WHOA!!! I AM HOOKED! Need Advice!

[txmaverickmh]

Hello MAAST members,

I just got bitten severely by the SW aquarium bug, and it is taking over my life! I look forward to joining your community to gain many friends and priceless knowledge. haha, j/k

I recently closed my storage facility and brought my 40G Oceanic Cube (24"W X 18"Deep X 26" Height) with accompanying stand home to get an aquarium going for my family's enjoyment...planned on starting another FW aquarium, my wife 1 year old daughter and 5 year old son saw the saltwater tanks at the LFS, polarizing moment, and here I am with severe obsession and agenda.

With that, I have been taking my time to research everything in effort to start off right, and if I have read 15 articles, I have seen 15 different views. I really need some expert advice as I am ready to go live soon!

Light: I am currently trying to decide on a few different things regarding lighting; should I go with 150W total or 250W total. I am excited and committed to see where this hobby goes therefore I want to buy the right equipment for future expansion. But, I plan on doing this 40G tank to learn and dive into the hobby, and with satisfacation and success, I will certainly upgrade to a bigger tank before going full reef with sps, lps corals, etc. For all I want to do with my first aquarium (fish, anemones, mushrooms, zoanthids, other soft stuff, should I just go with a 150W lighting?

I really like the "total package" feel of the 24" Sunpod Metal Halide and the 24" Aqualight Pro? Any difference or advantages? Or should I just go with the best deal I find on either of these two? Also, I found a really nice deal on a Coralife 24" PC 2X65W (white&blue bulb) for $100, is this a good deal that I shouldnt pass up?


Filter: I have decided to do a W/D Filter System, found a really nice, exp local guy that custom builds systems, but it will be about $350 or more and the turn around is 3+ weeks. The dimensions in my cabinet are 24"W X 16"D X 26"H, and I have found some pre-made systems that seem they will fit my cabinet like:

All Glass Model 1 MegaFlow approx. $230
Sealife Systems Aquapro 60 $141.99
Eshopps W/D system approx. $150 (fav choice so far 18X12X16 17Gal capacity)
Rapids Pro PS3 $250
Other Expert Recommendations?
Should I go with the custom build or just purchase one of the systems above, and have him drill my holes and install the filter system? IF I purchase one of the systems above, besides a pump and protein skimmer (no PS at setup, but after a few months), is there any other costs related to the W/D system? Which pump do you recommend? Dont want to spend over $100 for pump.

Everyone, thank you in advance for reading this very long post, I love this community, love what I have seen and experienced so far with this hobby, and I cant wait to finally get my tank started...I just want to make sure that I put in my time to research and plan, and that I make the best decisions that I can!

Talk to you all again soon, I have so many more details but I will stop here, feel free to contact me with questions/feedback.

thanks,

MH

PS All of the LFS employees that I have encountered have been very helpful and genuine, thank you for this!

[Big_Pun]

i would find a nice t5 so you dont have to worry about heat issues especialy if your going to have a canopy, my pc's on my lil tanks get hot, now im looking for t5's, as for filters cant help you much there i have cubes but most people here run refugiums maybe a cpr back pack, or get a custom one built.

WELCOME to MAAST!!!! and the addiction only gets worse i started with a 12g cube 4 months ago and now look

[dustint21]

Welcome to MAAST!!

I could really go deep into this, but someone else will explain way better than me. You should be fine, looks like you did some good research! You will be really happy you joined and posted! I pretty sure you just saved yourself alot of time and money!

[Paul28]

Welcom to Masst , and welcom to the Saltwater Needle !!

[Kristy]

Hi MH (which means "metal halide" lighting system around here, by the way...)-

I am impressed by your first post, and can tell the amount of reading and research you've been doing. The feedback that stands out the most from your questions is "don't do the pc lights!" PC lighting is definitely one of the biggest newbie mistakes we made and I know that is very much the concensus around here. For that money, you'd be much better off finding a good T5 light or even a MH over that 40 that will allow you to keep any corals you choose down the line, and everything will look so much more vibrant.

If you go with a MH light, 150w would probably be sufficient for a the 40g, but with your tank being 26" tall, you'd probably get better results with 250w of MH. Of course, that would lead to some serious heat and evaporation for that amount of water, so with that in mind, I'd advise that T5 is going to be your best possible choice for this sized system.

Sounds like you are on the right track regarding filtration options. There are some folks who would say that the wet/dry system will lead to trouble in the long run with nitrates accumulating, but there are some measures you can take to improve it if that is the way you go. Any of those choices that you listed sound reasonable to me.

