Newbie Corner Feedback Thread

[kimoyo]

Hey Tom,

As someone who as enjoyed many of your threads and always found your advice to be on point, I was disappointed with your latest article on the subject of glass vs acrylic tanks. I think many successfully keep acrylic tanks and scratches are not inevitable. One problem might be that many tank manufacturers use too thin acrylic which leads to bowing and subsequently scratching. So in answer to your article, I would like to say that I had a glass tank first, switched to acrylic and am extremely happy with my 1" thick tank .

Anyway, I look forward to your next edition!

 

[WaterKeeper]

Sorry Paul. :sad1:

I didn't mean to "scratch" acrylic off the list of choices but after hanging around this forum for seven years I tend to get a lot of input and, based on that, plastic tanks are not my top choice. I do know that the technology has improved. More scratch resistant acrylics are now used than those of the past and many people do enjoy them.

Next month I deal with lighting and you don't even want to know what my opinion is on PC's.

 

[nrstype]

(Hey WaterKeeper....just an update.. I have obtained my "noobie pledge badge"..as you can see ..... ) :celeb1:

 

[WaterKeeper]

Way to Go! Nrstype! :thumbsup:

 

[Paul B]

Hello there Water Polluter

based on that, plastic tanks are not my top choice.

I have a tempered glass tank and I have a lot of scratches in it.
It could be all the asphalt and beer cans though :eek1:

After saying that, plastic is not my first choice either. In time you will have to replace it due to scratches.

 

[WaterKeeper]

Glass was just invented back then Paul.

 

[Pescado Racing]

I just wanted to say hello to all. New to RC, not really new to the hobby. The hobby I should call a career, I am a Directing Curator/ Dive Officer for a 12,000 gal. marine exhibit here in Arizona. (Since it is a commercial exhibit and I am new, I'll leave company name out for now. ) At home I keep a 220 gal. reef, that keeps me out of trouble. I only wish I found this site sooner...

 

[WaterKeeper]

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

Always glad to have a curator join us. Just please just don't ask me how to set up a Dolphin Tank as I never tried it.

 

[Vitae]

Hi there! Just a quick question from a saltwater noob.
I've been doing freshwater for ages now and I'm thinking about changing my 20 gallon to a saltwater.
My question is this-
I have a 130watt compact florescent lighting system with 1 10k daylight and 1 true actinic (sp?) bulb.
Will this be enough lighting for some of the easier to keep corals/inverts?

 

[WaterKeeper]

Hi Vitae
[welcome]

That's fine for a 20 gallon. Power Compacts are often used on a small reef as you don't have a lot of room to work. Yeah, you can drop an MH pendant but you end up with more light fixtures than tank. You can also use T-5 but as you already have PC I'd run with it. With 130 watts you can have just about any coral you choose and even some high light organisms just by placing them slightly higher on the rockwork.

Darn, I may need to rename this the Welcome Banner thread.

 

[nrstype]

Start one o~fearless~one! Or lock this one, or both. Looks like this one is turning into a Q&A, and it was originally meant to be about announcing your Newbie corner articles.

Sticky it & lock this one, so newcomers can direct their attention to the "New to the Hobby" section.

(OH.... Speaking of Q&A.....was is your idea to put a rifle and pilgrim hat on the RC Fish?) HMmmmmmmm????

 

[WaterKeeper]

The feedback thread was intended as a Q&A for article related input from the readers. Author forums usually don't get a lot of attention so I figured I'd try it this way. Besides it does give my articles PR come to think of it.

You have to blame Doug, beerguy. He is our fish dresser upper and has logo's for about any occasion.

 

[nrstype]

Okie dokie...

I'm slow.. just realized the fish today.. that was kinda cute.

 

[WaterKeeper]

One of the things I need to teach you Newbies is how to recognize fish from your kids. The one's you can hold underwater for an hour or more are usually fish. The others are amphibians or mammals, possibly kids.

 

[conjuay]

Unfortunately, I read your article AFTER the deed was done...
There is a used 100 gallon Acrylic sitting downstairs as we speak!
But the upside is that I got tank, stand, wet/dry, protein skimmer and two working power heads for what the tank alone should have cost me. (The lights were/are useless for reefing.)
There are a few scratches, but you might want to suggest this option for others who are looking to get in and can't afford the NEW stuff.

 

[sharky007]

Hello everyone I am new here and I had fresh water tanks before and have been wanting to get into saltwater aquariums for a very long time but could nt afford one at the time now I believe I am ready to give it a try I have been looking at tanks and read the newbie article on it. One question has anyone heard of the RED SEA MAX aquarium it seems to be aimed at rookies like me and it looks pretty cool. It has a couple awards and looks like a reliable system that has everything included what do you think of this tank ANYONE has one.

Thanks

 

[WaterKeeper]

Hi Conjuay,

Don't get me wrong. There is nothing wrong with acrylic. I just prefer glass as they tend to look better over the long run. Thanks to acrylic eyeglasses much has been done to toughen the acrylic surfaces and they are far more scratch resistant than they were ten years ago or so. There are many acrylic tanks out there, I sometimes wonder why there are no polycarbonate tanks which are far tougher. Most public aquariums use plastic view panes. Just be careful when working around the tank. And don't rub too hard when cleaning.

Sharky,

The aquarium you are considering is also plastic and is very similar to the JBJ 28 gallon Nano-Cube, a popular aquarium for many of our New to the Hobby crowd. The main difference is that the Max uses T-5 lights while the Nano uses HQI metal halides. It is probably a good starter aquarium but always be aware that a small tank requires more care than a larger one. Especially when it comes to water quality. The up side of a small tank is you can do fairly large water changes at frequent intervals without shelling out a lot of cash for salt mix.

 

[Paul B]

I sometimes wonder why there are no polycarbonate tanks which are far tougher

My tank is made out of aluminum. It's great and I don't see it if a fish dies.

 

[WaterKeeper]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I really never listen to Paul B. Sure, he has as much experience as I do but his Vietnam War wounds were to his head. Unlike mine that were between the legs.

Upflow UGF indeed!!!!

 

[TheOtherReefer]

Hopefully this will be a popular option for newcomers. There is so much information out there it might be difficult for someone starting to know where to begin. I am wondering if there will be a link that can access current and all past information, so reefers can be directed there.