Newbie in Roanoke

K

ktnjer

New member
Hey guys after recently acquiring everything for a 20 Gallon tank, I decided to start my hobby in saltwater fish. I just sold all of my cichlids from my 55 gallon tank and am going to convert it over to a saltwater tank gradually.

In the 20 Gallon tank I have:
Live sand
A few live rocks
Assorted seashells from the Pacific Ocean
A small stone for oxygen
A small heater
Biowheel filtration
Hydrometer to test salt levels

For fish I have:
2 Clown fish
1 Gobie
1 Crab

I know I need alot of live sand and coral for the 55 gallon tank. I wanted to get an anenome for the clown fish but not sure on what to get. I have a nice tank heater in the 55 gallon now thats sufficient and it has the filtration syatem that came with the setup from Petland a while back.

What do you guys suggest for the 55 gallon? also if anyone is selling any live sand or coral or whatever I may need, please let me know and maybe we can work something out! I do powder coating and have been doing it for a few years, so if anyone wants to trade coating for stuff then by all means let me know and I would be happy to work something out.

Thanks and I look forward to picking your brains and meeting some of you at some point!

Jeremy
 
Hey Jeremy ...Welcome to the Club!!! Great to have you here , and don't be afraid to ask tons of questions....

You don't need a lot of Sand ... It is personal preference really...
I would hold off for a while on the Anemone , once you go through some of the ups and downs you will be more equiped to handle that...

As far as filtration , Live rock is the best option .. I definetly have a few starter frags for you when you get the 55 going.... Good luck and keep us posted...
 
Welcome!

I'll throw in a few more suggestions as well. Ditch the air stone; it'll create a mess with salt creep. When the bubbles pop, they spray salt water. Once the water evaporates, you end up with salt :(

Eric is right about the sand, its more aesthetic than functional. Live rock is the main form of filtration, but you're going to want a skimmer as well. The "filtration" system that came with your tank will likely cause more problems than it would fix. They tend to be nitrate factories.

Definitely hold off on the anemone until your tank is stable and you have some more experience under your belt. They can be tricky to keep alive. And most of the "cool" anemones require high light.

If you want to keep corals, you're going to need to upgrade your lights. What do you have planned for that?
 
Now wait a minute. You guys are saying that the sand is more decorative and that live rock is the main filtration. But everything I have read says that a DSB is more inportant than the live rock and it provideds tons more surface area for bacteria than rock does?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12546301#post12546301 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by NbMaxx13
Hey Jeremy ...Welcome to the Club!!! Great to have you here , and don't be afraid to ask tons of questions....

You don't need a lot of Sand ... It is personal preference really...
I would hold off for a while on the Anemone , once you go through some of the ups and downs you will be more equiped to handle that...

As far as filtration , Live rock is the best option .. I definetly have a few starter frags for you when you get the 55 going.... Good luck and keep us posted...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the great input! I know live rock costs out the butt but I wanna do it right the first time than skimp on it to save a buck....lord knows I need more money! :D

Thanks for the frag offer! Like I said....anyone wanting to pimp out their car with some powder coating then I will surely trade that for equal value because I like helping people out as much as they do me ;)
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12547043#post12547043 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by J. Montgomery
Welcome!

I'll throw in a few more suggestions as well. Ditch the air stone; it'll create a mess with salt creep. When the bubbles pop, they spray salt water. Once the water evaporates, you end up with salt :(

Eric is right about the sand, its more aesthetic than functional. Live rock is the main form of filtration, but you're going to want a skimmer as well. The "filtration" system that came with your tank will likely cause more problems than it would fix. They tend to be nitrate factories.

Definitely hold off on the anemone until your tank is stable and you have some more experience under your belt. They can be tricky to keep alive. And most of the "cool" anemones require high light.

If you want to keep corals, you're going to need to upgrade your lights. What do you have planned for that?
Click to expand...

Yeh I heard the live sand will also aid in helping the tank recycle some of the waste....I'm no genious so please tell me if thats right in your experience?

I definitely wasn't gonna go hog wild when I get the tank up...I was gonna let it cycle for at least a month before I started adding any fish or any other creatures to it. I know patience is hard sometimes....but I can do it....I think....lol

I'll definitely look for a skimmer too along with some type of wave maker to help simulate the seas and make them feel more at home.
 
Just so you know, you don't need nearly as much live rock as most people say. A lot of places will tell you that you need 1.5x lbs. of rock for every x gallons of water . . . thats complete B.S. If you're on a budget (I can relate to that, I'm a grad student with a 55 as well), buy mostly dry rock and then seed it with some live rock.

For live rock, I'd suggest getting a few good coraline covered piece from a local (I think ade is selling a bunch of tanks). Most of the "live rock" sold in retail stores doesn't have much to see on it. Then just give it a few months and you'll have a tank full of live rock.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12547426#post12547426 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pprmntshrmps
Now wait a minute. You guys are saying that the sand is more decorative and that live rock is the main filtration. But everything I have read says that a DSB is more inportant than the live rock and it provideds tons more surface area for bacteria than rock does?
Click to expand...
You need to have a seriously deep sand bed, like 6", to effectively execute the DSB methodology. That just means you have a ton of ugly-@ss sand filling up all the valuable space in your tank. And all that sand gets real dirty, real easily.