Are you planning to use a skimmer? How about a refugium? Those selections might need to be made first, before you can finalize your choice about which option works best that fits in your stand. I'd recommend you get a decent skimmer on there, as it will make your system much more forgiving.

Finally, what are your plans for circulation?

Best of luck to you and welcome to a great community!

[recoiljpr]

I'm not an expert but the things I have learned so far -

1. Purchase a RO/DI unit, in the long run your wallet, livestock and yourself will think you. RO/DI is a reverse Osmosis De Ionization unit. Once can be purchased for less then $200.

2. When cycling your tank will get really ugly for a while. It starts out pristine, clean, the rocks look great, the sand is awesome looking, your in heaven. Then, the diatoms hit and everything looks brown and nasty. Then, your diatom bloom is over and your tank looks awesome again. Right as you think you have everything down, the cyanobacteria and green algae come to visit. It's a that point you consider sometimes just chunking the thing! Be patient, those too will pass with proper husbandry.

3. My third point echoes the questions Kristy posted (Circulation, Skimmer, Refugium).

4. I too am currently trying to decide between MH or T5. As of now i'm thinking of putting a current USA Outer Orbit fixture on my 65 gallon. T5's will not give you the shimmer effect that MH will give you. But, T5 will pretty much support most any livestock you would want to keep. But I will say as well, don't go PC lighting if your buying new. Stick with T5 or MH.

[ballardjr2000]

Echo on the t-5 or MH lighting. as for filteration i use a tidepool II system lost of people have said they are know to over flow. i haven't had a problem and have kicked off the pumps several times to clean out the skimmer etc. for the filters mention i can't say for any of them don't know them well. but i do know most people run fuge's, sumps or a combo of both. so in that case i would suggest custom built or modify one to make a small fuge in it.

[barderer]

ahh if I could do it all again.

t-5's for sure. The maintenance cost is soooo cheap. And with 4 or more bulbs your control of color is off the charts. Of course a combo of t-5 and a weak HQI MH is ideal. I just hate MH because it almost always requires you purchasing a chiller or constantly refilling your auto top off and running noisy fans.

You need your own RO/DI system for sure.

ATO - A good auto top off system is a much so you can still go on vacations etc.

Don't overstock, don't overstock! You want your tank to be as maintenance free as possible. So you can leave it for a week or so with no maintenance. Best way to do this is not to have a lot of fish and don't feed too often.

gl!

[txmaverickmh]

Wow, I am speechless! This community is first-class, and a ton of help! When I checked up this morning, I already had 5 replies to my post, and thank you to all the posters. I am greatly appreciative of you all taking time to help me out!

I think I am going to go with the Current USA T5HO 4X24W with timers and LED lights, found it on marinedepot.com for $224.04 shipped to my house. What do you think? Good deal and choice?

https://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem.aspx?category=Current_USA_SunDial_T5_H O_w_Timers_LED_Fixture_24_Inch_T5_Fluorescent_Ligh t_Fixtures&vendor=Current_USA&idProduct=CU01150&IdCategory=FILTFIT54U&child=CU01150&tab=4&size=24%20Inch%20(4x24W%20T5)

I am getting longer support mounts to stand it over aquarium. AND, my 5 year old would like to know if down the road, this light will support any types of clams??? LOL

I also have a good friend in the business that has a slightly used wet/dry filter system that fits my stand that already has an adequate pump and protein skimmer...it was used in a doctor's office for about 4 months before they decided to get rid of aquarium...sounds like a really good deal.

This W/D system has a return that hangs on the back of the aquarium, THEREFORE, I have another decision to make: Do I use this return to hang on back of my aquarium, or do I have holes drilled in my tank to have the cleaner, sleek look?

Also, if I start getting a spike in nitrates after a while from the W/D system, besides cleaning the media, what else do you do to lower the level? And, do you recommend bio balls or some other media like Seachem Matrix media, I saw an ad for this in Aquarium Fish magazine and it looked interesting?

I plan on attaching the protein skimmer down below to this filter system. With this and the mag drive pump in the W/D that should be plenty of circulation, right?

My FEVER is now at 116 degrees because it looks like I will have this equipment by this weekend, perhaps plan on going live on Saturday since LFS that has live rock and sand is closed on Sunday. As for the initial setup, I am going to just buy pre-made saltwater from LFS at $1/gallon...I will worry about making my own at a later date as I understand it is easy, but would like to have one less worry during setup.

