This is what I have so what else i need to start.

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choupic

Aquarium Advice Activist
Joined
Jan 16, 2006
Messages
176
Location
Thibodaux, Louisiana
What I have is

1. tank is a 55 gal aqua tank from wal-mart

2. aqua-tech 30-60 power 330 gph filtration

3. submersible heater 200 watt

3 fluorescent full light hoods (eclipse natural daylight 18"x2 60htz 17w
)model 24rfh

What I need ?

1. Digital therometer

2. Oceanic Natural Sea Salt Mix (any thing better are is this fine to use)

3. Nature's Ocean Bio-Activ Live Aragonite Reef Sand
0.5 - 1.7 mm Diameter Grain Size - 10 lbs.

4. Then I will add Nature's Ocean Marine White Sand Premium Marine Substrate
0.1 To 0.5 mm - 10 lbs. - Marine White Sand (How much I will need?)

5. Live rock I and looking into Drs. Foster & Smith's Select Fiji Premium Rock - 22 lb. Box (How much Should I get and is there some other rock I should buy.)

6. Test kit

7.Thought of getting these to clean sand and tank
Scarlet Hermit Crabs 10
Mexican Turbo Snails or Margarita Snails 20
Dwarf Red Tip Hermit or Dwarf Zebra Hawaiian Hermit 35
Abalone or Banded Trochus Snail 2 12
Court Jester Goby or Black Sailfin Blenny 1
Lettuce Caribbean Nudibranch 2
Emerald Mythrax Crab 2

Any thing needs to be tweaked or changed this is my first fist tank.
Just try to get it started.

Thanks
LANCE




:D :D
 
Im still really new to this as you are and i dont even have my tank up yet but i will still give you my opinion on some things.

From what i have read you may want to think about a protein skimmer as well for your setup to help keep nitrates stay lower. At first you shouldnt need it but its a good option to think about.

There is a calculator in the forum that will tell you how much sand you will need. For my 65gallon I want a 3" sand bed and it calls for 111lbs of sand so it will take lil bit.

As for the rock you should get, live rock seems to be the most beneficial for the SW aquariums. It contains bacteria needed to help with the biological filtration of your system. If your not getting LR then the amount of rock you get is up to you. But if its LR you are purchasing Around 1.5lbs per gal of water is what you should aim for. So for a 55gal your talkin around 82.5lbs of LR.

As for the Salt mix there is alot of different opinions on which type to get. Im probably going to end up gettin Instant Ocean because its readily available at my LFS. Hopefully some other guys will pick up on this and help even more. Im still just a newbie in the learning process :-D

Also you should def cycle the tank before adding any LF. Im not sure how to add links yet but under the articles section is a good article on how to cycle a tank properly. If not you will end up with dead friends :(

Hope i helped some and im sure more will jump in :)
 
I would agree with the protein skimmer...it is pretty much a must. Get in the beginning so you can break it in. It won't give you much skimmate at first, but they all seem to go through a break in period so set it up initially IMO. Don't worry about what your going to put in your tank until after it has cycled (3 to 6 weeks). It is best to get all of your live rock at first (1 to 2 pds per gallon). The fiji live rock is an excellent choice, but you may want to buy some cheaper foundation rock for the bottom and use the fji rock for the top. Also you'll need test kits for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate...pH test kit, and an alklinity test kit. Later, after your tank has cycled you may want to get a calcium test kit, phosphate kit and some others depending on what you want to do with the aquarium (i.e. FOWLR or reef). If you plan on keeping corals you will have to change your lighting plan...it is inadequate, but fine for a FOWLR. Reef tanks should have between 3 to 5 watts per gallon. As far as the sand, a three inch bed is good. And as for the salt mix there are varying opinions. I currently use Instant Ocean, but will be switching to Kent or Reef Crystals because the calcium content in IO is too low. HTH
 
hirocks.com is good for cheap dry rock to use to get to the 80-85lb you need. With that and a good skimmer, you won't need much else for filtration. AquaC remora is a decent choice for a skimmer.

You should get a couple of powerheads for circulation, since you need to aim for 10x flow (so 550 gph. your skimmer and power filter don't count for this.) a couple of maxijet 900's is a good choice.

you need a refractometer (the drsfostersmith one is fine)
a basic test kit (seachem or salifert) amm, nitrate, nitrite, ph at least

you should also consider an ebay RODI filter (mine's from filterdirect for $130 or so but some can be had for under 100) because clean water is the foundation of a good system.

Be sure you do a fishless cycle and make sure it's done before you add anything alive to the tank.

also, more than anything you'll need a LOT of patience. read everything you can here for a few weeks before you do anything. you'll save money in the end
 
Welcome to AA :D

Just to add to the other good advise if you haven’t already read all the articles as Joester2k3 metioned at the top of this page, especially the article on doing a “fishless cycle”. It will help with all the basic questions you might have.

