quick question

[atomicbiscut]

do u need a airstone with FOWLR tank? do u want bubbles in a FOWLR tank? the power head i have shoots out bubbles is that normal or bad?

srry for teh dumb questions,but i have so many.

[melosu58]

Not a dumb question at all. IMO all they do is make a mess on your back glass and your lights. The way you aerate your tank is with surface aggitation and you can do a better job by pointing a PH at the surface. Bubbles IMO are only good for making a mess in SW.

[atomicbiscut]

thx for the help. 1 more question.

i read all u need is 1.5 lbs of live rock and a per gallon and a skimmer for proper filtration. wut if u have less than that,would u recomend a canister filter or are those actually BAD for the tank in some way? for a FOWLR btw.

[Kurt_Nelson]

Originally Posted by atomicbiscut

the power head i have shoots out bubbles is that normal or bad?

Most likely you have the aeration tube installed on the powerhead... the tube that goes into the outlet of the pump and runs up to above the surface of the water. There's usually a little adjustable thingy at the top of the air tube where you can vary the air intake and the bubbles. With the adjustable thingy (technical term) open it would be normal to see air bubbles shooting out of the powerhead.

For saltwater, just get rid of the air tube all together - as pointed out earlier. If it's a MaxiJet, there should be some little clear plugs that came with it so you can plug the hole where the air tube went.

[Kurt_Nelson]

Originally Posted by atomicbiscut

thx for the help. 1 more question.

i read all u need is 1.5 lbs of live rock and a per gallon and a skimmer for proper filtration. wut if u have less than that,would u recomend a canister filter or are those actually BAD for the tank in some way? for a FOWLR btw.

I think the answer depends on just how much less than 1.5 lbs/gallon you're talking about. I think the majority here don't like canister filters due to the fact that if left unmaintained, they can be an issue in making nitrates due to the trapped waste in the filter. The key thing there is "if left unmaintained." If you're good at rinsing everything out every week (in salt water as to not mess with the bacteria) it might not be an issue. I think you'll find many different answers to your question - none are really wrong, it's just that different people have had different experiences.

[melosu58]

Another thing is that you`ll have to look at your rock or take a pic of it and post. Rocks vary on weight so if you have 30 lbs of light rock and have plenty of pourus surface area on the rock you might have enough. 1.5 lbs per gallon is a general guideline.

[atomicbiscut]

wow this info is amazing. in the past few weeks ive gone thru every post on this forum soaking up info like a 12 y/o on ritalin.

im still confused on sumps. u have a tube takn water out of my main tank into a smaller tank where i have live rock. then having another tube take the water out of the smaller tank back into the main tank? is it as easy as that or am i missing a huge part? and do i put the protien skimmer IN the smaller tank with live rock or have a seperate area for that?

[melosu58]

Most people keep their LR in the main tank but I guess it really dont matter. Yes If you want to keep the skimmer out of sight then yes have it in the sump. I have a refugium under my tank.

[Kurt_Nelson]

I think maybe you're reading posts with people talking about having live rock "rubble" in their sump. Depending on how you buy your live rock, you might end up with smaller, unusable chunks that just don't look good in your main tank. People throw those chunks into their sump to help add more area for the beneficial bacteria to colonize. The main amount of live rock, if not all of it, goes in the main tank. It may look ugly when you get it, but after a while it'll take on a whole life of its own.

You don't have to put everything in a sump if you don't have room. Just in case you haven't run across it yet, the other option you've got is to use "hang on back" or HOB equipment. There are many good skimmers out there that can just hang on the back of the tank. That goes for power or cannister filters also. Me personally... I've got a hang on back skimmer, as well as a hang on back canister filter that work just fine for me. I'd LOVE to have put all that stuff in a sump out of sight and my ears, but space constraint for me just didn't allow a sump at this point. If you have the room... go for it.

You're correct... there's TONS of stuff to learn, and relearn about this hobby. If you haven't found mention of it yet, a good starting point is "The New Marine Aquarium" by Michael Paletta. It's a great starting book that's a pretty easy read. After you're done with that one, the big kahuna of books is "The Conscientous Marine Aquarist" by Bob Fenner. It's a little more difficult of a read, solely because of the amount of information packed into.

Welcome, and remember to have fun!