Starting to Research Reef Tanks

[tims]

Welcome to TRT!
as you can see we are all willing to help you out as much as possible
Here is a good article to get you going.it is Part of our FAQ . there is also a great article on sumps.
Doing the background research as you are doing is one of the greatest things you have done for your reef tank!.
as you go along , please feel free to ask any question. nothing is dumb. also if you use the search button in the general forum you may find a lot of questions already answered
We also have a farly large archive section that DOug1 has taken the long hours to keep up , this will have the best of the best questions and answers. one area you will find in the archive will be the Bi weekly discussions we have. you can find a lot of info in there!..

So far you have great advice going to you. If you look at the sponors we have here you will find some really good deals, most if not all the vendors offer TRT a discount!

If possible try to always look ahead. You had said you want to run a FOWLR for now and go to a reef later on. If you think areef is sooner than later , get the better lighting system now. you will save money down the line. Before you buy a tank and add water, think about a CLS ( closed loop systems) even if you dont use it now, having it drilled and plugged to access later will help avoid a headacke.

HTH
enjoy your research and feel free to buzz anytime!

[mg]

I agree with everything except the 900 gph return pump for the 75 gallon tank. I think having 10x turnover through your sump can be a little excessive depending on tank sizes. You don't really need much more than what your skimmer is pumping IMHO. Once you get past this you are just adding flow through the sump and in the display. A return pump is the least efficient way to get flow in your tank because of the head pressure created by pumping up hill. I would suggest looking into closed loop systems as mentioned or use pwoerheads in the display for added flow.

When sizing a return pump, remember to look at the flow at any given head height because it will be much less than the maximum flow the pump can do. The other limiting factor is the drains in a reef ready tank. A 1" drain with a durso standpipe will move about 600-800gph, in my opinion you want to be probably right around 500gph at head height on your return pump in a 65-75 gallon tank. You can also use both of the holes in the overflow as drains and move a little more water thet way if so inclined.

[Geoff]

Welcome to TRT!!!



G~

[skeety]

Originally Posted by scootingblenny

Alright, im gonna try to cover everything on a very basic level. Your going to have to make some desicsions and ask more specific questions. Its going to be really really long, but i have no life, Here we go:

........

ps. dont go solely on what i say, everybody has there own opinions on equipment and methods and it is best to hear everybody to make your own descision as to what is best for you (and knowing me i probably forgot to mention a lot of stuff anyway.)

GREAT post! Very good job Scootingblenny!!

[Mr. Fishy]

Thanks everyone. Does anyone know where to find a quality reef ready tank on the web. I found a few places but would like a recommendation. Thanks in advance.

[Geoff]

glass or plastic?

G~

[Mr. Fishy]

doesn't really matter

[xaoss23]

got pics of your FW setup(s)? I'd love to see what someones tank looks like with 15yrs experience!

[Mr. Fishy]

I don't have one set up. Just moved and gave all my fish away. That is why I am moving to saltwater.