea star and 1 hairy colored pincushion urchin. I need to boost my CUC a bit, but for now they help keep the algae down to managable levels. Alas, I have no sump yet. I also have a BB 5.5g QT. Hopefully in the near future I'll begin with corals. Probably some mushrooms and softies to start out, and after my tank has been established another six months or so, move onto an anemone or two.

[welcome]

I would love to take a class and learn about corals and anemones that sounds amazing, you're really going to learn a lot in this hobby. Good luck

 

[rthom]

Hi everyone. My name is Russ. I have not had a tank up and running for atleast 5 years. But I just purchased a 150 gallon (72 X 18) with corner overflows. I’ll be looking, lurking, and searching here for any ideas on how to set up a lot of things. The 150 was a compromise, I think aquascape will be the greatest challenge. Well, second thought maybe the budget will be the greatest challenge. Hopefully someday this will all be pieced together.

 

[cynthiamc]

Thanks for the great tip, it is still a work in progress. My boyfriend has been talking about all that but with Christmas here a few things had to be put on hold. He has most of the planes worked out and after the holidays that's our next project.

 

[Plumbcrazy]

Well I guess I should have done this forever ago. I joined rc about a year ago.but just started posting. I've been in and out of the saltwater hobby for almost 15years. My tanks have ranged from a 150 tall to a 3 gallon pico. My current set up is a 40 breeder with a 20 gallon sump. Liting is a 6x39w t5 tek lighting (looking at LEDs now). overflow is a bean animal and I love it!no noise and fail safe. Water movement is a mp10, skimmer reef Octo sro xp2000sss heater, uv, and ehiem 1262 return pump. The tank is very young but I broke down a 92 corner and set this one up. Also have a 5 gal over the tank fuge with micro algea. I live in VA and it's a thriving hobby here love it.

 

[thrux]

Hey, I've been reading and researching here for about two months and decided to post now that I've gotten somewhere. I've set up my first SW tank, a 28g nanocube. I had it cycle for about 2 weeks with cured live rock and black coarse sand. I started with a cleaner crew and green chromie. Since then, I've added an Emerald crab, cleaner shrimp, Bangaii Cardinalfish, bicolor dottyback, green torch, finger leather coral, and finally flame angel in that order, slowly over the past two weeks.

So far so good, water looks good, fish look relaxed, eating etc. Only one casualty, my emerald crab munched on a turbo snail that was overturned at night, and i didn't get a shot to turn him over in time.

The plan so far is adding corals bit by bit, monitoring water, etc. I also think i was a bit impatient when I cycled as far as augmenting the sand bed. I have coarse sand now, and would like a layer of fine sand in hindsight. Anyone have tips on adding a layer of sand in a running tank? Take everything out? Also, setting up a fuge in one of the filter chambers is next on the list. Thanks for the help!

 

[indyjaco]

I'm brand new here as well.

I'm trying to learn some tips on a good first system to buy and what to have. I'm interested in the nano range!

 

[joel913]

Hi everybody!

Hi everybody!

hey everyone at RC. i just wanted to say hi, and introduce myself because i feel like i am going to be asking a lot of questions in the next few months haha. i have had a 45 gallon freshwater fancy goldfish tank for years, and am now moving up to saltwater. my plan was to start out with something like a 55 gallon... buttttt i went overboard *like i always do* and i am now a proud owner of a 125 gallon =), and ive recently just purchased a 55 gallon for the sump =) i plan on siliconing in the baffles soon enough and am looking foward to everything =)

 

[danderso]

Getting back

Getting back

Hi all. Im just getting back into the hobby after a couple of years away. I have about 15 years previous experience. Not too much seems to have changed in the last 2 years but I have definetly forgotten some things. I am currently setting up a 65 gallon system in which I intend to have a typical mix of live rock, soft corals, LPS, and possibly SPS down the road. I am waiting for the light to arrive which is a Hamilton 250 HQI 14,000 k with a couple of flouresents (sp) which i cant remember what they are. I have a 20 gal long for a sump with a coral life 65ga skimmer. I am still deciding how to incorporate a refugium, but am leaning towards just stacking a small rubbermaid bin over the sump, feeding it with a small pump and gravity return, and light it 24/7 with a cheap light. I am trying to decide on the sand and rock. I havent ordered either yet and am open to suggestion on both. I do scuba dive and have my own boat (live on the east coast of Florida) I plan on collecting a lot of my own stuff (have to check on current laws). It used to be legal to take certain corals and minumal rock that they are attached to. My plan is to build a small reef on one side of the tank from bought stuff and hopefully be able to create something on the other side from self caught items. I would like to start a thread to document it. Where does this thread go? Any other suggestions will be much appreciated.

 

[theFarmer]

Hello reef central and Happy Holidays!

My name is Chris, I live in NY/NJ area and I'm currently a senior studying finance at Rutgers University. I've kept freshwater fish for a few years but after moving into a dorm my freshman year, I had to let everything go. My father use to own a 45G saltwater FOWLR but unfortunately I didn't get to keep any of the expensive equipment.

I've been reading for 2 weeks now and decided to pursue a start in my first saltwater aquarium because I'm moving back home now. Due to space limitations, I have lowered my 40G ambition to a more feasible 17G for now. I wanted to also build my first sump, but again, its not possible due to spacial reasons (might save it for the next project, possibly over summer). Since this is my first saltwater tank, I will not stretch myself too thin - I'm not looking to inhabit any advanced corals or anemones. I plan to start with "forgiving and hardy" sea creatures such as a mantis shrimp, shrimps, crabs, or even a clownfish perhaps, and I will move on from there - if I fail here... well, Lord help me I will just keep some nice fiji LR... Thus far, this is what I'm looking at purchasing in the next few days:

- Mr. Aqua 17.4G Frameless Tank
- TOM Aquarium Rapids or Eheim 2211 Canister Filter for chemical filter
- ASM or Octopus hang-on back Protein Skimmer for mechanical filter
- Live rock and live sand for biological filter
- Koralia Powerhead 240GPH for water current and flow
- Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Tap Water Filter as a temporary RO

Any suggestions as to how much live rock I should get? Type of lighting (LED or Metal Halide)? Which type of sea salt to start with and how much? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Happy Holidays!

 

[Mr.Richard.Wood]

Hello

Hello

Good Morning, I am new to reef central and I hope to become an educated part of this community. I love reef aquariums, and I always wanted one.. I will be buying my first coral today... wish me luck..