Help with refugium

[Flyride95]

I have been in this hobby now for 10 months. I started with a filter pad and bio balls. Since then I have switched to the sock and put rock rubble and have been super happy with the results. I was getting nitrates with bio balls. As for a sump the bigger you can go the better. Basically measure the area below where you are putting your sump and get one just a hair smaller. And I don't know if you want a new one or used but there are a few guys here that can make you a sump and there are plenty others that are selling good used sumps. I picked mine up used and it does its job and looks amazing. And as other have said NEVER trust everything your lfs (local fish store) tells you.

Oh and btw when you do get up and running please do not buy damsels the get you cycle started. They are a pain in the *** to remove and the are extremely mean when they get a few months old.

[Justin]

Do you have his name or handle so I can do a search on CL?

[Justin]

I didn't want to hijack the thread but I wanted to go custom as well and thought about going to Elegant Reef since the guys he uses is the same that all of the LFS in town use * From what I have been told*

[Brickster]

As stupid as it seems, i picked up a great book when borders was shutting down and it's been a very good read.... I still read a little every now and then.. But it helped me get over some of the confusion in the beginning.....

This was the best advice in the thread. Even being a fairly seasoned freshwater hobbyist, the smartest thing I ever did was read a book about marine tanks. The trouble with going and talking to the LFS trying to figure this stuff out from scratch is that everybody has their own ideas about how it is "supposed" to work. There are many different approaches, and several of them are good. Once you know what the fundamentals are, you can start to talk about strategies.

It can be intimidating, but the learning is really half the fun. I'm on my third tank (the charm!), and I'm just starting to know what I don't know. If I didn't want to be challenged I'd keep goldfish