Starting a saltwater 30gallon

[BettaMan01]

Hey
I have two freshwater tanks and I'm thinking about trying my hand at a saltwater 30 gallon. I'd like to grow my own coral and such to start the thing off, then slowly one by one add in some fish. I would like to know if I can order the coral online safely, how to raise them, and them eventually I'll ask for some fish choosing help once I have the tank cycled and ready to go. Any advice you can post below will help

 

[10gal_nano]

Hi! Welcome to the salty side!

What lights are you planning first of all. Also are you going to use all live rock or both?

 

[BettaMan01]

Is there special lights I'll need? The tank as of now has white LED lights, but I have some spare blacklights around as well.
And I was planning on adding gravel at the bottom, then maybe a lava rock or two here and there for added decoration

 

[10gal_nano]

For corals yes. And you would need live sand and rock. It will have the bacteria in it. The gravel wouldn't really work I don't think.

 

[10gal_nano]

This is my tank. The sand and live rock came from a fish store.

 

[BettaMan01]

Ah ok, I'll start looking for that, what lights would be reccomended? I have those strip LED hoodlights so preferably something comparable

 

[BettaMan01]

That's pretty cool, definitely want to do something like that

 

[BettaMan01]

I also have a Tetra Whisper filter and a submersible heater but that's about it atm

 

[10gal_nano]

Prob a par38 bulb. I'm not sure witch. We will have to wait for someone else to chime in. How many gallons is the tetra whisper filter for?

 

[BettaMan01]

It says.. 20-40

 

[10gal_nano]

Should be good then.

 

[BettaMan01]

I'm looking for it to be a very colorful tank as well if possible

 

[10gal_nano]

Ok. If you want nice coral. You need nice lights. It will take time though

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

Is it a standard 29 gal? Your best bet for lighting is probably going to be a couple of the Tao panels off eBay or amazon. Or give us your budget for lights ( most expensive part of start up usually) and we can give you some options

 

[BettaMan01]

I have about.. $200 I'm willing to spend right now. I'll have more in a few months or so when I want to add fish and such.

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

You could get 2 of the Tao panels for a little over that $200, and they will allow you to keep any photosynthetic animal you would like

 

[BettaMan01]

Are there any cheaper alternatives?

 

[10gal_nano]

But then he still needs everything else too. Would one Tao panel be ok?

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

Honestly $200 is cheap for led systems that are as strong as these. Some similar systems with a few more bells and whistles can be $1000

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

But then he still needs everything else too. Would one Tao panel be ok?

One Tao will cover 24"x24" so you could use one, but it will leave you with a lot of darker areas off to the sides where you will most likely not be able to grow any corals