New to hobby!! HELP ME

[dbsalinas89]

Hello everyone!

I would first like to say however new I may be to this hobby I am very excited to get started and learn everything there is to know about salt water tanks!

I bought a 90 gallon tank 2 days ago and currently have 2.5 inches of a sand bed in the bottom of a medium grain sand with 30 lbs of live rock and water to the rim with a marine land penguin 350 filter system and a Aqueon Modular LED 48 Inch Light Fixture. I have 90 lbs of Drs. Foster & Smith's live rock coming in tomorrow.

I have many questions but first id like to make clear that this will be a coral tank and obviously I am a newbie so all help is appreciated. I received this as a bulk offer from the only store anywhere near my home and am going back to see the seller tomorrow concerning a few things. Penguin 350 filter system says max 70 and this is a 90? Led fixture system reviews say fish only and not for coral. This tank was explained to me that it would be a coral ready tank in a month once levels were balanced correctly.

Is the LED system I have good for growing coral or will it work? It came with 1 strip.

Will the 350 filter system be sufficient?

Is the sand bed at 2.5 inches deep enough?

Thanks again for your time and consideration!

 

[biocube101]

Welcome to the hobby!!! I know you dont want to hear it and Im sure you have read it many times already on this site that nothing good happens quickly in this hobby. Im new myself and hated hearing this myself but its the truth! My advice to you is to download the app to view this forum on your phone and anytime you have a break in the day pull up the forum and browse and read, read, and read somemore while you give your tank time to cycle and establish.

 

[nlgill13]

Welcome to ReefCentral!!!

1) Your LED setup will probably be able to grow softies and some LPS....I have my doubts that it will be able to grow SPS and/or clams.

2) With a 90G tank I would suggest a sump setup instead of a HOB filter.

3) 2.5 inch sand base is fine....however, if you ever want a fish that burrows in the sand you will most likely want more sand.

 

[CoralReeForrest]

Welcome to the hobby and the site!! You have a ton to research and learn so get started now! first drop everything youre doing and go to the top of this thread and read all the stickies, then when youre done read them again! lol. now to answer some questions, or help on a few anyway.

The lights are not going to be sufficient for 99 percent of coral, you may be able to have a softy or two but I wouldn't recommend it. We aren't just trying to keep our little pieces of ocean barely alive we want them to thrive.

Two: your sand bed is a perfect depth!

Three: the filter, I'm not sure if you mean it's a skimmer or hang on back filter. If its a hob filter it's a waste of time and money and is not needed, your live rock is your natural filter. A filter provides a place for nitrifying bacteria to live, our live rock and sand bed serves this purpose. You could use that hob filter in a quarantine tank however!

 

[Dan90]

Can you post some pictures of your set up. Does the tank have an over flow. Sounds like it does not but that would be nice. You can modify the tank but that depends on how handy you are.

 

[biocube101]

if your tank doesnt have a built in overflow and your able to drill your tank you have to check out gl*******s overflow kits!!! It really is as easy as they show on their site to install and drill your tank with their amazing overflow kits! Check them out for sure! Ive heard some people prefer to use u tubes that dont have a drilled tank and the complaint that i hear with those is they could cause a flood. Like I said earlyer, just start reading and you will read about one thing and before you know it you will be learning about something else. its crazy how one subject gets you thinking about a totally different subject somehow...I guess when you new your mind just wanders sometimes...GET THE APP!!!

 

[dbsalinas89]

It is a hang over back filter and I have looked into drilling the tank however everyone keeps telling me if its not drilled to stick away from trying it. So can I keep the light fixture I have now for the bright led light and put 2 other florescent bulbs into it? or buy a whole new light fixture with good bulbs and keep both? or do I have to trash this one!? Please let me know because if so I can probably get a refund atleast for this one and order a new light set

 

[civics2k]

2.5 is deep enough. A sump is definitely better. You will end up replacing the hob filter. You will need a skimmer. The best thing to do is research more and do not jump into things quickly. I believe you should look around and figure out what kind of coral you will want to grow first then decide what set up is best for you.

