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[KarenHorn]

Hi, I'm interested in starting a tank and have a few questions. I want opinions as to what the most cost effective route is to go. I plan on starting with a 55 gal fish only tank with the idea that down the road I may do a mini reef.

I've started with getting a few books and reading everything possible. Can anyone suggest a good moderately priced filter, skimmer and R/O Unit?

Also if anyone is interested in taking a newbie under their wing I'd be more than grateful. Thanks!


Karen :?

 

[Guest]

I'd suggest building your own sump. Lot of different options there, you can use a 10 or 20 gallon tank to build it, or just get a big rubbermaid container.
You can probably find a used skimmer pretty cheap, just keep your eye on the buy/sell/trade posts.
You could probably find someone selling everything you need to get started relatively cheap if you are patient enough. (I'm not)
People upgrade to bigger tanks and end up selling 90 percent of their old equipment.

 

[fishcraze]

If you plan on converting your tk to a minireef later, you may just go ahead with a refugium instead of awet/dry filter w/ bioballs which is often suggested for a fish only tank. A refugium is cheap and easy to build yourself - all you need is a 10gal or 20 gal glass tank (~$10 - $20).

For a skimmer for a 55gal tk, a bakpak skimmer maybe good enough, or you can ask Reefalot on this website if he has a small one availabe, and I know he has very good prices.

RO/DI units: Global fish&pet on Bellair/ Gessner has a very good price for them. Or you can order it online (look in the sponsor section in Reefcentral. com)

 

[fishcraze]

One more thing: since you plan to add corals to your fish only tank later, then NEVER use any copper based medications in your tank to treat fish diseases. In fact, Try to stay away from using any kind of medications in your main tank as much as possible since corals are very sensitive.
The best way is to treat your sick fishes in a quarantine tank.

 

[Guest]

A good skimmer for a 55 would be an AquaC Remora - they're a little bit more than some of the others (~$200) but well worth it. The skimmer will be your most important piece of equipment for filtration.

For the rest of your filtration, I would recommend using live rock, which will run you ~$3-4 per pound. Typically you want 1-1.5 lbs. per gallon, so plan on starting with ~60lbs for that tank. I know it's expensive, but I think that using liverock is critical to long-term success in this hobby. I wouldn't even attempt it any other way.

I ordered my RO unit from Air Water & Ice and got a 75 gpd RO/DI with a drinking water attachment (our tap water is really bad) for around $200. I think Global also carries an RO system that several members have bought and been happy with.

 

[KarenHorn]

What is a good place to read up on refugiums and how to build your own sump? Also, if I still have fish in with my mini reef am I going to need the filter and skimmer along with my refugium?

I planned on using live rock and sand.

Forgive me if I ask a bunch of dumb questions. There's a lot of information out there and I'm having a hard time sorting it all out. I want to start relatively simple and upgrade as I go.

Thanks again

 

[Guest]

Welcome to the hobby Karen!!

My piece of advice concerns lighting. Even though you want to start with a fish only tank, don't skimp on your lighting. Get as much lighting as you can possibly afford from the start. Otherwise, you'll just be throwing away money when you want to upgrade to keeping coral. I speak from experience. :-x

One other thing, ask LOTS of questions. There is a wealth of "been there/done that" knowledge on boards like these. Sounds like you are well on your way. Good luck.

 

[Guest]

Have you established a budget yet for your tank? You should probably do that first, then double or triple it and use that to guide your decisions.

Regardless of budget, I have a few more suggestions:

- Go with a 75g instead of a 55g to start. The price difference should be minimal, and the equipment you need will be essentially the same. And a 18" deep tank is a lot easier to aquascape than a 12" deep tank.

- I wouldn't start with a refugium right off the bat. When you upgrade to a reef, definitely plan on adding one, but for a fish only tank they're of minimal utility. The KISS principle applies here.

- Polecat has a good point on the lighting. What you could do is get an IceCap 660 ballast and for now just wire it for 2 regular fluorescent bulbs (1 10K, 1 actinic). Then, when you decide to add corals, you can just switch out the bulbs with VHO bulbs which are about 3x as bright, and add 2 more bulbs using the same ballast. That setup would be good for fish only now, but could easily and cheaply be upgraded later to let you keep about 90% of the corals available.

- You most likely will want a sump in the future, so go ahead and plan for it now. The main thing to plan for is to either get a Reef Ready tank, or if you get a regular tank take it to one of the sponsors and get it drilled before you set it up. Hang on overflows are a major PITA, and there are plenty of people who have them who wish they could switch to a reef ready tank (been there, done that). The sump itself can be as simple as a large rubbermaid container, or you can build your own out of acrylic or take a 20g glass tank and add some baffles to it.

 

[Guest]

Hi Karen, Welcome to the relaxing { :? } enjoyable world of marine aquariums. Everyone has good advice for you here but I just wanted to add if you can make some of our MARSH meetings, you will meet the best folks in the world. Someone always has things for sale or trade or giveaway and the advice is always free.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to email me or post it here, I'll help as I can.

 

[KarenHorn]

I haven't decided on a budget. The only thing we decided was to buy things bit by bit as we could afford them. The idea was to do the fish only thing for several months until we felt completely comfortable and then slowly start on the mini reef and upgrade as needed or we could afford it.

I admit I'm completely lost on the reef ready issue and drilling holes. I guess I haven't read enough because I have no idea where the holes need to be drilled.

Again, thanks for all the advice.

