Need help planing a new tank

scottie-rox · 03-02-2004, 09:29 PM

I have a 30 high currently in use for my african cichlids. I want to upgrade them to a 55, and use this tank for reef. I am interested in lots of live rock, anenome's, clown fish, and some coral. I need to know what I need to get started in expensively, but not bottom of the line.
#1 what filter type do I need?
#2 what type of lighting?
#3 do I need a refuse?

Any other tips on anything related would be great.

Geoff · 03-02-2004, 10:58 PM

the words inexpensive and anemone should not be used in the same sentence.

anemones require very intense lighting, which is not cheap. with a 30 you could get away with a 175w MH, but a 250w MH would be better. on a tank of that size heat will be an issue unless the tank is completely uncovered. you would need a pendant lighting system.

you would prolly need a sump, not necessarily a refuge. the sump will help with the cooling and with equipment management. as for filters the only filter you would need is a big skimmer and the LR in the tank. give the tank plenty of flow and the LR will do the brunt of the filtration.

G~

scottie-rox · 03-03-2004, 12:58 AM

What about 150 watt high presure sodium? What is LR, live rock? Why do anenomes need so much light they aren't photosynthetic? What size sump for a 30 gallon, and what goes in it?

Doug1 · 03-03-2004, 08:11 AM

Hi Pressure sodium lights are heavy in the wrong photoactive wavelengths, same as the cheap 500 watt Halogen work lights.
Anemones aren't photosynthic??? Time to hit the books and research, patience and planning is the key to success

salt creepette · 03-03-2004, 08:59 AM

before you do anything, go to half.com and find yourself a copy of Robert Fenner's book "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist" You will learn a ton of info about setting up a system and loads more info about the critters you might want to stock your system with!

Please please please dont underestimate the importance and helpfulness that flipping through and reading a 'basic' (but very thorough) book like this!

Geoff · 03-03-2004, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by scottie-rox
What about 150 watt high presure sodium? What is LR, live rock? Why do anenomes need so much light they aren't photosynthetic? What size sump for a 30 gallon, and what goes in it?

LR-Live Rock, you are correct.

most of the anemoneas that we want to keep are photosynthetic. those that are not need to get food from somewhere. i give you a guess where, they like to swim around in the tank and have pretty colours.

a sump can be anything, from a left over aquarium lying around to a big ol' rubbermaid bucket. the sump is a place for putting the skimmer, heater, and return pump. it keeps a lot of the equipment out of the display.

G~

scottie-rox · 03-03-2004, 11:03 AM

F.Y.I., according to my Marine Biology profesor, its not the anenomes that are photosynthetic, its the simbiotic phyto-plankton that live within them.

salt creepette · 03-03-2004, 12:00 PM

alright now! no hair splitting or semantics unless you want to head on over to the think tank!

(just playin' with ya!)

scottie-rox · 03-03-2004, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by salt creepette
alright now! no hair splitting or semantics unless you want to head on over to the think tank! (just playin' with ya!)

LOL

I guess that did come off a bit snoty, I just wanted to let you guys know, because it was somting I was just studying.

Thanks for the info I will be planning this tank for a while before I invest. I wont buy a 55 till I move in June, it seems like a pain to set it up only for a few months. I will be here though continuing to pic your collective brains on the best setup before I buy anything. So far I am planning 1 10 gal sump that can fit under my stand. Can I convert it into a trickle filter?
I think 250 MH might be a bit of an over kill, maybe 150. That is 15 bucks a month in electric allready.

Geoff · 03-03-2004, 09:58 PM

you also may want to think about a different sized tank. i am not talking larger or smaller here, just a different shape. i had a 55g tank for ten years. hated every minute of it. it is just not a good shape for SW. it is not bad for FW where the rockwork does not need to be as complex. i would go with something deeper. 12" is just a really bad width. if you can find something closer to 18" i think you will be much happier. as a first tank i would suggest something more cubed shape. they make great reefs.

my .02,

G~

btang · 03-03-2004, 10:21 PM

Read, read and then read. So much info on this forum and others. Great books out there. Amazon has a ton (as well as other places). Read up on the different approaches. (there are a few). They all have pro's and con's. Check out some of your local stores to see what they are recommending. You can quickly see what equipment is for in the LFS (local Fish Store). I am in the process of setting up a 105 gallon tank. I decided to go with the system from Ecosystem, you might want to check them out. Good luck. This forum is a great place for info.

salt creepette · 03-04-2004, 05:29 PM

hey geoff, he was going to move the cichlids to the 55 and use the 30g for the reef

although the 30 is probably still only 12" front to back, so your point still stands.....

WilyGuy · 03-04-2004, 08:46 PM

Hmmm, I think you should get the 55 NOW! Move the Chicklets over there (hoping they will die when you move so you can move the reef over to the "proper" tank. (of the two)

Seriously, you may decide you want to go in a different direction. Get some life rock and some substrate (sand or aragonite crushed coral) and get some water in it. That way you can get a system started. Get through some of the cycle now. Then decide what you want to do. If you are getting Anemone's so that the clownfish will be "happy" bear in mind that they have been known to live in certain corals in a tank environment.

Just my $0.02, probably worth less in inflationary times.

WG

Geoff · 03-04-2004, 09:48 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by salt creepette
hey geoff, he was going to move the cichlids to the 55 and use the 30g for the reef

although the 30 is probably still only 12" front to back, so your point still stands.....

thanks for correcting me.

i get ahead of myself with a lot of these threads sometimes.

the 30 is not as long so it is a little easier to aquascape, but still not a lot of fun.

G~

scottie-rox · 03-08-2004, 11:19 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Geoff
thanks for correcting me.

i get ahead of myself with a lot of these threads sometimes.

the 30 is not as long so it is a little easier to aquascape, but still not a lot of fun.

G~

Yea in the tank at my school a clown fish has adopted a soft coral.