My first try at reefing, 55Gal Tank, lots of questions from a newb :)

Nataliek2270

New member
Hello everyone! I have been reading posts on here for a while now, and I have to say that everyone's pictures and posts have definitely encouraged me to get back into saltwater :)

I have recently met someone who has a huge variety of used tanks/stands/sumps/skimmers/filters/etc., but it is definitely overwhelming with all of these decisions I have to make, Does anyone mind giving me some advice on a few things? Here are my questions:


I am getting a 55 gallon, I have never used a sump before, but I believe it's the way to go when you count all of the pro's and cons of hang on filters to sump systems. I have 2 choices for a sump, has anyone used either of these or have any advice which is better?
-new sealife system model 100 wet/dry
-pro clear aquatics model 75 wet/dry



Next, which skimmer should I use with this sump?
-red sea prism hang on tank skimmer
-pro clear aquatics skimmer with rio 800


Should I use a filter with a sump and skimmer? A sump is going to be my filter correct? I had used a hang on filter with my FOWLR tank I "inherited" when a friend could no longer take care of it. The tank came with it and a skimmer so I have never had to purchase my own filters/skimmers before.



I have a 36'' 192watt CurrantUsa Orbit light, is 192watt enough for montis? I know soft corals will do well, but I want to try some easy sps and maybe a frogspawn.



Lastly, questions about live rock and sand. Where can I get some really good live rock? Has anyone ever tried to make their own rock and seed it? I read an article from GARF & about.com and it really interested me because of the control I would have with the aquascaping. Here is the link:

http://saltaquarium.about.com/gi/dy...arium&zu=http://www.athiel.com/lib3/arago.htm


Also, if I had live rocks, could I just use an aquarium safe type of sand on the bottom and it would eventually become live sand?


Man thats a lot of questions! Thanks everyone for your help, I truly appreciate it :D



Natalie
 
WELCOME!

I started with a 55 and have since upgraded to a 75. I was in almost your exact shoes not long ago as I have not been this for too long.
My first piece of advice would be to shy away from PC's, I used them origionally on my 55 then got a t-5 light at a deal from a fellow reefer (Rhett). I feel that I could have saved myself a lot of dough if I would have just got the light I wanted to start with! Plus PC's lamps are expensive to replace, long run they are some of the more expensive lights long term. (t5's are 20-25 per bulb once every 12-18mos, pc's are 50 per bulb every 8-12 mos).
Secondly you will get a lot or differing opinions on RC but just remember It's YOUR tank so don't ever believe that there is one way to do it!
Skimmer wise whatever you pick make sure it is rated for more than your tank volume, this will save you money if you upgrade and probally improve your skimming. I used a 150g rated skimmer on my 55 and it seemed to work well.
Sumpwise I would go with a home built rather than a wet/dry. I ran a wet/dry on my 55 and it left me with limited access to the sump for mantience and limited water volume. I run a 20L homemade sump now and the difference is amazing. A homemade sump not expensive either!
rock wise I made my own rock, and its still sitting outside, I never used much of it except for in the sump. I never liked the looks of it. Dollar for dollar I think buying dry baserock and seeding it with some good live rock hunks is the way to go. The club has several setablished tanks in it and I am sure you could buy some really great seed pieces from folks. Dry rock is usually 1.50-3/lb and it removes the headaches of curing the diy rock and looks like the real thing, because it is! over 3/4 of my display is dry rock and I bet you you could not tell the difference if you looked at it now! If you still want to do diy rock you can have my diy rock i never used, make sure to cycle it properly though!
Sand wise you can also buy dry sand and seed it with sand from a club members tank to make it live. I have bought some live sand, used some dry sand and aragaonite, used some play sand (not recommended by me due to the "look" and possible but unlikley silica issues) and used some club sand to help seed.
I would more than happy share my opinions with you in the future as you sound like you are getting ready to start a tank just like I started with. I could tell you what worked and what didnt. Good luck and welcome!
 
Natalie I looked at the two skimmers you mentioned. If you already have these two then I would go with Red Sea Prism. If you havent bought anything yet I would do a little more research and find the one I really wanted and make sure it would do atleast 20-30% more water volume than my actual tank. You could even buy a bigger one that way when you upgraded and "trust me" you will if you stay in the hobby then you can use it on your next tank.

Yes your sump is your filter. I would not go wet/dry IMO. I like for everything in my sump to be submerged and have a fuge area to grow chatoe,algae etc. I would also recommend atleast 20 long tank for your sump. You can get with quiet a few of us on here and we can build you one if youll buy the parts. Its really not that hard to glue in baffles.

The light you mentoned is that T5 lighting or what kind ?