 

[Badlands25]

Ditch that light IMO they aren't enough! You could buy a value fixture from reef breeders when you are ready for coral. I would drill the tank now and set up a sump before you even attemp to cycle. You will be much happier!

 

[robn70]

If you don't feel comfortable with drilling the tank for the overflow. There are HOB over flows that do work. I have a Lifereef hob overflow on my 38 gal. That has only stopped working once in 6 years and that was because of evaporation in the overflow box due to a week long power outage. Most mishaps with the sump overflowing seems to be from back siphoning through the return line.

Welcome to the boards and Read Read Read. The is a ton of great info here.

 

[UMass14]

Have a good time, take things slow, and a little failure will make you a better Reefer.

 

[Jflowers101]

Might help

Might help

I have a 60 gallon fish only tank. The penguin 350 was not enough flow for my tank. One side of the tank was stagnate. I now have a smaller penguin on the other side. You'll probably need 2 350 on either side. You mostly likely need a sump, but having 2 penguins might be a cheaper option for the time being. Make sure the top layer of sand gets a little bit of flow, if this isn't happening add a power head. Take all the filter pads out, they messed up my water when I first start. Use live rock for filtration and the filters for flow. I do weekly 10 percent water changes because I don't have a sump. So far I've had good water in this tank, however there is no coral.

 

[dbsalinas89]

Update

Update

Ok so I have been measuring levels now since 01/08. I loaded 3 pictures 1 taken 01/08 next 1/10 then 1/11. The levels below are in a 4 day format starting 01/08 until today 01/11.
Ph- 8.2,8,8,7.4
Ammonia- 0,6,8,8
Nitrite- 0,0,.25,1
Nitrate- 10,30,30,40
I started adding Seachem's Stability yesterday with recommended dose as a tip from friend on bringing ammonia down and helping cycle the water.

 

[Molly1414]

Hi
Go on you tube and check out the videos this guy did on setting up a 29 bio cube. He did a series of videos week by week of what to do and modifications needed on the bio cube. here is a link to o e of his videos and then look at the others
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=G2ruhL0ja7w

 

[Bender19]

You want ammonia to flourish during your cycle. When ammonia and nitrite levels reach 0 on their own, do a water change to reduce nitrates and you then have a cycled tank. Lowering ammonia at this point is hurting your cycle.

Also, ditch the hob filter. Drill the tank for a sump, if you font want to then Buy a hob skimmer and a power head for flow.

 

[Maxxumless]

Also, ditch the hob filter. Drill the tank for a sump, if you font want to then Buy a hob skimmer and a power head for flow.

:lmao:... I little drastic for a tank that's already cycling. I'd invest in a CPR overflow box, an Aqua Lifter pump (and UPS for the pump and a power head), and make my own sump.

 

[dbsalinas89]

I am scared to drill my own tank for a sump tbh it just seems like that could easily go wrong and i could cost myself ALOT of money. I mean will the glass not shatter easy when being drilled on??

 

[dkeller_nc]

Drilling glass isn't something that's a cakewalk if you're not mechanically inclined and aren't familiar with tools. But it's not impossible. If you want to do this, you will definitely need to empty the tank, so you will need to get a few garbage cans to put your live rock and sand into with a powerhead and heater for circulation and temperature control.

Based on my experience, I would tell you to stay away from a hang-on-back (HOB) overflow and sump. That sort of set-up is just a work-around for a tank that's been drilled and an overflow installed.

It is, however, possible to run a reef tank with only HOB equipment, though not ideal. Your first purchase should be a good HOB skimmer. Aquamaxx and Reef Octopus both make good, functional HOB skimmers. Your next purchase should be a few propeller pumps to establish good flow in your tank. Hydor koralias are an inexpensive option, though vortechs and/or Tunzes on a controller are considerably better if you intend on keeping stony corals.

About your lighting - yes, your lighting is really only suitable for fish and -maybe- some very low light, easy-to-keep mushroom anemones and zoanthids. So if you want to keep stony corals, you will need another fixture. Because a 90 gallon is a narrow tank (18" from front-to-back glass), your best bet would be to replace your current fixture, not supplement it. The least expensive option is T5 lighting, and is also the most bullet-proof as far as being suitable for growing just about anything if you have enough bulbs over the tank.

