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12-23-2004, 12:26 AM
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#1
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Aquarium Advice Activist
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Washington, DC
Posts: 142
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Need Help picking equipment
I went into my lfs today and was given some advice that i dont know is really true. I currently have a freshwater setup: 40gal tank, 150w heater, 60gal whisper filter. i really want to change to saltwater but i don't know the proper equipment needed. I was told to get a magnum 350 canister filter, crushed coral for the substrate, a hydrometer, a sea clone 100 protein skimmer, and some instant ocean salt. I would really like to know if all this is true and if i need it all of need different brands.
I would also like some suggestions for compatible fish and also how many fish i can put into this take. I was thinking about some clowns, damsels, and dottybacks. I would like to have about 6-8 fish if that is possible and i plan to get some invertabre in the future. What r ur opinions of live rock, it seems very expensive so i may not be able to afford it. All help is appreciated. TIA.
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12-23-2004, 12:48 AM
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#2
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Aquarium Advice Freak
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: USA
Posts: 320
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Basically that is equipment that you'll need give or take.
I would pass on the CC substrate as they can become nitrate producers if not cleaned often. go with LS
Add a power head or two
The sea clone skimmer isnt the best out there, go with a Remora
6-8 fish maybe pushing it.
the general rule is 1'' per 5 gallons so that puts you at 8'' of full grown fish
I highly recommend LR and would wait until I had the $ to get it before I started.
it will create a natural filtration that is very important to the stabilty of your tank, 50 Lbs would be good
Get test kits
Pick up this book The Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Robert M. fenner a must read!
spend a lot of time researching on this site.
I am sure others will give their advice
Good Luck
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72Gallon Bow Tank | LS/80lbs LR.com Keys LR 20Lbs Base Rock | fluval404 | Remora Skimmer | Red Sea Pro Wave Maker | 4 Maxi Jets 2/1200 2/900 PH | PinPoint PH Monitor | ARTICA 1/10 HP Chiller
Lighting: 48'' Coralife HQI aqualight pro | 2 150 watt MH | 2 96 watt true actinic fluorescents | 3 1 watt blue-moon-glow LEDs
Fish&Inverts: 3-BlueGreen Chromis | Shrimp Goby | Purple Firefish | 6 Line-Wrasse | LawnMower Blenny | Royal Gramma | Coral Beauty | Maxima Clam | 16 Assort. -Snails | LR Hitchers: Crabs, Urchins, Brittle Stars, Feather Dusters, and more
Corals: Assorted Mushrooms | Green Button Polyps | Toadstool Leather | Pulsing Xenia | Clove Polyps | Star Polyps | FrogSpawn | Branching Hammer | Candy Cane | Zoos | Ricordea | Open Brain | Bubble |
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24Gallon JBJ Nano Cube | LR 25lbs Marshall Creek/Tonga/Fiji | 2 Flase Percula Clowns | Shrooms | Xenia | Green Button Polyps | Snails | Hermits
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12-23-2004, 01:25 AM
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#3
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Aquarium Advice Activist
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Washington, DC
Posts: 142
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Thanks. This is what i will be purchasing. I have about 30lbs of regular rock. I am going to buy about 15lb of live rock so that it will seed the base rock. Do i need a special light for the LR? I currently have a coralife 50/50 light. Also what about invertbrates i would like some shrimp and some crabs. Is that a good idea?
1. Skimmer (Sea Clone or Remora)
2. Two Power Heads (Maxi Jet)
3. Hydrometer
4. Salt
5. Test Kit
6. Substrate (crushed coral about 2.5-3")
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12-23-2004, 08:59 AM
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#4
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Guest
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 143gadgets
Do i need a special light for the LR? I currently have a coralife 50/50 light. Also what about invertbrates i would like some shrimp and some crabs. Is that a good idea?
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Rock does not require any special lighting in terms of beneficial biofiltration. The coralline covered roack will need some though but 1-2w/ gal can often be sufficient depending on tank depth. What wattage is the Coralife/# of bulbs?
