Planning first frag tank

[ReefsandGeeks]

I am planning out my first dedicated frag tank and curious what sort of set up others have. Mine will be a 24"x24" 12" tall tank with a sump. I plan to use it for holding and growing frags and ocassionaly take to frag swaps that are driving distance. A few specific questions I'm not sure how to approach below.

1) For those that sell at frag swaps, how do you deal with the overflows on your frag tanks? do you cap off the drain during a swap to move your tank, or find a way to bring a sump with you to the swap? I'm thinking mayby have a union at the bulkheads near the drain and cap off the drains for frag swaps, and just run sumpless during a swap, then reconnect to my sump at home after the swap is over. Just want to make sure that the set up I plan allows me to effectivly use my tank for swaps and for normal home use.

2) Other than coral, what do you put in a frag tank? Would you add any small fish? snails/clean up crew? what sort of livestock would be most beneficial to keep with the coral? I would think something would be necessary so the coral can eat some of the fish food/poop for nutrition.

3) What sort of filtration would be best for a dedicated frag tank? Unfortunately, I can't put my frag tank anywhere where I'd be able to tap off of my display's sump, so will need to be a stand alone system. filter socks? Skimmer? refugium? GAC? GFO? What has worked for you? I'm thinking a refugium would be nice instead of a skimmer, but not sure what would be most effective. I will have room for a large sump if needed, so space isn't really a constraint, but will be on a budget with the possibility of adding equipment later with money from frags sold.

 

[mattgumaer]

To me, it sounds like you have a basic decision to make: 1) either keep your frag tank simple and mobile; or 2) make is more complicated, understanding that trying to move it for frag swaps would be a giant pain. For frag swaps, you really don't need anything fancy at all, a shallow tank with a HOB filter or something else to keep some water moving, a heater and a light that will make your corals look nice for potential buyers.


Matt

 

[ReefsandGeeks]

Since I'm planning on only going to a few frag swaps a year, at most, I think it would make more sense to have it set up to run the best it can at home, and deal with some inconvenience when taking to a frag swap. Plus, the tank I'm getting is already drilled on the bottom, so I need to do something with the holes. Perhaps I can build a table top stand to put the tank on that will raise the whole thing up enough so the plugs I put on the bottom aren't an issue.

 

[Joe0813]

I personally wouldn't add fish to a frag tank. I went through a terrible ich issue and lost tons of fish. Now I QT EVVVVVERYTHING for 90 days. so if someone said the frags came from a fishless system, me personally would be more willing to buy from you. but that's me

 

[Joe0813]

but on the other hand I had major issues with coral dying and bleaching from running my tank fallow for the 90 days since there was no fish poop for food