help out a noob!!

[alem1978]

Hi, I'm about to setup my first saltwater aquarium, 55 gallon FOWLR, 60 lbs. fiji rock about 40 lbs. live sand. I'm picking it all up Thursday. I've always wanted a lionfish so It'll house him and a couple others( any suggestions??))

Do I need a sump or refugium?? I was thinking of using one of my other tanks, a 40 gal. breeder as a refugium for some seahorses and inverts.
Do I need a sump in this case??
I was gonna use a 29 gal. sump too (total would be about 125?gal.) and then hopefully I'd have a system large enough to warrant using my Rio+ 2500. It pumps 700+ gph!!!
If not I may just finally sell it or something.

Any advice or info is very appreciated!!!!!

 

[melosu58]

Welcome to AA. Sumps and Refuges are added water volume which is good. I would not keep seahorses in them though. I`m thinking the 40 gallon as a sump and you should be OK.

 

[lando]

Welcome to AquariumAdvice.com!!!
I agree with Mel...the 40gal will be a great sump if it will fit where you need it. Sumps or fuges are not a must, but are very benefical. As mentioned, they add valuble water volume (more water= a more stable tank) and they a nice place to add unsightly equipment like heaters and skimmers. If you are planning on a FOWLR and not a reef, a sump should do just fine. If you have intensions of a reef down the road, then a fuge would be a great addition. I also agree on the seahorses...they should be in a species-only tank with carefully monitored water parameters. Just not a great choice for a sump or fuge. Your LR and LS sound like a good start, however, the addition of about 10-15lbs of LS and 25-50lbs of LR would be a good goal to shoot for.

 

[alem1978]

to bad about the seahorses, I just I'll have to keep waiting. So now I have two ideas, what if I did the whole thing in the 40 gal.? It seems as though I might not be getting enough sand and/or rock. I could setup the 40 for now and add the 55 l8r. And would the tanks benefit from being conected, even if not as a sump, but just for fish w/ diffent temperment??

 

[roka64]

WELCOME TO AA!!

Please do not cycle your tank with live animals.

I would go for the 55 right off the bat. You can save some money by adding some LR and the rest can be base or lace rock. You can also skip the "live" sand and by the dry stuff to save more money. Your cycle should take around 6 weeks so that will give you time to save some money for more rock. For a bare minimum, I would add the sand and some base or lace rock and buy cured LR from your LFS for the end of the cycle. One note on the lionfish, they will eat anything they can get into their mouths, so you fish selection will be limited along with your clean up crew.

 

[alem1978]

Let me clarify, I'm buying the live sand and rock for someone who is upgrading to 125 gal. The rock and sand are coming already cycled with some water and everything.. All I have to do is add more water and I should be good.

 

[lando]

If you are using established biomedia then there is a good chance you will not experience much of a cycle. depending on how the media is handled in the interim. There is a chance you will see a "mini-cycle" with your new tank. Just keep testing water parameters for a week or so. If you plan on an aggressive tank you should think about adding more LR as a goal. for a 55gal tank a total of 90-110lbs would be great.