Mobile invertebrates would be fine. The main considerations before you buy any livestock is to research their natural food sources and prey habits first. Many will not co-exists with corals and other sessile inverts. Certain fish will eat both sessile and mobile inverts.
My 2¢
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1. Skimmer (Sea Clone or Remora) (No Seaclone.. Remora pro w/mag 350)
2. Two Power Heads (Maxi Jet) (1200's would be best)
3. Hydrometer (refractometers are much more accurate)
4. Salt
5. Test Kit
6. Substrate (crushed coral about 2.5-3") (I would definately opt for sand over CC)
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Cheers
Steve
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12-23-2004, 10:18 AM
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#5
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Aquarium Advice Addict
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Savage, MN
Posts: 7,889
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All great advice. I would like to put in my plug for using LS instead of CC for your substrate. Main reason...less work. CC has been used as a subsrate for years and does a fine job. The down side is that detritus tends to get caught in it. This causes your nitrates to climb. The solution is to frequently vacuum it to remove the detritus. LS does not have all of the nooks and crannies for this to get stuck in and does not need to be vacuumed.
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Have a great day! Brian
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12-23-2004, 12:27 PM
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#6
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Aquarium Advice Activist
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Washington, DC
Posts: 142
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Thanks guys but I think i may be confused. I want actual white sand on the bottom. So i guess when i say crushed coral i am mistaken.
I am goin to use 75% regular sand and about 25% LS. the remora is about 50 bucks more than the sea clone. is it that much better? why?
I have a power filter that is rated at 330GPH i was goin to keep it running. is that ok? Once the LR and Base rock has seeded do i really need that mag 350?
Would 6 fish be ok in this tank? I want really active fish!
4 clownfish
2 angels or 2 royal grammas
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12-23-2004, 12:35 PM
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#7
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Aquarium Advice Addict
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Lompoc, Ca
Posts: 1,313
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stay away from crushed coral...
I do tank service for a local shop and every one of the tanks with the CC has high nitrates... Gotta vaccum once a week and alot at that !
Sand THE only way to go !
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12-23-2004, 08:21 PM
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#8
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Guest
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 143gadgets
I am goin to use 75% regular sand and about 25% LS. the remora is about 50 bucks more than the sea clone. is it that much better? why?
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The Seaclone will require alot of tweeking and possibley moding to get any decent performance out of it and even then it's iffy at best. The Remora pro w/MAG 350 is basically set it and forget it.
Quote:
I have a power filter that is rated at 330GPH i was goin to keep it running. is that ok? Once the LR and Base rock has seeded do i really need that mag 350?
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You don't need the canister at all really. Add the sand, rock and water; let the tank cycle properly and you will have a sustainable ecosystem if maintained properly and animals are added to deal with larger waste concerns. If you already own the canister and it's not in use, it can still be utilized for extra water flow or a holding compartment for carbon or resins products. Mechanical filtration is not needed in a marine tank provided there is sufficient LR and animals to assist in the waste process.
Quote:
Would 6 fish be ok in this tank? I want really active fish!
4 clownfish
2 angels or 2 royal grammas
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6 fish may end up being okay but not that list. Only one angel in such a small tank, 2 would require a 75-90 gal or larger. Same goes with clowns. You shouldn't mix species or really keep more than a mated pair unless a much larger tank, preferabley over 150 gal or larger. The gramma's can be kept together and should be introduced at the same time but only in a tank with plenty of LR.
