Alyxx
Aquarium Advice Addict
I will be getting a new tank soon! It's already paid for but I haven't seen it yet. My boyfriend bought it for me but with the car in the shop I haven't been able to go get it, or even go stare at it! It's a hex tank and it is roughly 2 feet tall, but we don't know the gallonage yet and my boyfriend didn't have anything to take measurements with. He says it is maybe 15-18 inches in diameter. So I am guessing it is roughly 30 gallons. I have mostly been leaning towards freshwater for it, but since the footprint isn't huge and a lot of the fish I like prefer longer tanks to tall ones, I have been toying with the idea of making a reef finally. It will probably come down to the cost comparison between equipment and the exact size of the tank.
Would one of the Chinese led lights be able to handle lighting a 2' tall tank? I don't want to start off with any difficult corals, but I want my options open later on without having to do too much upgrading. I would be filtering with the live rock and power head method. That's another reason I am considering going reef. The tank has no top or hood, and I'm not sure I would be happy having a HOB without being able to hide it with a hood. I might try building a canopy, but I'm not so sure I could make a nice looking one for a hex tank. I just know I would mess up the angles...
I would be starting off with RO water from my LFS. I'm already pretty adept with mixing saltwater as I have had a fish only puffer tank for a couple years now. I use tap on that one though. And yes, I have seen firsthand the kinds of algae that can come from tap in saltwater. I just don't really mind it in that tank since it's just fish. And most of it has died off since my light died and I never replaced it. Nothing photosynthetic in there, so ambient room light works just fine.
As for livestock I will make up my mind when I know how big the tank really is. I'm thinking just corals and inverts with maybe one or two nano fish. And a yellow tang (JUST KIDDING! I would never do that to a fish!)
The biggest this tank could be is about 35 gallons, so I'm pretty sure a skimmer isn't necessary, right? I might add one down the road, though.
I would start off with mostly base rock and seed it with live. Fishless cycle of course.
So. Does this sound like a workable plan? Anything you might add or change?
Would one of the Chinese led lights be able to handle lighting a 2' tall tank? I don't want to start off with any difficult corals, but I want my options open later on without having to do too much upgrading. I would be filtering with the live rock and power head method. That's another reason I am considering going reef. The tank has no top or hood, and I'm not sure I would be happy having a HOB without being able to hide it with a hood. I might try building a canopy, but I'm not so sure I could make a nice looking one for a hex tank. I just know I would mess up the angles...
I would be starting off with RO water from my LFS. I'm already pretty adept with mixing saltwater as I have had a fish only puffer tank for a couple years now. I use tap on that one though. And yes, I have seen firsthand the kinds of algae that can come from tap in saltwater. I just don't really mind it in that tank since it's just fish. And most of it has died off since my light died and I never replaced it. Nothing photosynthetic in there, so ambient room light works just fine.
As for livestock I will make up my mind when I know how big the tank really is. I'm thinking just corals and inverts with maybe one or two nano fish. And a yellow tang (JUST KIDDING! I would never do that to a fish!)
The biggest this tank could be is about 35 gallons, so I'm pretty sure a skimmer isn't necessary, right? I might add one down the road, though.
I would start off with mostly base rock and seed it with live. Fishless cycle of course.
So. Does this sound like a workable plan? Anything you might add or change?