Really want to do saltwater.....Help me

[FormulatedFire]

ok guys i would like to start off by saying HELLO...
i have many freshwater tanks ranging from 150g to 10 which i know has no weight on this site but i am somewhat exp in the aquaworld.

I want to start with a FOWLR tank until i get enough money together for a nice light setup. Maybe a few shrimp and emerald crabs in a few months when its all cured and settled.

I have 2 tanks that i might be using for my first sw setup i have a 50g 36"Lx18"hx18"h.....or 55g 48"Lx13"wx21"h

1)What tank would be the best? I thought the 50g since it has more surface area for rock

2)I know that you want 1-2lb of LR per gallon but what if i get more is there any bad effects to it?

3)I was thinking of doing 90lbs of base rock and then adding in 30-40lbs of LR so it will spread across the base rock......is this a good idea and will it work?

4)Also do i need to have all the filters and stuff setup while just the live rock is in there or just good water circulation?

5)I was thinking of doing a sump under the tank with a 20g long will this be a big enough sump?

i really need someones advice on what kind and brand of skimmer to get a HOB skimmer or a in sump skimmer?

I'm prolly going to run 2 larger powerhead in the tank to make good water flow?

thanks alot guys i really need your help
nick from MD

 

[AllenFord_SC]

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

To answer your questions here goes:

1) The 50 gallon will give you more room for aquascaping and will be cheaper to light.

2) Crowding the tank and limited swimming room.

3) Excellent idea. No point in buying all LR when base rock will eventually turn live.

4) You will find it easier to do all you plumbing first with an empty tank than when it is full.

5) Sounds like a good size to me. The larger the better so get what you can fit without being cramped.

 

[egdevilboy]

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

1) Either would work. But like you said, i think the more surface area the more options for aquascaping (placement of LR)

2) The more the marrier.

3) Yea, it'll work fine. The LR will seed the BR so it grows good coraline algae. But it will take longer to grow.

4) Yea, during your cycle run your filters. Helps remove the different chemical spikes. Also make sure you have all equipment priore to getting livestock.

5) Yea. Theres a post on the "Polls" forum about what size. Most people do 10%-20% their tank size. 20 long will be fine.

6) One point of a sump is to get equipment outta the display. Go with an insump. I dunno too much about insumps, but HOBs go Aqua C Remora.

7) with h2o movement 10x your tank size is low-flow, 20x is medium, 30x is high. I try to stick with 20x and place corals accordingly

Best of Luck!

 

[Teremei]

WELCOME!!

1)I have a 55, go for the 50. Deffinatly nicer more open instead of like a very thin rectangle.

2)Crowding as said, do what you like better. Personally I like 1# per so there is alot of open swimming room.

3)GREAT IDEA!! A very good place is reeferrock.com everybody loves them! I got some myself spent $150 including shipping and got some of the most beautiful "choice" peices 60 pounds of it too!

4)forget generic "filters". . What I'd reccomend is just skimmer, live rock, and good flow. Having a sand bed helps to absorb amonia and nitrates too.

5)big enough sure. Try to make a little room for a fuge (a little rock and some live plants so little "bugs" can grow. They are called pods and help to clean the tank.

For a 50g, and aqua C remora hang on would be PERFECT!! Even better an aqua C urchin in the sump skimmer. ASM is also a good brand but a little more ($200). .

For good flow try to have atleast 10x the water volue. 50g x 10 = 500 gallon per hour. Maxijet 1200's run at 295 gallon per hour. Just having 2 would be just fine. But try to go for just (a little more) What would be nice is to put one at each end aiming at eachother. Dr fosters and smith sell a maxijet timer wavemaker which would make one go off while the other was on. Creating "waves" back and forth. That's just a little begginer advice. Good luck!!

 

[old salty]

I saved some serious $$ by using base rock along with live rock. Find a way to start dripping limewater as soon as you can. Stability is key, and adding limewater stabilizes calcium, alkalinity, pH, and salinity. Plan before you buy. This site has saved me some serious $$, so do a lot of reading.

 

[markandkristen]

i agree i have found sometimes its cheaper to buy a used setup with everything then trying to peice stuff together. i love my used setup i got for 650 and that included everything.

 

[FormulatedFire]

as far as the powerheads go hagen makes a 400gph one but i'm not sure if its for saltwater does that matter are they all universal???

thanks for all the info guys

 

[Sindjin]

I had a 50g tank too, when I decided to change to Reefing. But after planning, reading, etc.... my 50g became my sump for my 120. Not to perpetuate the obsession or anything...



I built my own stand and canopy to house my lighting as well to aid in initial setup costs.