Cheers
Steve
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12-23-2004, 09:33 PM
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#9
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Aquarium Advice Activist
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Washington, DC
Posts: 142
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Thanks guys for all ur help. I bought a sea clone 150, two maxi-jet 1200s, a hydrometer, marine test kit, enough LS to make about 1.5" think sand bed. I did not buy the live rock yet because the guy at the LFS told me that it would be too much of a hassle. He said that it was not worth it and to buy fake decor. I plan on putting clowns in this tank. What r u guys opinions, i know that a lot of u support LR, but why? Do i need special lighting for it, because i was told that i do need certain lights or it will die. PLease help
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12-23-2004, 09:50 PM
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#10
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Aquarium Advice FINatic
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Rocky Mount VA
Posts: 943
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The question about liverock depends on your intentions with the tank. Are you going FO or FOWLR. The LR will act as a filtration system to the tank, a form of food for tank inhabitants, as well as adding real decor and lots of amusement with the life it holds. Look at the liverocks.com section of the sponsor forums. The live rock is great and not a hassle once you see the benefits. This of course is just my opinion.
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28gal bowfront
40lbs livesand(bag from LFS), 30lbs live rock( LR.com)
2 O. Clowns
1 peppermint shrimp, 5 red leg hermit crabs,
4 mexican turbo snails, 15 nassarius snails
ricordea mushroom, candy cane coral,
super color polyps, hairy mushrooms
bubble coral, hawiian feather duster
coralife lunar 2x65, HOT magnum canister
10 Gal refugium(chaeto) & seaclone skimmer
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12-23-2004, 10:10 PM
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#11
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Aquarium Advice Activist
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Washington, DC
Posts: 142
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RMPD109
The question about liverock depends on your intentions with the tank. Are you going FO or FOWLR. The LR will act as a filtration system to the tank, a form of food for tank inhabitants, as well as adding real decor and lots of amusement with the life it holds. Look at the liverocks.com section of the sponsor forums. The live rock is great and not a hassle once you see the benefits. This of course is just my opinion.
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Thanks but i still need to know if i need special lighting and if so what kind?
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12-23-2004, 10:45 PM
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#12
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Aquarium Advice Activist
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Washington, DC
Posts: 142
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Also how deep of a sand bed should i have i was told if i do 3-4" would not be good. is this a good skimmer CPR BakPak2? i was thinking about exchanging my sea clone 150 for this.
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12-24-2004, 10:08 PM
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#13
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Aquarium Advice Freak
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Davis, CA
Posts: 429
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The BakPak is a decent skimmer. Better than the SeaClone any way to look at it. 3-4in of sand is a good amount if you don't mind the look. If you get some LR, the sand bed gets seeded with a lot of nice beneficial critters and works. Some people run 4-6in sand beds (a DSB) for the nitrate reducing qualities. I think it looks ugly, and thats a good use of a refugium  . I run about 2in avg. (no fuge). With enough LR, I still maintain a <5 nitrate figure with very infrequent water changes. My bioload is light right now though.
What kind of Coralife light is that? How many bulbs, and how many watts a bulb? For LR filtration, you do not need any light over the tank. If you're growing coraline algae (the purple hard stuff, looks nice), 1-2watts/gallon of light will be enough.
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55g reef, 2x250W 10k MH + 2x96W PC actninc, 10g sump, AquaC Urchin skimmer, 65lbs LR
xenia, mushrooms, wels. open brain, fungia radiata (orange), green eyed zoos
flame angel, mated pair of false perc, 6-line, firefish
20gH electric yellow cichlid
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12-25-2004, 12:18 AM
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#14
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Aquarium Advice Newbie
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: La Jolla, CA
Posts: 7
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IMO a 3-4" bed is a little bit much unless you have need for a bed that thick. Should be fine with 2in. the CPR bakpak2 is definitely better than the seaclone. With skimmers, what you pay is what you get. The more money, the better quality and easier to use I think. Haven't used that many, but listening to other people, thats how it goes. At the rate you're going, probably a bakpak or remora would be best for you, can handle heavier bioloads (more fish/inverts) and the possibility of other things.
for LR, you don't need special lighting for it to filter effectively. But, coraline algae (the colored pretty stuff) that spreads around your tank will only grow with enough, light. Other than that though, no special lighting needed for FOWLR or FO tanks. HTH
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