need your advice!

[TANK0789]

Setting up 55g with sump. Which products are good? And maybe less expensive? I will need

Protien skimmer
Heater
Sand
Salt
Pumps
Phosbane reacter?
Am I forgetting anything?


And is 6 dollars a pund for live rock cheap or expensiv?

[svynx]

My 55gal has:
Octo NW 150 skimmer
no heater
aragonite sand
Coral Pro RO Mix Salt
Mag 9 for return, Koralia 2 and 3
PhosBan reactor with PhosBan (getting a second to run carbon)
Nova Extreme Pro T5HO lighting
$6 per pound seams a little high. There are better prices online.

[TANK0789]

Ok thank! How much did that all cost you?

[Amoore311]

Protien skimmer
Octo NW150 or a Euroreef RS80.... depends how much you want to spend there

Heater
Jaeger 150 Watt

Sand
Caribsea Fiji Pink.... that's personal preferance though

Salt
Reef Crystals if you want to do a reef tank. If your going FOWLR than Instant Ocean is very good. (Reef Crystals has high calcium levels)

Pumps
Mag5 Return Or an appropriately sized eheim. You want 2-3x Volume through your sump, no more than that.

Phosban Reactor
Two Little Fishes Fluidized Media Reactor 150. Get 2 of them 1 for carbon and 1 for GFO (phosban)


Am I forgetting anything?

Powerheads. I recommend Maxijets w. suregrip magnets and the algaefree prop mods, or Korallias.

You also need lighting if you are doing a reef. 150 Watt halides should be fine on that tank. You would want 2 of them. Or you can go with 4-5 T5 bulbs. If you're going FOWLR, any lighting is fine.

[TANK0789]

Ok thanks! Any approximation on price?

[svynx]

I paid around $200 for the skimmer, sand was about $1 per pound, don't remember salt price, Mag pump was about $50, the reactors are $20-$30 each plus medium, and the light was about $350. Add that up, plus the mistakes of buying a crap skimmer to start, PC lights, live and base rock (then adding more...and more). The Karalias run from $25-$50 depending on which one you get.
Suggestion: buy the skimmer, sand, rock, one powerhead/water mover. Set the tank up and get the cycle started. You don't need the light for that part. Save money during this time (could be 6 weeks) and find a light that meets the requirements of what you are putting in the tank.

I don't know how new you are to this hobby. But if you don't have any, get some testing equipment. I forgot about that.

[abulgin]

Also, purchase these two books and read them: Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Robert Fenner (new edition); Reef Invertebrates by Anthony Calfo/Fenner. You can find them on Amazon.com.

[TANK0789]

I'm new. And that sounds good. So do you suggest I buy liverock online for cheaper?

[abulgin]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12965594#post12965594 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TANK0789
I'm new. And that sounds good. So do you suggest I buy liverock online for cheaper?

Depends on what's available in your area. Personally, I choose to buy all of my livestock from my local fish store because it gives me an opportunity to inspect it, see if it's eating, assess the health, etc. Many people buy livestock on-line, but with shipping costs nowadays it only makes sense to do this if you're buying a bunch of stuff or a very expensive fish/coral. You lose some availability/variety by shopping at your LFS, but what you gain in piece of mind is worth it to me. That's just my practice, though.

I can't stress how good those books are--they will educate you on everything you need to know about starting a tank, etc.

[peterpaul]

Protien skimmer
I recommend a RS80

Heater
Jaeger or Visi Therm would be good options

Sand
Aragonite

Salt
Reef Crystals

Pumps
Mag7 Return Pump

Phosban Reactor
I would rather invest in setting up a refugium which also provides benificial nutrients to the tank instead of a phosban reactor.

Am I forgetting anything?
Yes lights - depending what you want to keep you can get Power compacts, T5's or Metal Halide

Pumps for circulation - would recommend at least 2 Hydor Korella 2

Also I would not pay more then $5 a pound for live rock

[abulgin]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12965650#post12965650 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by peterpaul
Protien skimmer
I recommend a RS80



Euro Reef and AquaC are great skimmers, and I don't think you could go wrong with either. I have read posts stating that the Octopus is inferior to these two skimmer. The AquaC Urchin with a Mag-3 or AquaC EV-120 or EV-180 with the Mag pumps would be a good choice. I have the EV-180 with a Mag-7 and love it.




Pumps
Mag7 Return Pump



Mag pumps run hot. I would probably opt for an Eheim 1262, which is a cooler, more efficient and better pump.




Phosban Reactor
I would rather invest in setting up a refugium which also provides benificial nutrients to the tank instead of a phosban reactor.


+1. A refugium is a much better option than a Phos reactor IMO. You should get all the nitrate/phosphate removal you need from a fuge, plus all the benefits of fostering pods and other creatures that are so beneficial to a successful reef aquarium.




Pumps for circulation - would recommend at least 2 Hydor Korella 2


I would get 2 Koralia 3s. Cheapest place I've found them is http://www.aloha-aquariums.com/servlet/the-957/Hydor-Pump-Koralia-3/Detail. $29.99. Can't beat that.

[jwd]

Wow.... you guys pay a lot for live rock...... the live rock in my lfs is like 2.89 per lb....

[abulgin]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12965746#post12965746 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jwd
Wow.... you guys pay a lot for live rock...... the live rock in my lfs is like 2.89 per lb....

Cured or uncured?

[TANK0789]

Ok thanks a lot guys! Also for a fuge how do I go about setting one up?

[svynx]

Either have a seperate container, or built into your sump. Use a Deep Sand Bed, add some macroalgae, a cheap 75 watt compact floresent, and off you go. If it's a seperate container, have a pump feeding it, and use gravity for a return. Works great for me.

That's another point to think of. There is a lot of information that you can get on this forum, which is one of the best that I have seen. Everyone has an opinion. And 9 times out of 10, it's good advice. But, you must find what works for you. There aren't many things that will always work for everyone. There is a member on here that their quote goes something like the only thing that happens quickly in this hobby is bad. Take that advice. It's a test of patience. Change one thing and wait to see what it does. Change too many things at once, and who knows what causes what.

Sorry, I was rambleing, just typing as I thought of stuff.

[linz13]

6 bucks a pound for live rock... if its cured it seems like a really great price.. i paid around 7.99 a pound for my cured live rock and the guy gave me a discount at the store because i bought a lot of it all at once =]

[jwd]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12965784#post12965784 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by abulgin
Cured or uncured?

Cured..... its just regular figi..... they've got premium rocks likr tonga branch and marshall island for like 6.50/lb....

[TANK0789]

Cool thanks a lot guys!