What corals should I start with, and what size tank?

[~CoTeY~]

I am planning on starting a reef themed tank and i would like to know some easy begginning corals to start with.

I would also like to know a good starting sized tank, and what types of fish i should start with.

This would help me very much and i thank anyone who replies.
~CoTeY~

 

[~CoTeY~]

I am also wondering the prices of these corals that would also help! ~thanks~

 

[scrmbld33]

what kind of budget do you have?

 

[tanker]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6927632#post6927632 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by scrmbld33
what kind of budget do you have?

And what kind of light do you have or planning on getting.

 

[bertoni]

[ericsbook]

That book is a very valuable reference, IMO, and could save you a lot of time and money.

We can make a lot of different suggestions, but there are so many types of coral and lighting, etc, that we need to have some idea of what you want to keep.

For beginners, a soft coral tank is popular, and comparatively inexpensive. A 55-75g tank makes a nice setup, and they're large enough to be fairly stable. Lighing could be some T5 or perhaps VHO lighting, maybe 300 watts or so.

 

[~CoTeY~]

I plan on working all summer for the money, i just wanted some idea of a goal to get to. Im getting help on lighting but other then that i am very new to this. I thank you very much!

 

[bertoni]

Hmm, pricing out all the equipment for a tank might be an interesting project.

You can save money by buying used equipment. That's worked well for me. Start looking for used tanks from people leaving the hobby. Also, the selling forums here on RC have a lot of used protein skimmers, etc, that can be a good buy. IMO, you should also look at what animals you want to keep, and start thinking about electricity costs, which add up to a lot over time, and not very much time here in California.

 

[~CoTeY~]

I think i may be getting a 50 gallon tank and startind a soft and lps coral reef. What are some good corals and fish species? Also what protien skimmer and other assesories would be good to have in a tank this size.

 

[bertoni]

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=239848
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=550860

Those threads are good places to start.