At one time my tank was full of sand and full of rock . . .
FullTank.jpg


I've vacuumed out most of the sand, just enough to cover the bottom, I've taken out probably 15-20lb of rock, and the tank has never been better!
FTS0805.jpg
 
Daaaaaang....how much you got in that? I mean...investment wise? I sit every night and watch my two clown fish play....and the sand fly up when the gobie starts digging....thats some funny stuff! Then the crab gets mad at the gobie and pinches his tail....this is much of a change from freshwater cichlids! They were mainly territorial and aggressive. I am wanting a tank as peaceful as possible and not alot of reef but enough to be suitable for the fish.

Definitely if you guys know where the deals are and if individuals are selling, please let me know and maybe one day I can get in touch with you all and you can help me get started quicker!
 
I had an Oscar in my tank for 5yr before it became a reef :D
This is what mine looked like when I was just getting started a year and a half ago. I thought I was going to set up a FOWLR, and then things spiraled out of control!
FTS0610-1.jpg


How much is invested in my tank? More than I want to think about or admit. Though as far as coral goes, I've gotten most of my coral as frags from friends and locals in the Richmond Reef Club.
 
That pic looks like what i would want to accomplish....but i'd say its just like tattoos....the more ya get, the more ya want!
 
I have a sea clone skimmer that you are welcome too but you will need a new Maxi Jet 1200 to run it.
That way if you are worried about pulling the air stone this will do the same thing but pull fish waste out of the water.
Also like Josh said you will have to have around 6"+ of sand bed to do a true DSB and then you have to worry about it crashing after a few years.
IMO you are paying top prices if you are shopping at Petland, there are plenty of people on RC that have stuff that they can give you or sell very cheap to get you started.
With your setup IMO you are not ready for corals or anemonies yet.
Years ago I set up a 20 long to see how cheap I could go to run a full mixed reef. I bought new and used. I ran a Tetra Tec filter with carbon a Maxi Jet 1200 for flow, around 50# LR sand bed around 1-2" and I think I had 2 x 65 watt 50/50 PC for lights.
I think I done all that back in the day for around $150 without fish or corals. That was one of my best tank just because of what it cost and the fish and corals I had in there.
All you have to do is ask for help and there are enough cool people in the club to help you get on the right track.
Most of the kids in places like Petland and Pet Smart don't know that much about saltwater fish and corals and tend to sell you things that you don't want.
It is best if you come to a meet and meet some of the guys and gals or ask to see peoples tanks to get an idea of what they are doing to run their tanks.
Good luck and hope to meet you at a meet.
Oh and Welcome.
Ade
 
Thanks Ade! I usually try to do my reasearch online as much as possible before making choices because I believe the people that work there are just waiting with nets and bags and willing to send you to the front checkout counter! I always check at some sites like liveaquaria.com and read about individual fish and what not and see how easy it is to take care of them and their temperament etc. I'm sure thats not as good as first hand knowledge!

I am using this 20 gallon as a temp storage now and get a feel for this, then get everything built up little by little on the 55, then transplanting the fish and what not to the 55 once its safe to do so.

I appreciate the welcome to the club, and I may not have alot to offer right now that you guys have, but like I said I am a powder coater and am willing to do for you all as you do for me!

Speaking of that, I am actually building a tank stand out of some angle iron I have and once its all welded up, I will powder coat it too for a nice finishing touch! I also am adding some casters to it to be able to roll the tank around in case the wife decides she wants to rearrange furniture....god knows she does that alot!

You guys speak alot of lingo on the equipment and such that I sometimes sit here and go...."huh?" I'm sure I'll pick it up over time...thanks once again Ade and I'll take you up on that offer!
 
Do you do the powder coating from your home or work? At times we,Titan Kinetics, have a need for powder coating.
The concept of wheels on a stand sound great but I am not sure that I want to push the tank around fully stocked.
I built a stand for HOC out of 3" box that he built his 800 gal on, that was a tank to see. HOC had skills.
What lingo are you not sure about?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12551648#post12551648 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ade
Do you do the powder coating from your home or work? At times we,Titan Kinetics, have a need for powder coating.
The concept of wheels on a stand sound great but I am not sure that I want to push the tank around fully stocked.
I built a stand for HOC out of 3" box that he built his 800 gal on, that was a tank to see. HOC had skills.
What lingo are you not sure about?
Click to expand...

I do it from home, but I have done it professionally in Jacksonville Florida for a year prior to moving up here. I do it for a few guys off websites and some local. I have almost $3,000 in my setup and I know how to do everything right! I sandblast everything I do and chemically pretreat the metal for maximum adhesion with no worries of flaking and degradation over time. If you ever wanna see any of my work, shoot me an email at loudinpc@cox.net and I would be glad to send you some pics!

I wouldn't push it around fully stocked....maybe half full of water during a changing but never full....that would be a PITA!

Most of the lingo are acronyms...but I google them and find out what they are as soon as I see em'! After a while I will catch on..
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12553502#post12553502 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by turbois300
I can vouch for that tank stand.... It was bad a$$!!!!!!!!!!

You powder coat car parts by chance?????
Click to expand...

Yeh thats what I mainly do.

Here is a pic of the recent work i sent out this morning..

IMG_5360.jpg



Hope this doesn't violate anything on the forum? If it does I'll take the pic down..
 
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