the more I read, the more complex it seems

[boshk]

I'm not complaining, its actually a very interesting hobby and with the diverse amount of information on forums and youtube, its quite...overwhelming sometimes.

As my title says, it seems to get more and more complex with saltwater whether it be fish only, FOWLR or reef tank.

I still don't have my tank yet, only my 125L fw, waiting on buying my RO/DI unit before I go buy my sw tank.

SO where do I start, I think it gets a little more complex sometimes living in Hong Kong with regards to buying items.

-RO/DI......now this is a huge topic, all the different brands. All the good brands you guys mention like BRS, Spectrapure, etc.....no shipping to HK.
I think I've spent the last week researching and trying to find dealer or amazon shippers.
Found some that ship but then there was talk about their membrane being a 'Dow Filmtec 100GPD' only giving 90% rejection rate...
Waste water ratios, booster pumps, stages etc
Found a simple 4 stage Spectrapure Ro/DI, no tds, no pump, no ASO....$294 (I believe you guys pay $150 for one)
Vertex 100 Deluxe RO/DI with pump, tds, ASO.......$480!

My tap tds is 70, some even mention I could get away with RO only cheap system, output might be 2 but it will never be 0.
Even one of the reef shop staff said....use tap water. I was actually a bit...shocked.

-Tank....I've decided on either reefer Nano or 170. The sump idea would give me a little more flexibility in the future for upgrades if I get more serious.

-Lights......so many varieties and range is $ to $$$$, all the different Kevins/PAR required depending on tank type and coral
thinking of AI Prime atm but still researching.

-Sump....Refugiums, ATO, return pumps, safety features, etc

-Protein skimmer...simple idea but so many types.....decided on Bubble Magus Curve 5

-Corals and fish.......I haven't even really started the research. a pair of Oc clownfish, cleaner shrimp, goby, crabs...for the moment

-Live Rock and Live sand debate....need both or not, use Dr Tim's One and Only with Live rock?
How do I know its really Live Rock?
In HK, its pay, you walk out of the door, its your problem.

-Salt...even salt has different types, Red Sea salt vs RS Coral pro.....

-Most recent topic I got interested in......REACTORS...wow....normal vs mini reactors, GFO, Calcium, Carbon, tumbling, non tumble, Phosphates, nutrients etc

Got me asking....refugium with chaeto vs GFO reactor......surely GFO is better unless you have a huge refugium or you are using it to grow 'pods'?

anyway, that's it.

Bit overwhelming but back to more reading and research and back to my first problem, need to get a hold of RO/DI unit somehow.

 

[A.Astore]

You have a good strategy, focus on one major thing at a time. If not you quickly can become overwhelmed with this hobby. Once you get that handled move onto the next hurdle. If there is one thing about this hobby to embrace it is the more effort you put in before you even setup the system up, the less headache it will likely become. Nothing is perfect, but if you take the time now you will be less likely to have major issues.

Any gez the cost you are looking at for RODI units is crazy compared to ours! One thing you may want to find out is what they use to treat your water, that might help you out a bit in determining what stage you need.

 

[gone fishin]

Yes it can be a bit overwhelming in the beginning. Not to add more reading to your list But there is a very nice sticky at the top of the forum called setting up.

It helps to break things up into blocks certainly. Lets start with the RO/DI if at all possible I would try to obtain one. I wish I could be of more help but I honestly do not know what is available overseas. 70 TDS is certainly low but the problem is what is the makeup of that 70 TDS.

Rock and sand can either be live or dry. Using dry dead rock will eventually come live same with dry aragonite, here it usually cheaper as well. Just be sure to rinse the sand well to get as much of the fine dust out of it as possible. If you purchase rock from a store hopefully it is live but if not it will become live. If you decide to purchase dry rock then some folks like to give it a soak in muriatic acid to get rid of any phosphates prior to curing it, I would highly suggest reading up on it before attempting.

Lights really depend on what your coral goals are with SPS having the highest requirements. You may find it useful to decide what your ultimate goal is then search threads or post another specific to the lights.

skimmers are also a tough choice since there are so many. I will say I have Bubble magus myself for the last 5 years and it has performed well. Just make sure your getting a quality pump with whatever skimmer you go with.

some salt brands have a couple formulations for instance the red seas salt and RS coral pro that you listed. The coral pro has a higher alkalinity, calcium formulation for tanks with corals.

Generally reactors are not needed up front and you have some time to sort that out.

I would suggest initially get the tank, buy or make a sump, heater, return pump,powerheads, skimmer, lights, rock and sand, test kits for the cycle( ammonia, nitrite, nitrate)

I sure I forgot something but some one will chime in. Good luck

 

[rjjr1963]

I'm sort of an information junky and spend far too much time on the computer until the early hours of the morning. The last saltwater tank I had was was 25 years ago. I'm relearning the hobby over again and have felt quite overwhelmed at times. I still get that way. I think it's easy to get a little caught up in all the new technology and information that has developed over the years. The question is how much of this does one really need to have a successful aquarium. My first tank had a sump with bioballs, a return pump and a couple powerheads. My light was a home depot shop light, I didn't know what a skimmer was and I used water right out of the faucet. There was no such thing as live rock where I lived and I used lava rock bought from a gardening store. I did a lot of water changes and the tank was very successful. Education and equipment have come a long way since then and much of it has improved the hobby. But I would caution about getting caught up it the latest greatest technology and stick with the basics for now.

