getting bored from freshwater

[Guest]

I just realized as im looking at my tanks that freshwater has gotten way to easy for me. My tank hasn't had a disease or a death for over 6 months. I do my water changes weekly, test hte water about once a month (if i remember) and feed different foods every day to every other day. ive got a 55 gallon african cichlid tank and a 10 gallon planted tank and they are both thriving beautifully.

Anyway i saw this great setup, a 72 gallon bowfront that comes with everything you need for a saltwater aquarium including like the canister filter, protein skimmer adn etc. Im just wondering ive seen some other setups that are drilled out for a sump wet/dry but this one wasn't drilled so im guessing it could be for FW or SW. Do you have to have a sump for SW or could i do a 72 gallon tank with just a canister filter?.

Also ive heard that you don't do as many water changes with saltwater as you do with freshwater... i guess the protein skimmer takes care of the Dissolved organic compounds and the sand takes care of the nitrates??? Im not quite sure how it works.

BTW... id id read the articles on the site, ive been browsing and reading for quite a while but this is my first post and i have a ton of questions so any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks again
Nicole

 

[ryguy]

You don't need a sump but they sure make life easier and make for a better looking tank. They help by increasing total system volume which is a definite plus for SW. Plus, they get all the equipment out of/off of the main tank and put them out of sight. You're left with powerheads and return plumbing in the main tank. Looks much nicer than heaters, thermometers, filters, skimmers etc.

If you are planning a fish only tank, with no possibility of live rock and corals, then you would be fine wilth a canister filter. If you like the reef tanks, (and have the money...it gets expensive) then your live rock will do your bio-filtration for you plus be the aquascape to build your reef off of.

Canister filters can be hazardous to use for reef tanks. They get to be nitrate factories and need CONSTANT maintenance for a reef application. Not recommended.

Water changes can be done monthly, but many of us do them bi-weekly still.

P.S. A good skimmer goes a long way in SW.

 

[mfuchs]

Im just wondering ive seen some other setups that are drilled out for a sump wet/dry but this one wasn't drilled

IMHO I would go with a pre-drilled tank for the same reason as ryguy stated... It looks much nicer. It eliminates the need for an external mounted overflow - thus eliminating the return plumbing. I also like them because you don't have to worry about the syphon. If you lose your syphon on the overflow - you could end up with a lot of water on the floor.

I also agree with ryguy that a sump does make life a lot easier!!

 

[2revup]

ryguy i cant agree with the canister filter comments, i use a wet and dry filter (work as the same way a canister sort of) and a canister I do agree they may need that little bit of attention on a monthly basis but other then that no different to other filtration, My nitrate levels are 0 and have been since the LR cured.

However as you have stated it does take away some of the componets.

If you have the money go for a sump, but dont be fooled into thinking you need one they are a great investment if you can afford one. Being that mine was not pre drilled it gets a bit harder need the external overflows etc. So what i am saying if you think you are going to go down that path wait till you have the money and get it straight away, it will be easier and you will tank yourself later.

 

[ryguy]

ryguy i cant agree with the canister filter comments, i use a wet and dry filter (work as the same way a canister sort of) and a canister I do agree they may need that little bit of attention on a monthly basis but other then that no different to other filtration, My nitrate levels are 0 and have been since the LR cured.

How long has your tank been up for? typically nitrates aren't a huge problem for newer tanks, but as tanks get older, the nitrates can start creeping up. Wet/dry's and canisters are similar, and many people do use them, however, 1.5 to 2 lbs per gallon of LR, is enough to replace the need for them and also removes the worry of creating a potential nitrate factory. This is just my opinion however, not necessary to take it as verbatim.

 

[tecwzrd]

I do agree they may need that little bit of attention on a monthly basis

I like canisters also but monthly cleanings usually don’t cut it in SW tanks. If I keep media in it then I clean them weekly but if running empty without any filters or media at all then I can clean them every other month since most waste that enters it will get blown back out into the tank.

They do/can trap a ton of waste which just breaks down to no3 if not clean regularly. Wet/dry sumps can do the same thing if not cleaned often which is why most of use do not have any bio-balls or other media that can build up waste in our sumps. Having a good pre-filter before the sump and cleaning it every couple of days helps keep waste down.

 

[Guest]

thanks everyone for the information, i think ill definitely look into getting a predrilled so i can do the wet/dry sump that they sell. Its gonna be a while, got a lot of credit cards to pay off... but hopefully by christmas i can get my new tank

 

[jaiden]

just take your time and do a lot of reading. I wasted money on a bunch of stuff that I wouldn't have if I had gone slower.

you probably don't need a "wet/dry sump" since I bet the one you're looking at is expensive. You can skip the wet/dry part, since LR needs to be kept WET not wet/dry. hirocks.com has good rock you can use as base rock or LR rubble in a sump to save a lot of money.

 

[tecwzrd]

And you can make a DIY sump for about 1/3rd the price.