I am planning on doing a 3" sand bed with mixing live sand with coral sand. And I am going to start off with 40lbs of live rock. thoughts?

ANYONE LOCAL TO CORPUS CHRISTI, want to come advise or help??? haha, I will, and WANT to do all the work in effort to learn and enjoy, but it sure would be nice to have someone there over my shoulder to tell me, "no, that is setup upside down backwards!" HAHA

Thats all for tonight folks! Thank you so much in advance for your feedback and help!

Best,

Michael Hensley "MH" not metal halide! LOL

[recoiljpr]

I am getting longer support mounts to stand it over aquarium. AND, my 5 year old would like to know if down the road, this light will support any types of clams??? LOL

That's a topic of debate around most saltwater people. As far as I know there have been no actual scientific studies as to if the light loving clams do well under T5. What it comes down to is PAR level (roughly it meanas the amount of light that reaches the area). From the research i've done, 18" should be just fine with T5's to have even light loving clams. The real question comes when you start talking about depths of 24" or more, since you have a 18" deep tank, you should be fine. The real kicker for clams is you have to make sure your water parameters are in-check and stable before having a clam. They are very sensitve creatures.



This W/D system has a return that hangs on the back of the aquarium, THEREFORE, I have another decision to make: Do I use this return to hang on back of my aquarium, or do I have holes drilled in my tank to have the cleaner, sleek look?

Comes down to personal preference i'd say on how you want it to look. If you are only going to have this one tank drilled, find a glass company or one of your LFS to drill it for you. I will say if you do get it drilled, go ahead and get an overflow installed, it's something you won't regret. Makes plumbing for a sump/fuge much easier and you don't have to rely on a siphon based HOB overflow.



I am planning on doing a 3" sand bed with mixing live sand with coral sand. And I am going to start off with 40lbs of live rock. thoughts?

From what i've read 3" sand isn't enough for a DSB, but (and from personal experience) it's a pain to handle. I had a 3" sand bed originally, but I ended up removing it to make it around 1 1/2" to 2". That makes it easier when doing your cleaning to actually siphon up the detrius that will build up on a bed.



ANYONE LOCAL TO CORPUS CHRISTI, want to come advise or help??? haha, I will, and WANT to do all the work in effort to learn and enjoy, but it sure would be nice to have someone there over my shoulder to tell me, "no, that is setup upside down backwards!" HAHA

I'm originally from Corpus but i'm not going down there any time soon. While I am still not as an old of a salt as most on this board, if you have any questions or need help, PM me and i'll be more then happy to give you my cell phone # and you can feel free to call me. I'll help as much as I am able!

[msmith619]

You have a lot of really good responses here. I cannot add more but, I can give you my experience.
I have 2 tanks:
75 gallon set up at my office using T5's, wet/dry filter, protein skimmer
125 gallon at home with MH lighting, refugium and no protein skimmer (risky but, I rely on macro algea)

In the 75 gallon with T5's I keep anemones, SPS. LPS, and softies. The same with the 125.
Here are the differences and you will see I prefer the 75 with T5's and wet/dry filtration.
The 75 gallon temp stays stable, the 125 flucuates 10-15 degrees a day with the MH lights going on and off.
The 75 looses 4 cups water a day, the 125 takes 2 gallons to top off a day. If you don't have a RO/DI system, you will want one with MH lighting. Also, glass tops go a LONG way to reduce evaporation, if you don't have one, get one!
The 75 is QUIET!!!! with the wet dry, water flows into it on the filter floss before entering the filter, NO SPLASHING!! In the 125, it sounds like a waterfall in my living room.
I clean the wet/dry filter floss with the used salt water from my water changes monthly when I do water changes and the bio-balls every 4-6 months... no nitrite problems.
I use a protein skimmer on my 75 gallon but, after 5-6 months it rarely needs cleaning as the skimate is minimal. Increased skimate makes me look for a dead fish, coral, or food build-up. No feed-back on the refugium without a skimmer.
I definately favor the 75 gallon and am seriously considering tearing down the 125 and re-doing it like my 75 gallon.
Others will have other opinions and every post you have received is a GOOD one. Good questions and good answers.

[Squiers007]

Hey txmaverick! Welcome! As you have probably noticed I am from Corpus also and am currently setting up my second SW reef tank. If you have any questions or just need a hand setting anything up shoot me a PM and I will give you my phone number so we can chat. There are quite a few other people in Corpus that know a lot and are super helpful. Just let me know if you need anything, I'm more than willing to pass on my knowledge! Keep up the good job with doing your research and enjoy the ride!