I'm just some dummy on the internet so what do I know. lol But it's been helpful to me to take a step back focus on the basics.

 

[boshk]

You have a good strategy, focus on one major thing at a time. If not you quickly can become overwhelmed with this hobby. Once you get that handled move onto the next hurdle. If there is one thing about this hobby to embrace it is the more effort you put in before you even setup the system up, the less headache it will likely become. Nothing is perfect, but if you take the time now you will be less likely to have major issues.

Any gez the cost you are looking at for RODI units is crazy compared to ours! One thing you may want to find out is what they use to treat your water, that might help you out a bit in determining what stage you need.

yea, I know, crazy price hey. The most expensive one Vertex Deluxe plus a set of replacement filter cost the same as a Red Sea Reefer nano tank...

 

[boshk]

Yes it can be a bit overwhelming in the beginning. Not to add more reading to your list But there is a very nice sticky at the top of the forum called setting up.

It helps to break things up into blocks certainly. Lets start with the RO/DI if at all possible I would try to obtain one. I wish I could be of more help but I honestly do not know what is available overseas. 70 TDS is certainly low but the problem is what is the makeup of that 70 TDS.

Rock and sand can either be live or dry. Using dry dead rock will eventually come live same with dry aragonite, here it usually cheaper as well. Just be sure to rinse the sand well to get as much of the fine dust out of it as possible. If you purchase rock from a store hopefully it is live but if not it will become live. If you decide to purchase dry rock then some folks like to give it a soak in muriatic acid to get rid of any phosphates prior to curing it, I would highly suggest reading up on it before attempting.

Lights really depend on what your coral goals are with SPS having the highest requirements. You may find it useful to decide what your ultimate goal is then search threads or post another specific to the lights.

skimmers are also a tough choice since there are so many. I will say I have Bubble magus myself for the last 5 years and it has performed well. Just make sure your getting a quality pump with whatever skimmer you go with.

some salt brands have a couple formulations for instance the red seas salt and RS coral pro that you listed. The coral pro has a higher alkalinity, calcium formulation for tanks with corals.

Generally reactors are not needed up front and you have some time to sort that out.

I would suggest initially get the tank, buy or make a sump, heater, return pump,powerheads, skimmer, lights, rock and sand, test kits for the cycle( ammonia, nitrite, nitrate)

I sure I forgot something but some one will chime in. Good luck

thanks for the opinion.

1st RO/DI unit
2nd salt and buckets
3rd Get Tank and basic items first...heater, thermometer, Return pump, Circulation pump and Skimmer.
4th Live Rock and/or sand (even Dr Tim I have to order via Amazon)
5th Leave everything else for later, the lights, ATO, stocking etc

 

[CarrieB]

I'm also back in the hobby after a couple of decades. For me, the saving grace is that you can go slow and do one thing at a time. I find myself watching the little worms on the rocks. Who needs coral and fish?

 

[OrQidz]

Can you get a good locally made RO/DI unit? Or maybe there is a place to buy RO? Most things are made right next door to you in China. It would be aggravating to have to get stuff shipped back, costing much more!

Are there any reef clubs there? They might have some ideas too.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[Reefheart]

I share the same sentiment - if you compare it to other type of animal husbandry, keeping reef tank is both complex and easy at same time.

For example, compared to a dog, you do not have to attend to a reef tank on a daily basis (i.e. feeding, exercise, companionship, cleaning after etc) but I would feel that leaving a dog under a good friend's care for a month is much easier than a reef tank due to the salinity, over/underfeeding, dosing, skimmer or tank overflowing etc.

 

[Sk8r]

It sounds like rocket science, but in application, it's more like archery. You get DECENT equipment, with about 2x more skimmer power than the rating for your gallonage---that's important; you get good water flow---eg, 950 gallons an hour for a 50 gallon tank---and you get lighting that gives you the opportunity to move into a more 'delicate' area of the hobby should you wish. It's the old adage about not painting yourself into a corner---give yourself options to go more complex; well, unless you're determined to start with sps---that's about the fussiest sort of corals, the most demanding. The hardier LPS coral and softies can actually survive a cycle, so it's not as if they're that delicate. But they are fussy about 2 negative things---nitrate excess; and poor lighting.

Just give yourself options, decide where you're going, and then get a pretty good average system with enough room for what you want to keep...and that means plenty of gallons if fish is your aim.

 

[CStrickland]

I've run across several reefers in HK in this forum. I don't think there's a club listed for you all, but you're deff not alone. You can try googling something like "reefcentral Hong Kong" and sending a private message to members; a lot of US reefers are active in Facebook groups for their state or region, so try that or your local equivalent; or go old school and hang out at the local fish shop until you make some new friends.

Having a club of nearby reefers is so valuable to any of us. I would think even more so when you have country-specific issues like sourcing equipment. This forum is great for general info, but a local club is an important compliment if you can find one.

And yes, you are lucky that you enjoy the research part it is the most important thing