How much live sand & live rock?

[XxkylexX]

Just trying to find out how much live rock and live sand would be sufficient for a 150 gallon tank?

Also, how many power heads would be ideal?

 

[AquaRick]

How much sand depends on how deep you want your sand bed.

Rock is generally 1-1.5 lbs per Gallon.

The # of PHs depends on what type of tank you're going to keep. Reefs need 20-50x total tank volume turnover.

 

[AquaRick]

Sand Bed calc:
http://www.reefcentral.com/calc/SandBed.php

 

[XxkylexX]

I am doing a FOWLR tank. Not ready for a reef tank yet, considering I'm new to this.

 

[AquaRick]

You can start with a shallow sand bed if you'd like...maybe 2-3". Rock would still be 1-1.5 lbs per gallon. As for powerheads, I'd just get two and stick one on either side of the tank. Depends on you how much flow you want in a fowlr.

 

[XxkylexX]

What would be the best type of sand to buy in my case?

 

[AquaRick]

It depends on how much you want to spend really. Pool Filter Sand (PFS) and play sand can be purchased at your local hardware store for a few bucks for 50 lbs. You can spend more on aragonite sand if you like. Read up on the benefits of aragonite sand. If that's the route you want to go, check out: The Reef Rock Store

I haven't purchased from them myself, but many folks have and liked their product. Hard to beat at that price.

 

[XxkylexX]

225 lbs of rock? That's crazy!

 

[XxkylexX]

It depends on how much you want to spend really. Pool Filter Sand (PFS) and play sand can be purchased at your local hardware store for a few bucks for 50 lbs. You can spend more on aragonite sand if you like. Read up on the benefits of aragonite sand. If that's the route you want to go, check out: The Reef Rock Store

I haven't purchased from them myself, but many folks have and liked their product. Hard to beat at that price.

Thanks! Seems like a good site. I'm definitely interested in the aragonite sand.

 

[XxkylexX]

Would using sand from Destin, FL beaches, or any beach for that matter, be a bad idea when wanting to build an aquarium?

 

[Sniperhank]

I'd clean it heavily first.

 

[XxkylexX]

I just would like to have pure white sand like from Destin, FL in my aquarium.

And I'm not talking about the brown sand that some people say is white either. I'm saying 100% white sand.

 

[Sniperhank]

Marine Reef Aquarium Substrates: Arag-Alive

 

[XxkylexX]

What type of sump would you recommend for a 150 gallon tank?

 

[AquaRick]

I just would like to have pure white sand like from Destin, FL in my aquarium.

And I'm not talking about the brown sand that some people say is white either. I'm saying 100% white sand.

The sand in your tank won't stay white. There's always going to be detritus and gunk to clean. With good maintenance it'll look good. It just wont stay bleach white.

 

[AquaRick]

What type of sump would you recommend for a 150 gallon tank?

The biggest you can get is good. Reallisically im a fan of the 40 breeder as a sump. No center brace to get in the way. It also has a nice footprint

 

[XxkylexX]

The biggest you can get is good. Reallisically im a fan of the 40 breeder as a sump. No center brace to get in the way. It also has a nice footprint

What exactly do you mean when you say "footprint"? Sorry, I'm a rookie!

 

[AquaRick]

What exactly do you mean when you say "footprint"? Sorry, I'm a rookie!

No problem! Here to help. It's the area of the base of a tank. A good footprint is wide and long so it can accommodate big skimmers and heaters etc. A skinny footprint wouldn't fit wide skimmers and other equipment etc.