alright guys, im digging this old thing up because ive been doing saltwater for 2 months now and ive got the hang of things, as far as fowlr goes and im getting into corals now as well, i still want a shark tank too, ive been looking into it, and ive fund that the 155g bow front (72"x24"25" or the reef ready 180gal (72"x24"x25") would be best, what do you guys think..?
Shark Species I would Recommend:
Coral Cat Shark - Max Size 2ft - Probably the easiest to care for)
Hallstrom's Bamboo Shark - Max Size 2ft (Hard to find but worth it. Extremely Small at Birth 5-6 inches)
Tank Size:
MINIMUM but I would Recommend bigger
5ft x 3ft x 2ft = 225 Gallons
Tank Interior
250 Live Sand
60-70 lbs of live rock. Only in the direct middle of the tank. Stacked do not block swimming alleys. You can go without the rock if you want but your tank will look plane. Do not get the urge to add more.
Filtration:
300 Gallon Coral Vue Cone Skimmer. I used one and they are very good.
T5 or Led lights are fine. The LED look better but do not overkill with lighting you wont need it. Just enough to fill the tank with a nice clean glow and shimmer.
Phosphate Reactor
Carbon Reactor
Uv Sterilizer - Debatable but I love mine. It keeps algae and polishes the water.
Large dense Micron filter sock - (You can use filter pads) I do not use filter socks but wish I had designed my customer sump to do so. The socks catch everything. They are pain to clean and will need to be cleaned at least twice a week. But your water will stay much cleaner with them.
Seachem Matrix - (You do not have to use media some people do not but if you do I would go with this. I added this to my tank after removing bio balls (Do not use Bio Balls with Sharks) It lowered my nitrates between 20-40 almost immediately and they have stayed at that level since.
Pumps- You will need something will turn the water over at least 8 times per hour. I would recommend 10-12 if you can get there. Don't forget to account for the head space (distance of pipe the water travels from the pump to the tank) when calculating gph in your tank.
Maintenance:
Be prepared to do water changes. I have gone the de-nitrator rout and have since removed it. It smells like hell and can not compete with sharks. I currently change 160 gallons per week in a 1,000 tank just to keep the nitrates at 40. I have 2,000 gallons worth of skimming power on my tank and all of my filtration is high end and over kill. I would change 50 gallons per week once the shark hits 10-12 inches per week. Depending on what else you stock with it will effect this. But that will give you and average monthly water change of 220 gallons per month on a weekly basis and will not shock the shark or hurt anything.
Tank Mates:
With a tank that size you will be limited but below is a list of things you can add and the shark will not mess with them at all and more importantly they will not mess with the shark. Remember there are things that will state otherwise on the internet but with a tank size of 225 gallons you will not want to risk stressing the shark because there will not be enough room for him to go far away so you will need to be more cautious. I have both the Good and the Bad below.
Bad
Trigger Fish (Blue Jaw is the only exception I would risk, but still a risk)
Angels
Lion Fish (If you have a huge tank this fine but not in a 225-250)
Aggressive eels. (Feeding can be dangerouse. Only eel I would use is a zebra eel. You will have no problem with them.)
Most corals (Just because the sharks knock them over and the water quality wont be strong enough to support them along with the lighting.)
Urchins (To Sharp)
Good
Tangs
Wrasse
Grouper
Fox Face
Rabbit Fish
Clown Fish
Damsels
Chromis
Hermits
Snails
Starfish
Batfish
There other others but this is a basic guide. You may lose a snail or two but not enough to worry about it. The clown fish and other small will be fine but just make sure that you introduce them first before the shark goes in. Only because they are small. Sharks 90% of the time will not mess with them.
I am sure I missed a few things but if anyone wants to add anything go right ahead.