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Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
TLTGF said:
So two 1400's going at the same time one on each side of the tank?
Planning a reef tank ?'s
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So two 1400's going at the same time one on each side of the tank?
OP
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Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
Sniperhank said:
Good idea about using one for mixing the saltwater!
Sniperhank
Giant Clam Addict
Basically, yes.
Ibrahim
Aquarium Advice Addict
Bearchumjs said:
The skimmer is good but the canister filter is terrible. I own one and the pump was too weak to even pull water down and shoot it back up
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Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
Ibrahim said:
Thank you. I'm leaning towards not having that filter now. It sounded like a good idea but the more I read and the more I hear from you guys, I don't really think its necessary.
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Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
Is one heater fine or is 2 heaters better? I was looking at a 300W heater that's made for tanks up to 90 gallons.
Ibrahim
Aquarium Advice Addict
Bearchumjs said:
The CFS700 is a good filter.
OP
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Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
Ibrahim said:
Awesome! I'll go google it!
Can I also use lava rock in a saltwater aquarium? I'll have live rock of course too.
Sniperhank
Giant Clam Addict
Any rock you put in will become live. It is the bacteria that makes it live. I don't see why you couldn't use lava rock. I'd read up on it first to make sure it won't put anything in your system or cause odd pH issues before doing it.
As for heaters, you should only need one. Keep in mind your total water volume. If you have a sump and/or a fuge that is more water. So a heater that wont do more than 55 gallons wouldn't be able to do a 55 display, 36 sump, and 20 fuge.
As for heaters, you should only need one. Keep in mind your total water volume. If you have a sump and/or a fuge that is more water. So a heater that wont do more than 55 gallons wouldn't be able to do a 55 display, 36 sump, and 20 fuge.
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Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
Sniperhank said:
Thank you. I hadn't thought about the extra water in the "behind the scenes" equipment.
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Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
I'll be buying my first item for my tank this week! Petco has the aquarium stand, canopy and tank that I want. And surprise! The canopy is on sale for $37! It's regular $149. So I'm definitely getting that!
Canopys look nice but just keep in mind if you get lighting that creates a lot of heat you might have issues with the water heating up. just because the canopy will hold the heat in and less ventilation. Just somethinng to think about
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Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
jwalsh said:
Good point. I'm planning on t-5's. Do they creat alot of extra heat? I'll just plan on possibly needing to get a fan.
mr_X
Aquarium Advice Addict
They do generate some heat, but most canopy's have open backs or open tops. I think you'll be ok.
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Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
Ok... So I have read and read and watched YouTube videos and it seems like there are so many different opinions. Obviously there are alot of ways to keep a saltwater tank. So please tell me if I set up this way if it would work.
55 gallon aquarium.
2 power heads, 1400 gph each
1 protein skimmer and refugium combo system with a light for the refugium.
T-5 lighting that has 4 54W high output bulbs and 4 moonlight LED's
Live rock. How many pounds of rock do I need? If I use un-live rock it will turn live during cycling right?
A mixture of live sand and un-live sand. Enough for a sand bed of 1-2 inches deep.
A heater
A saltwater master test kit, also a test for phosphates, calcium and I think there was something else maybe?
Fish
Coral
Will I have to add calcium to my aquarium via a calcium drip? I saw that on YouTube... I was wondering if I don't have the GAC reactor then I don't need the calcium drip? I read carbon takes out stuff that corals need and also creates phosphates. Am I right?
So basically, the refugium grows stuff that's good for the aquarium and helps maintain pH swings at night, the skimmer takes out stuff that's harmful, the live rock, sand, and coral filters the water biologically? So do I even need a filter??
I don't know if I want to do a sump right away...
Someone please tell me if I am getting this figured out.
55 gallon aquarium.
2 power heads, 1400 gph each
1 protein skimmer and refugium combo system with a light for the refugium.
T-5 lighting that has 4 54W high output bulbs and 4 moonlight LED's
Live rock. How many pounds of rock do I need? If I use un-live rock it will turn live during cycling right?
A mixture of live sand and un-live sand. Enough for a sand bed of 1-2 inches deep.
A heater
A saltwater master test kit, also a test for phosphates, calcium and I think there was something else maybe?
Fish
Coral
Will I have to add calcium to my aquarium via a calcium drip? I saw that on YouTube... I was wondering if I don't have the GAC reactor then I don't need the calcium drip? I read carbon takes out stuff that corals need and also creates phosphates. Am I right?
So basically, the refugium grows stuff that's good for the aquarium and helps maintain pH swings at night, the skimmer takes out stuff that's harmful, the live rock, sand, and coral filters the water biologically? So do I even need a filter??
I don't know if I want to do a sump right away...
Someone please tell me if I am getting this figured out.
Sniperhank
Giant Clam Addict
Nice list.
What kind of corals are you looking to have? Could be a good lighting choice, but might not be able to keep some sps or clams.