I have never made my own rock. I dont think I ever will sounds like too much work for me but, I have no knowledge of it. I wil be selling some live rock probably next week after I redo my aquascaping. You can also find some good deals on base rock at times. Just cook the rock if it needs it (put it in a plastic bin with heater,air stone and a pump. And let it set there for a few weeks. While doing water changes once a week.) You can get some base rock like I was saying and then seed it with some live rock you get. You can save some $$$ doing it this way. Or you can just buy all live rock. (I remember paying $103 for one rock one time. Geesh !!! )

As far as sand goes you can do it just like the rock. Get whatever sand you want and then get a few cup fulls of sand from someone's tank and seed what you have. I hope this helped a little post more enough about the lights you have. Also post what equipment you have alrady got and more people will chime in with different view points. I wish you the best.
 
Sean I was typing my post out while you were posting this one. Funny how we gave some of the same advice. I have to agree with him on the lights. I would go with T5s or halides. Espically if I was going to do some SPS. (your post "some easy sps" trust me if you do the easy ones youll want to do the hard ones so save yourself now and get the lights that will make them thrive.) Just agreeing with Sean about spending a little more now to save you more later.
 
The light I have is a Currant-USA 36'' Orbit, here is the link to the specs, I got this light second hand and I don't see anywhere on the website where it says T5- so I am guessing the answer is that it is not a T5,

Heres the link:
http://www.current-usa.com/orbit.html


Since I already have the light, I most likely will just have to upgrade in the future as I get more consumed with reefing (which I know will happen!) But for my budget's sake (and the sake of my poor husband who's interest in reefing is limited to, "Hey, that's cool, it didn't cost a lot did it?") I will stick with the light I have for the time being. The interest I had in frogspawn is that I would want my clowns to have a choice to host in it or maybe some leather coral instead of an anemone. I don't think an anemone is for me, and I am a newbie with reefing so I would probably kill the poor thing.


Now the light is the only thing I have. I don't have anything else purchased and the person who has all of these used items I listed is in North Alabama, which is about an hour and a half away from Spring Hill, TN, where I am. I am checking craigslist daily to see what others are selling, but it might as well be in chinese because I don't know if it would what I need. I am so glad supertech99 and commonstranger are here to help me with the sump stuff, because I am clueless. It may just be better to have a DIY one, I will have to read up on that and see what supplies I need. I will check back on older threads too and see what info you all have posted on sumps in the past. I totally feel like I am in school again with all of information I am absorbing! At least it's stuff that I will actually use, unlike the advanced math and algorithm classes I had to take in college :rolleye1: I am definitely signing up for the MTRC, that way I can come to the meetings and share in this great hobby with others, who knows, my husband might even start getting interested :) Thanks!


Natalie
 
sounds great! Since you have to use the PC light (power compact Flourescent) I would go with the current sunpaq dual actinic bulb for your actinic bulbs, I used them with great color and growth results. Word to the wise on PC bulbs, the "no name" ones on ebay are not worth the money and don't by them at petco or petsmart as they are very expensive there. Try AC, or Emerald Bay (thats where I got mine) Emerald Bay had the dual actinics (420/460 nm waveleinght) Also MTRC membership gets you 10% off at most of the local "fish" stores. When you spend what we do on this crap, that 10% makes a difference at the end of the year.

Rhett--That was funny! I would love to get a t5/MH combo sometime down the line. "easy SPS" is kinda like "Jumbo Shrimp" doesent really go together, except for a cap coral I guess.
 
Supertech, you are thinking exactly what I was, the only "easy sps" I would want would be some monti/cap corals, they just look soo nice in my opinion :) I really like pulsating xenias, the leather corals with the long tentacles (the Sarcophyton type I believe), zoas are great, and the neon green daisy polyps too. This may sounds strange, but I heard an idea somewhere that I have to try with these daisy polyps- get a stone replica of a skull and let the daisy polyps grow a sort of mohawk on the top, once the coralline algae takes over the rest you will have a green haired purple faced rock skeleton. Maybe this will get my husbands interest in my hobby!


Hmm.... It seems that a few people around here may have tanks and equipment they may not be using anymore, got a couple of pm's about it, if anyone has anything you want to get out of your garage just pm me- I have my lights and that is the extent of my equipment! Thanks all, I would be lost without the help of the experienced...


Natalie
 
I personally would stay as far as I could away from the prism skimmer. I have a 55 gallon tank and my first skimmer was the red sea prism. It does skim but does not do a consistant job. everytime you empty the skim cup you have to spend 20 mins tweaking the water flow again to so it will skim and not overflow. If you are looking just for hang on back skimmer I would recommend the aquac remora its a great skimmer at a decent price.
 
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