new to reef tanks

[reefinquisitive]

hello all my name is jeff and im thinking about trying my hand at reef keeping. i have been keeping african cichlids for about 6 years now and think its time to step up to a new and exciting challange. im in the process of figuring out the equipment that ill need to do so. i am thinking about a full blown reef tank with fish inverts and corals. Im thinking about doing a 120g or larger but no bigger than a 5ft footprint drilled tank with a refugium. im not sure what equipment ill need to do so.

heres a few things im thinking about

korella power heads (not sure on the size) w/a korella controller
a refugium (not sure on the size that will be needed) might possibly go with a precision marine package that comes with a skimmer.
if not ill need ideas on the skimmer size and make
heaters with a electronic temperature controller
not sure if ill need any reactors or not
as far as lighting goes im thinking about a t5 retro kit

i also know when it comes time to actually putting the tank together i will be ordering a package deal from Tampa Bay saltwater

i am very open to ideas and suggestions like i said im clueless when it comes to reef tanks and any suggestions or ideas will be greatly appreciated

Thanks in advance,
Jeff

 

[EllieSuz]

[welcome]

As long as you already want to control heaters and powerheads, why not get one controller that will take care of more functions. I use the ReefKeeper Lite by Digital Aquatics, and there are other controllers that you can research. One thing I learned early on was that freshwater experience has little relevance to saltwater. For that reason, I strongly urge you to read the permanent threads at the top of the "New to the Hobby" forum. It will save you time and money in the long run, not to mention survival of your livestock.

 

[reefinquisitive]

thank you for the response i'm still researching doesn't seem like you can ever learn enough

 

[SputnikNYC]

doesn't seem like you can ever learn enough

no one can welcome to the forum!

 

[TheFishTeen]

Welcome! You've got a serious adventure ahead of you.

 

[reefinquisitive]

i know but it seems like an exciting adventure had my wife looking at a marine book tonight and were going to build it together so shes just as excited as i am about it. just need to figure out what equipment we need then well work on a stocking list. this will be completely different than keeping the African rift lake cichlids i keep even thou the ph is about the same as with them so im use to buffering the water and such to keep them thriving and healthy. thanks for the warm welcome and i look forward to then new adventure

 

[wildman926]

i know but it seems like an exciting adventure had my wife looking at a marine book tonight and were going to build it together so shes just as excited as i am about it. just need to figure out what equipment we need then well work on a stocking list. this will be completely different than keeping the African rift lake cichlids i keep even thou the ph is about the same as with them so im use to buffering the water and such to keep them thriving and healthy. thanks for the warm welcome and i look forward to then new adventure

That is cool. This time around, I included my wife, and she even has a tank that is "hers" (I still do the maintenance :thumbdown), an 80g.

The key to this as compared to your African tank, is MORE patience. Patience... Cant stress that enough. As far as your equipment, do it right the first time, you will spend less in the long run.

SW is not as hard as it is made out to be. Just don't get caught up in everything you read. You have people that swear by their $1000+ skimmers, and then there are those that dont even run one. Get my drift?

Here is my 150g African tank that will be converted next spring -

 

[reefinquisitive]

what are you doing to convert it i was thinking of possibly converting my 120g african cichlid tank or my 75g community tank