 

[fishcraze]

You can make the refugium and the sump in one single 10 or 20gal tank. The only diff is there are macro algea in the middle chamber of the sump. The refugium is a good source for helpful critters like mysis shrimp, coppods, and they can be good foods for your fishes too. And you can also prune macro to feed your tangs/ angels also - no need of dried sea weeds. Making the refugium rite from the start save you an upgrade later. And again, it's very simple, and it's cheaper than the wet/dry filter, and the same costs as a sump, so why not go for it?

For instructions on refugiums, go search on www.reefcentral.com. But the best way is to come see some member tanks to learn diff ways to build refugiums. You can also see the refugiums in action at some LFS in Houston, and can ask them tons of questions on how to build one.. My recommendations for LFS refugiums to see are at Global Fish&Pets and Fishworld - both have pretty nice fuges.

And I think the skimmer is still good when you convert to reef later.

 

[Guest]

If you're planning on using LR and LS, then that makes it easier.
You can just take a rubbermaid container and make that a refugium/sump.
If you want your fish to be very visible and not able to hide as much, put the majority of your LR in the rubbermaid container, that will provide your bio filtration and just have a lot of circulation between the tank and refugium.
Then all you need is your skimmer and lights.
Someone had said don't go cheap on the lights, I think differently, i think if you're first starting out and are on a budget, just go with the minimum and save up for better lighting later, that you may just add to the original lights.
I don't like NO lights, so for a 55 gallon fish only tank, I say a WH7 and 2 VHO bulbs will do you good to start. I used power compacts on my original 55 gallon tank and liked them a lot. WH7 ballast (WorkHorse 7) will light VHO or Power Compact bulbs. The ballast costs about $40 and the bulbs will run about $35 each for VHO and I forget what PC's cost, about $25 a piece I think.
If you go with 2 VHO bulbs or PC, it will be really easy later to just add Metal Halide lights to the same canopy.

 

[Guest]

New Member

Welcome Karen,

You will find this club a good source of information. One important consideration is your budget. Used equipment can be purchased for less than 25 cents on the dollar but some items I believe are best purchased new. For example, I would not want to buy a used RO unit.

Houston has some of the best fish shops in the US - and most have the equipment you would need for a tank less than 100 gallons. I highly recommend that you look at the sponsors of MARSH.

Two other reef sites that are very informative are www.reefaquariumguide and www.reefsanctuary. There are more of course, but these two are my favorites. WWW.reefcentral is the largest but I find that this site is difficult to use because of the huge volume of people often does not allow the hobbyist to use the library search functions.

The Eric Borneman book on corals is one of the best - and Eric is right here in Houston and was one of the founders of this organization.

You are welcome to come visit my tank if you would like to see one in action.

Regards,

Mike Redman

 

[KarenHorn]

Mike, I'd very much like to visit your tank when you've got the time. Just let me know when is convenient for you. My schedule is pretty open. I appreciate your and everyone else's advice

 

[Guest]

Karen,

I noticed you're in Cypress. I'm over by Willowbrook Mall. If you want to look at my tank (200) and get a feel for what you are getting yourself into.

Brian

 

[Guest]

Hello Karen,

I'd like to make two points.

First off, go with the largest tank you feel comfortable with. The larger the system, the more stable it will be. Smaller tanks tend to react to minor problems with major consequences IMO.

Second, before you decide to dive in try to wait until the next round of "Tank Tours". This way you can see how many of our fellow members have thier systems set up.

I hope to see you at the next club meeting.

 

[rhane71]

I would first figure out how much space you have for a tank. Then figure out if the floor will support it. Once you figure those parts out you can start planning your ideal tank. IMO, the bigger the tank the better. I would search our buying, selling, trading section or http://www.chron.com/class/index.html for some great deals. Once you have your tank and stand I would go with lighting. If you plan on making a reef tank one day buy strong lighting if you can . This will save you money in the long run. Its best to shop around. There are pleny of stores in Houston and online. Remember, whatever money you save on equipment can be spent on livestock. If you need anything don't be shy about asking here. Usually our members have extra equipment or livestock that can be bought cheap. If you need any help or more advise feel free to call me and I will be more than happy to help if I can. And welcome to MARSH..

abran ramirez
281-860-0147

 

[DELOCK]

Karen,

All I can say is that you came to the right place. If buy used equipment check out buying/selling board here and on reefcentral. You can also try ebay....

 

[fishcraze]

When select the tank sizes, you may want to think about how much you want/ can spend on your system.

Agreed that the bigger the size the better, but the large size tank (>120gals) may require much higher maintenance costs, eg. electricity, evaporation, additives,.. and higher equipment costs, eg. bigger skimmer, a calcium reactor, kalk reactor, big pumps and a lot of power heads, live rocks, sand bed, more MH lighting (3 bulbs for a 6ft long tank), fans, chiller, heaters, etc..

A 30 gal tank may be a little small and less stable. IMO, a 4 ft long 75gal or 90 gal tanks are pretty good. With 4ft long tanks, you may only need 2 MH bulbs of 175W and some actinic supplements. You don't need an expensive skimmer. Also don't need Ca rxtr - weekly adding of turbo Ca should be sufficient. Less power heads required for a 4ft long tank also. Several fans may be sufficient to control the temp in the summer w/o a chiller... So think about your budget before deciding on the tank size.

 

[Cakepro]

After reading all this I forgot how daunted I was to set up our first saltwater tank, which was a simply crushed coral/dead coral skeleton decor/2 clownfish/NOlighting/75 gallon tank. *Yuck* If I had had to decide on all this at first I wonder if I would have been too scared to start. LOL

Great info, everyone.

~ Sherri