You need 1-1.5 lbs of LR per gallon.
Just get sand, live sand is a rip off. Your sand and rock become live through your cycle. Nice choice on depth though imo. I just laid my sandbed down in my 55 gal. I went to home depot and got some lighting eggcrate, cut it to the size of my tank and laid it on the bottom. If you get anything that digs in the sand this will prevent the displacement of sand from shifting your rocks, causing them to fall and a long list of bad things.
Start with the master test kit. API's tests are pretty much the standard. Test strips are garbage, only go liquid. Later on you can get your phosphate, calcium, alkalinity, magnesium...whatever else you need. No reason to spend the money now when you will need ~a month to cycle and you'll only be testing ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate during that time.
You shouldn't need to add calcium. I use reef crystals, any salt mix with calcium will do you good. People that add calcium are ones that have a large amount of coral in their tank that strips large amounts out at one time. I have 10 corals in my 36 gal and have no need to add calcium.
You tech do not need a filter. I like having one on my tank to help keep my water pristine and it adds some extra surface agitation. Can't go wrong with extra water movement.
You won't need to do a sump right away. Just start with the basics, take it slow, and if you need help we'll give what we can.
What kind of corals are you looking to have? Could be a good lighting choice, but might not be able to keep some sps or clams.
You need 1-1.5 lbs of LR per gallon.
Just get sand, live sand is a rip off. Your sand and rock become live through your cycle. Nice choice on depth though imo. I just laid my sandbed down in my 55 gal. I went to home depot and got some lighting eggcrate, cut it to the size of my tank and laid it on the bottom. If you get anything that digs in the sand this will prevent the displacement of sand from shifting your rocks, causing them to fall and a long list of bad things.
Start with the master test kit. API's tests are pretty much the standard. Test strips are garbage, only go liquid. Later on you can get your phosphate, calcium, alkalinity, magnesium...whatever else you need. No reason to spend the money now when you will need ~a month to cycle and you'll only be testing ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate during that time.
You shouldn't need to add calcium. I use reef crystals, any salt mix with calcium will do you good. People that add calcium are ones that have a large amount of coral in their tank that strips large amounts out at one time. I have 10 corals in my 36 gal and have no need to add calcium.
You tech do not need a filter. I like having one on my tank to help keep my water pristine and it adds some extra surface agitation. Can't go wrong with extra water movement.
You won't need to do a sump right away. Just start with the basics, take it slow, and if you need help we'll give what we can.
I agree you don't need to add a sump right away if you don't want to. I added mine after a few months of getting down the basics. It all worked out well and tank is doing great. I only have a 29 gal with a 12.5 gal sump but let me tell you that extra volume helps a ton with parameter fluxuation. But my current tank is considerably smaller than yours even with my sump so you should be fine with out one until you get the basics down. Also about the lighting 4 t5s will probably not be enough light for doing some sps and clams like sniperhawk said. Look into what type of coral you want to have eventually and buy the light that will do best for that. I personally didn't want to limit myself as far as coral so I just went for the best right away. If cash is an issue you don't need to buy your light right away. I waited 5.5 months before I got mine. Before that I just had a hood with 1 t8 and it did fine. Then I added corals after I saved up enough for my light
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Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
Thank you for the info about the egg crate. I was wondering if it was a good idea to just set the rock on the glass or not. And I won't get live sand if its really a waste of money.
Thank you for the info on testing kits.
As for corals, I eventually want to get green star polyps, zoanthids, mushrooms, maybe some button polyps.... Some branch corals. And I took a picture of a coral at petco of this one coral I don't know what it is. I have to do alot more research on different types of corals because I know I'll want more at some point.
Thanks again for all your help! I think I'm at the point where I can start buying equipment.
Do y'all know what this is?
Thank you for the info on testing kits.
As for corals, I eventually want to get green star polyps, zoanthids, mushrooms, maybe some button polyps.... Some branch corals. And I took a picture of a coral at petco of this one coral I don't know what it is. I have to do alot more research on different types of corals because I know I'll want more at some point.
Thanks again for all your help! I think I'm at the point where I can start buying equipment.
Do y'all know what this is?
OP
OP
Bearchumjs
Aquarium Advice Addict
Sniperhank said:
What kind of filter do you have? Can you take a picture of it?
TLTGF
Aquarium Advice Addict
Bearchumjs said:Thank you for the info about the egg crate. I was wondering if it was a good idea to just set the rock on the glass or not. And I won't get live sand if its really a waste of money.
Thank you for the info on testing kits.
As for corals, I eventually want to get green star polyps, zoanthids, mushrooms, maybe some button polyps.... Some branch corals. And I took a picture of a coral at petco of this one coral I don't know what it is. I have to do alot more research on different types of corals because I know I'll want more at some point.
Thanks again for all your help! I think I'm at the point where I can start buying equipment.
Do y'all know what this is?
It's a brain coral.
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_coral
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