New 150g AGGRESSIVE tank

[rixsonr]

Hi

I am looking to setup a 150g aggressive tank (6x2x2ft). I currently have a 30g reef which has been setup about a year now.
I love the look of alot of aggressive fish such as triggers, lion fish, eels, etc.

I dont know alot about keeping these type of fish yet, so ANY input would be fantastic. :)

Lighting requirements

I dont suppose the lighting needs to be as good as a reef?

Filtration

Sump?
Skimmer?

Rock

Live rock?
Base rock?
Both?

Any help would be much appreciated, my tank comes on friday :D CANT WAIT!!!

[Denbf58]

lighting is not as important as with a reef for fish only filtration and a real good skimmer as most preds are mesy eaters i would say yes to the sump and as far as the you can use base rock to save money and seed with some live rock

[rixsonr]

thanks for your help Denbf58. how much live rock would I need with this tank would you say?
I have a 4 chamber sump i could use on this tank, what would you recommend using in this?

[izzy123]

I'm not sure as to how much live rock you should use, but I think the answer would be found in the stickys somewhere.

As for the rest, I agree with denbf58.... lights aren't that important, filtering is, you should get a decent and big skimmer

Hope this helps and good luck

[rixsonr]

Thanskyou izzy123, this is helpful. I am currently researching what to keep in my sump for this tank.

[reefergeorge]

I treated my FO like a reef, but with about half the light. You can get away with homedepot fixtures, but their colors look better under good light just like corals.

Also if those dems are right, you have a 180.

[rixsonr]

180g even better! :D I was going by uk gallons, I have never been sure what everyone uses. I am soo excited to setup this tank! The amazing gf don't seem too happy that I'm constantly researching and talking about it lol we all have our priorities. I have a 4 chamber sump which I plan to have: chamber 1- inlet from tank, heater, skimmer and filter sock. Chamber 2- live rock. Chamber 3 bio balls and filter foam. Chamber 4- outlet pump, phosban bag and carbon bag. I will also have a another sump holding dsb and cheeto only. Does this sound like a good idea?

[MattyO]

U can go with the carbon and phosban in reactors for better efficiency, bio balls can be a pain, I would go with a skimmer rated 2x ur volume. As for lights, a few cheap pc's and a led stunner strip would be a good combo.

[rixsonr]

I haven't got the second sump yet, so i might add the cheeto to the 3rd chamber instead of the bio balls. does this sound better?

[MarkGP]

You are going to need at least 180 lbs of rock. I would use mostly dead rock and seed with some live. I have 200 lbs in my 125 gal fish only. Fish don't need light so whatever you put on the tank will be for you to view the fish. A couple of T5 strips should work or even a DIY led setup like I did. Get as big of a skimmer as you can because you will need it with an aggressive tank. Depending on the size of the sump you could run chaeto in the 3rd chamber but definitely ditch the bioballs!

[rixsonr]

Thanks for your help mark. Roll on friday!!

[ajcanale]

The fish you mentioned are some messy eaters (and poopers). You will definitely want to oversized on the skimmer. I'd say a quality skimmer rated for a 250-300g. Also, lionfish (and moray eels) arent aggressive fish. In fact lionfish are quite peaceful, aside from the fact that they will gobble up anything half their size or less. I guess a better term for what you are setting up is a "Predator" tank.

If you were to avoid large angelfish, and stick with only certain triggers (Xanthichthys, or odonus niger) you could keep LPS and soft corals in the system as well.

[rixsonr]

The fish you mentioned are some messy eaters (and poopers). You will definitely want to oversized on the skimmer. I'd say a quality skimmer rated for a 250-300g. Also, lionfish (and moray eels) arent aggressive fish. In fact lionfish are quite peaceful, aside from the fact that they will gobble up anything half their size or less. I guess a better term for what you are setting up is a "Predator" tank.

If you were to avoid large angelfish, and stick with only certain triggers (Xanthichthys, or odonus niger) you could keep LPS and soft corals in the system as well.

Thankyou. Yea sorry, predator tank is what im after. been doing quite a bit of reseach lately. And you have confirmed it, thankyou. Its gonna be a slow project. i plan to seed my baserock etc which is gonna take some time in itself. Im just trying to plan for this tank a bit better than my last one.