Your best bet would be a T5 6-bulb fixture because of your tank's depth. Aquatic Life makes a fairly nice 6-bulb fixture with integrated timers and included lamps for about $550. Top-of-the-line is an ATI 6-lamp Sunpower dimmable fixture with controller for about $650, but that doesn't include the lamps, which are about $20 each. Each of these options will be enough to keep photosynthetic clams, any large-polyp stony coral you can think of, and even small-polyp stony (SPS) corals like acropora and montipora if they're placed in the top half of the tank.

A 4-bulb T5 fixture will be enough for any soft coral you can think of like zoanthids, mushrooms, toadstool leather corals, etc... and most LPS corals like brain corals, scolymias, euphylias, etc... if they're placed in the top half of the tank.

One final comment about lighting: for now, stay away from LED lighting. It's certainly possible to have a thriving reef illuminated with LED lighting, but using LEDs is far more complex than fluorescent and/or metal halide lighting. It's very easy to buy a fixture that isn't really capable of growing coral because of limited spectrum, and also possible to absolutely nuke corals under an LED because the lighting's too intense and focused. As a beginner, you just don't need these issues to deal with - your energy is better spent learning how to test your water's chemistry and keep it stable, control nutrients, set up and use a RODI system, and learning about the different husbandry requirements for various reef organisms.

One last thought - you will absolutely require a quarantine tank if you intend to keep any fish. Read up on QTs in the stickies at the top of this forum - I can just about guarantee you that any fish purchased from today's centralized and consolidated livestock distribution system will have a high probability of carrying marine ich, and even if you purchase exclusively from a high-end reputable on-line dealer like LiveAquaria, the fish will be sufficiently stressed from shipping that many will not survive if plopped immediately into a brightly-lit reef tank with other fish competing for food.

 

[dbsalinas89]

dkeller thanks for your reply and all your info! I am going to look into drilling the tank myself but im still very weary of doing so. Honestly if I could get a refund I would and just spend the extra $$$ for a predrilled tank. Im going to look up what type of glass and try to find out what all I need to drill the glass ( bit type / size / ect ).

I have not yet seen any how to guides that showed how to drill threw the glass and would kick myself in the head if I caused a crack to form over the entire piece of glass and had to put the tank at the end of the road...

I have a t5 on the way now and it is the type I can attatch another t5 to later once I really get into the corals ( 2 months from now ).

This comment here however : It is, however, possible to run a reef tank with only HOB equipment, though not ideal. Your first purchase should be a good HOB skimmer. Aquamaxx and Reef Octopus both make good, functional HOB skimmers. Your next purchase should be a few propeller pumps to establish good flow in your tank. Hydor koralias are an inexpensive option, though vortechs and/or Tunzes on a controller are considerably better if you intend on keeping stony corals.

Are you suggesting here IF I was not to drill to buy these things or I will need these anyways?


Do you have any suggestions on what sump to buy if im going to attempt the drill?

 

[dkeller_nc]

If you want to save money, then you can use an inexpensive 40 gallon breeder tank as a sump. PetCo has a sale going on until the 25th where tanks are "a dollar per gallon". It would be helpful to install a baffle made of 3 pieces of glass to separate the pump section from the skimmer section. You can usually get these pieces of glass cut to your dimensions at an Ace Hardware for very little money (less than $20). Then all you need to do is glue these pieces in with silicone. Look up sump designs to see what I'm talking about.

If you have the cash, you could certainly buy a nice acrylic sump from any number of manufacturers, but honestly, I'd spend the money on vortech pumps instead. Flow is critical to coral culture, particularly SPS (small polyp stony corals, like staghorn (acropora)), and the state of the art has evolved way past just placing a few powerheads in the corners of the tank.

But to answer your other question - yes, you will need the propeller pumps for your tank regardless of whether you get it drilled or not. You will also need a skimmer for your sump, so you wouldn't want to buy a hang-on-the-back skimmer if you get it drilled, but you will definitely one or the other (sump or HOB).