My New Setup....

[tropicana]

Heres the start of my new hobby!

Tank - 55g (not drilled unfortunately)
Stand redone by myself and my fiance
Hood/Canopy I built and hung the lights


Sump - Unsure but I think its around 10-15g maybe its more but I am not sure + about 5 lbs of rubble LR and livesand in the sump

Aquaclear Powerhead 802

Hang-On 50-75g Skimmer

Lights (nothing special) - 4 x 20w flourescent 2x20w Actinic Blue

Whats in the tank so far?

31 lbs of Marshall Island LR + 20lb base rock to fill the 50lbs until i get another large peice of Marshall Island LR.

2 Blue Chromis (had 3 but the crab got him somehow lol) - Temporary fish to make sure fish will survive while still getting some color!

2 - emerald crabs
1 - sally lightfoot crab
5 - peppermint shrimp
15 - nasarius (going to get more soon)
1 mexican turbo
2 (not sure what they are) black snails
1 medium sea hare
4 hermits (1 died)
2 very small colonies of zoo's(free on a peice of rock from Wolf Reef)
1 medium size colony of red and pink mushrooms

I think thats the jist of it so far, the most expensive part was the LR so far, Marshall Island is around $10 lb so its not that cheap, although i did get a 14lb piece from ED at Wolf Reef for a STEAL!! THANKS ED! We love the large peice on the left! Now heres some pictures!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/dynamite69/DSC00009.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/dynamite69/DSC00012.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/dynamite69/DSC00019.jpg

[hobogato]

looks like a great start!

[Headless_donkey]

Looks good. Sweet mushrooms.

[tropicana]

Looks good. Sweet mushrooms.

I got them at the meeting on sunday from Ed at Wolf Reef! $29 not bad :)

[josephatmbimortgage]

Look good man, speaking about lights we spoke about. I got one coming in for you. Just PM for details.

-Joseph Le

[erikharrison]

Awesome! I woulda gotcha some crabs and snails from the coast, but we came back fruitless, as the water at the jetties was higher than normal so it was impossible to get to the areas where all of "the good stuff" was. Aren't you related to Jer? Tell him to call me already!!!!

[texasfootball21]

So far approximately how much money have you spent on the tank? This is kind of like the setup I want to start.

Thanks

[RayAllen]

Tank looks good so far, you do need more rock. I like trying to go 1 1/2lb per gallon. Your problem now is that you can only by cured rock which does cost more, unless you plan on curing the rock your self in a seperate container. You paid too much. $10 for Marshall LR is alot. I have Marshall Fiji LR that I bought from ED approx 32lbs or so for $65. A little more than $2 a lb.

[tropicana]

Tank looks good so far, you do need more rock. I like trying to go 1 1/2lb per gallon. Your problem now is that you can only by cured rock which does cost more, unless you plan on curing the rock your self in a seperate container. You paid too much. $10 for Marshall LR is alot. I have Marshall Fiji LR that I bought from ED approx 32lbs or so for $65. A little more than $2 a lb.

You bought Marshall Fiji huh? Heres one question for you, How did Marshall Island Rock come from Fiji as well? The names of the rocks are based on the Location they come from. Fiji Premium is from Fiji, Marshall Island is From the twenty-nine atolls and five isolated islands. Fiji consists of 322 islands. MI is in the North Pacific Ocean, and Fiji is in the South Pacific Ocean.

Good luck finding Marshall Islands Rock for less than $5/lb even on the net, then add shipping :) Even ask Ed how expensive TRUE MI Lr is. Im not trying to bash you but maybe you just dont understand the names of the rocks. I do understand I can only get Cured Rock, Most of the Rock in my tank is cured so far, Im doing a Fowl only tank so 50lbs is plenty. Im sitting around there so far, When i get more cured i will remove the other type in the middle. Plus to find 10lb peices of Marshall rock isnt as easy as it sounds, most of it is broken into 5-7lb peices. Like the 2 on the right in my tank. Ive researched Marshall rock for a while now, its so dense that even a smaller ammount of it can allow more bacteria so 1lb/gal is plenty for a fowl tank.

Ive only been in the SW tank hobby for a short time now, but doing research and listening to a numerous amount of trustworthy sources I have found that this is the setup Im going for, and havent had anything die due to anything but the darn crab or the turbo snails falling over lol. I think $10/lb isnt that bad honestly comparing to the look of it to fiji rock or base rock... Its just MY Opinion though.

[RayAllen]

I stand corrected I have 90% fiji premium and a couple of peices of Marshall (Bought at seperate times, thats where my confusion came in). Always learning ive been in the hobby since 2004 but never really used anything but premium fiji and tonga. My first tank was also a 55g. I have a couple of frags of Candy Cane coral LPS you are welcome to have if you want to give them a shot.

Ray Allen

[tropicana]

Im actually not going to really do any corals in this tank. The lighting isnt good enough but for Low to Moderate lighting items. Thats why i will have zoos and mushrooms mainly in this tank since theres going to be Lionfish, FrogFish, Anglerfish, Maroon Clownfish(a LARGE ONE) and a few other aggressives. That reminds me, Im looking for one. If anyone knows where to find a Large maroon clownfish, not a cinnamin or tomato, we are looking for a TRUE Maroon one. It has to be large so that the other fish wont eat em lol. I also work a lot of hours so I dont want to have to add other supplements to this tank until i move closer to work and dont have the extra 3 hour drive total each day. Once that happens then I will be better off with time to do more.

[urban79]

Dang,, slap slap,, hiss... hiss.. LOL I got two rocks for you,, straight from left and right LOL They have the maroon ones at the pet store by my house.. 16.99..

Plus why do you have 2 phone and still cant answer one of them..

talk to you later brother.. (if you answer)

[RayAllen]

I noticed Texas Tropical&Marine had a larger maroon clown a couple of months back around the 3" range you may want to check them out.

[erikharrison]

Be careful with your bioload! :) Also, lions grow at an explosive rate, and their sting hurts! They are awesome to watch eat though. Are you planning on upgrading because once a lion is full grown it will touch the front and the back glass at the same time. Of course you could trade it off at that point, I would just be wary of not giving your fish enough room to truly ensure a good life for it. True maroons are a dime a dozen, you should be able to find a 3" no problem. Look on Live Aquaria (http://www.liveaquaria.com) it's a great place to buy from online! :) Best wishes and good luck! Listen to Jeremy, he is very knowledgeable, do not doubt it!

[edawgm]

I will have to talk to the wife but I have been thinking about getting reed of my GSM Clown and getting a mated pair of True P. He is some where between 4-5". I will let you know what we decide to do.

http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x319/edawgm/aquarium1012.jpg
http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x319/edawgm/aquarium067.jpg

[txstateunivreefer]

also maroon clowns love to stir up your sand for you you will see what i am talking about once you get one

[edawgm]

also maroon clowns love to stir up your sand for you you will see what i am talking about once you get one

Too TRUE...lol I guess you can't give just a short reply back with the new software. So this is all just extra.