A digital thermometer isn’t a must but I’d at least get a floating hydrometer/thermometer to measure sg and temp. A portable refractomter would be even better for measuring sg.

As emorrison33 said you don’t have to get all lr. Base rock will also become “live” within a year or two and for that I’d recommend www.hirocks.com which has great base rock at reasonable prices.

You didn’t mention anything about a ph so I’d recommend getting at least one for each end of the tank pointed upwards and at each other to help with circulation/aeration. The most popular brands are the Max-Jet 1200, Penguin 1140, & the Seio Super Flow pumps

Once your cycle is complete you can add the clean up crew (which looks fine). Just make sure you acclimate them for at least 3+ hours using the “drip method”.
 
Is this all I need to buy.

1.SEIO 820 Super Flow Reef Aquarium Pump/Powerhead 820gph or 2 Marineland - Maxi-Jet 1200 Water Pump 295 gph

2. Salinity Refractometer 4 Aquarium

3 Skimmer would this work. Up to 150 Gallon JEBO Protein Skimmer Reef Aquarium. Comes with 650 gallon per hour power head pump
Link:
http://cgi.ebay.com/New-150-Gallon-...737329791QQcategoryZ46313QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

4. Should I get a filter like jaiden was taking about. Is it needed
 
No matter which ph you get I would get 2 so you don’t have water just flowing in one main direction. With two pointed at each other you will get very little dead spots and good convulsing currents. Even two SEIO 620/820 wouldn’t be too much flow due to the wide flow they put out versus the more direct flow of the Maxi-jet/Penguin powerheads.

I have no experience with the Jebo skimmers but they get decent reviews. The AquaC Remora is one of the best but ultimately it comes down to “you get what you pay for”.

Everything else listed looks fine.
 
What I have is

1. tank is a 55 gal aqua tank from wal-mart

2. Aquac remora hang on skimmer maxi jet 1200

3. submersible heater 200 watt

4. fluorescent full light hoods (eclipse natural daylight 18"x2 60htz 17w
)model 24rfh

5. Digital therometer

6. Oceanic Natural Sea Salt Mix

7. Nature's Ocean Bio-Activ Live Aragonite Reef Sand
0.5 - 1.7 mm Diameter Grain Size - 10 lbs.

8. 100 lbs base sand (play sand silica free )looking for it

9. Live rock (fiji) cured local pet store 6.75lbs getting 10lbs

10. base rock 60lbs from hirocks.com

11. Test kit

12. 2 SEIO Super Flow Pump 820 GPH Submersible

13. refractometer

:D What lighting should i get for corals when i add them :D

Any thing needs to be tweaked or changed this is my first fist tank.
Just try to get it started.


wow this cost alot of money
Thanks
 
choupic said:
:D What lighting should i get for corals when i add them :D
What kind of corals interest you?

choupic said:
wow this cost alot of money
Just wait till you just "have" to get those killer MH lights :lol:
 
You have to have the ballast to support the lights and 65w pc bulbs don’t fit in NO 18w hoods. That’s why I usually recommend not buying the “default” hood that comes with tanks since the $50+ could be better spend on PC/MH lights. If you can take them back and get your money back that would be the best option.

With only 36w currently you don’t have enough light for any corals. Unfortunately you have to pay to play or else you will just have a bunch of dead expensive corals after a couple of weeks of putting them in there with NO lights.

Edit: Liveaquaria goes into much more detail on why you need the higher watt lights.
Edit 2: Another user posted this link to some cheaper lights which look just as good :D
 
I went to my local pet supply store and they deal with mostly saltwater aquariums.
The sales person told me I should get a bak pak protein skimmer/filter system.Its the same price as the Aqua C remona protein shimmer . Which is better for my 55 gal tank.
 
Ok now I checking my tank for leaks. I see none can I test my equipment in the tap water or should i wait till im ready for the saltwater mix.
 
Testing your tank/equipment with FW is fine but personally I’d use ro/di or at least ro water from the start so you don’t have to drain it. fwiw new tanks rarely leak so you could forgo the test and just add SW from the start. If it does leak you will have to drain either way.

When you are ready to add salt I would mix the full amount required for your tank in a 5 gal bucket and let it sit overnight. (Usually around 1 cup per gal, just follow directions.). Also I wouldn’t use a ph to mix since the higher concentration of salt could damage it, just remix it by hand before adding.

Then drain an equal amount from the tank and add it that way so it doesn’t just sit on the bottom until it dissolves. Then after a couple of hours you can adjust your sg to the desired level by either adding fresh or salt as needed.
 
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