help set up my 55 gal

[welshdpjr]

Well, I've had my 14 gal Bio Cube for goin on a year and i just recently got a 55 gal But now I've run into the problem of having no clue what to do or what equipment to get, all I have is the tank and stand. I'm pretty much looking for a list, and some tips on what kind/ size of pumps, lights, filters etc. to get. I'm just about cluless when talking about equipment and supply's for my tank, my Bio Cube had everything installed in it so any help will be highly appericiated.
thanks,
newbie

[john90009]

Hi, To help us with helping you, you need to tell us what you are planning on keeping in the 55. Coral-wise. Also are you able to make a sump or refugium out of a 30 gallon or any other tank you can fit under the tank?

[welshdpjr]

I really don't know much about those kind of set ups except that they're a little advanced, so I've heard, but I do have an extra 10 gal. I was planning on going toward the wet dry system like I was advised and it seems a little easier. As far as what kind of reef tank, no hard corals because I cant afford a metal halide so just soft one and things like that. I'm planning on transferring all my coral from my 14 gal to my 55 once everything is set up I have a hammer, mushrooms, xenias, polyps, and something that looks like a christmas tree, then my rock, inverts, and fish etc. I'd like to put a small shark in there eventually if possible but I'm not to sure if thats possible. If you could point me in the right direction as to what kind/ sizes of everything I'm going to need I'd appreciate it.
thanks

[john90009]

I never kept a shark but im not sure a 55 gallon is big enough, mabey someone else can help you with that. Power compacts would initially be the cheapest lights to buy, however if you plan on stepping it up to t-5 you might want to think that over. If you have enough t-5 over it you can keep anything, so you might want to think this over now, if you think that you can easily maintain a corals health then in the future you will definitely want to try something harder which would require more light. Now you will want to get a skimmer, On my old 55 i used the coralife 65 super skimmer. It worked for me however it just took some time getting used to, I now use an octopus, it fits in my sump so you would need to find a place to put it. You can also buy a skimmer that can mount in the fish tank if thats fine by you. I haven't really looked up info on skimmers but i like octopus.

[Rustylugnuts]

I'm in a similar situation right now. I had to downsize from my 40 to my 29 when layoffs hit and I had to move back in with the folks. Now that I'm relocating back to where I just graduated from (so my wife can finish her degree) I've agreed to "store" a 55 for a friend who still lives there and never got to set it up. Hopefully he doesn't like it too much when I'm done setting it up and want it back! Even if he does this will give me time to build a 75 using parts I've accumulated

I'll have to give a big +1 to the T-5 HO idea. These worked great on the 40, all my softies grew really well (and it was a bit much for some of the mushrooms). The bulb life on these are really good as well (if they're not overdriven). I'm only going to buy 1 pair of 4' retrofits and use the 3'retrofits I already have for actinics. I also have an octopus dnw-150 which will probably be overkill for this application but I got it with upgrading in mind.

The wetdry works great for fish only systems but the nitrates that are inevitably produced (unless you keep it freakishly clean) don't bode well for corals.
The minimum tank size for a sump I would recommend is a 20 long. You could use a 30 gallon but the 20 still lets you house a decent sized skimmer and media reactors with enough room to spare to allow for a refugium and maybe a little frag rack. Use 1/4" glass for the baffles and buy a tube of aquarium silicone to seal them with.
When I made my sump I stood the 30 up on its left side and cut lengths of wood that corresponded to baffle spacing. This let me lay one pane on the 1st set of spacers, silicone it in throw on another pair of spacers and silicone the next baffle (repeated this until all were in place). On the pane closest to the rim cut the spacers in half and stack them on top of each other so you don't end up with spacers you can't remove without breaking something after the silicone cures.