65 Gallon Tank Help

[jdnidle]

I am new to saltwater and will be setting up a 65 gallon tank over the next week or two.
I have done a ton of reading and talking things over with a local saltwater fish store.
I have been into freshwater for over 13 years, but will be new to salt.

I picked up a 65 gallon, reef-ready tank yesterday.
It is 36 7/8 x 19 x 24 5/8.
Pre-drilled with the built in over-flow.

I also picked up Amiracle sump.
I will be removing the bio balls and using live rock and a few other things as natural filtration, per the recommendation of my local saltwater fish store.

I also picked up a Coralife 125g Super Skimmer.
Got all of that used from Craigslist yesterday.

I have to get a power head or two.
1 I was going to get for sure was the Hydor Koralia 1400.

I have been doing a lot of reading online and on these forums and like anything, you get mixed reviews.

My questions so far:
1. Glass canopies. Do I need them? I see many tanks without them, I like the look without them, but then some people say that they recommend them to keep fish from jumping out.

2. I plan on using something like D-D EzeClean Equipment Cleaner to clean up everything I bought used yesterday.
Do I mix this with distilled water or do I need to wash it in saltwater?

3. What about dry live rock?
I got about 60 pounds of dry, live rock from the same guy that sold me the protein skimmer yesterday.
It has never been in a tank. What is the best method to cure it?
Does it need to be cured before I put it in my tank since I am starting a tank fresh?

4. Lighting - Which LED's to use?
I want to go LED, due to the life of the bulbs. I do not want to have to buy new bulbs each year.
I know I want a fixture that has separate power cords for Blue and White so that I can put them on timers separately.

Which brand though?
Due to only 1 power cord, this rules out the Marineland Reef Ready lighting for me.
I recently have been reading good things about the Reef brand LED's.
I would be going with the 36" one.
http://www.reeflight.com/led-aquarium-grow-lighting/reef-light-led-aquarium-grow-lighting-products.asp
Full spectrum: Blue 450m-455nm White 12000k-14500k
Epistar 3 Watt LED Bulbs
CE & RoHs Approved
Two rows, 16-39pcs 3w bulbs per fixture
Control blue and white separately

Any information/feedback is greatly appreciated.

[MaxxedMan]

Cure the rock in the tank, if it needs cured, since it's dry.
Rely on this forum more than your LFS, if only to get more than one opinion
You either need a screen or hood, or you need to buy fish that don't jump, a lot don't.
You can wash in distilled water

[8-ball]

1. Glass canopies are usually a no, they dont let the tank aerate effectively and could lose fish to oxygenation and PH issues. I would look into DIY screen tops, very simple and cheap.
2. Cleaning equipment prior to use you can use distilled water or vinegar, no need to use saltwater.
3. "Dry live rock" which i believe is just base rock, all you need to do is make sure you have some actual live rock to "seed" the dry rock during the cycle which I do, it helps on not bringing to many foreign critters and pests into the system.
4.Lighting. I dont think that lighting will work for corals, doesnt look like enough Leds, and thank god you can't use the marineland product. In the price range your looking at I would look into 'Evolution" Leds which are not bad for the money. Or you can go big with either AI, Radion or Kessil. But any of those you will prob need more then 1 fixture of those.

[jdnidle]

Cure the rock in the tank, if it needs cured, since it's dry.
Rely on this forum more than your LFS, if only to get more than one opinion
You either need a screen or hood, or you need to buy fish that don't jump, a lot don't.
You can wash in distilled water

That is why I am here. Always like to get many opinions.
And thanks for the information.




1. Glass canopies are usually a no, they dont let the tank aerate effectively and could lose fish to oxygenation and PH issues. I would look into DIY screen tops, very simple and cheap.
2. Cleaning equipment prior to use you can use distilled water or vinegar, no need to use saltwater.
3. "Dry live rock" which i believe is just base rock, all you need to do is make sure you have some actual live rock to "seed" the dry rock during the cycle which I do, it helps on not bringing to many foreign critters and pests into the system.
4.Lighting. I dont think that lighting will work for corals, doesnt look like enough Leds, and thank god you can't use the marineland product. In the price range your looking at I would look into 'Evolution" Leds which are not bad for the money. Or you can go big with either AI, Radion or Kessil. But any of those you will prob need more then 1 fixture of those.

Glad to hear about the glass canopies, like I said, I like the look without them.
1. A DIY screen top would be simple for me to make.

3. I plan on putting in some live rock with the dry rock. I know dry will eventually become live rock.


The dry rock though, I read that you have to cure it before putting it in your tank. So that is where I was curious if I have to cure it or since my tank will be new, if it is ok to put it in from the beginning.

Should I wash this off with anything besides water?
Any scrubbing?

4. Lighting, thanks for the info, I will start looking into those.


Thanks again to both of you for the information. Much appreciated.

[8-ball]

Since the dry rock has already been prepped for reef application it should be fine. Just let it cycle with the live rock and you will be good to go.

You could scrub it off with anything, but a vinegar bath should do the job, completely harmless to a tank. Vinegar will break up any corraline algae build up that may be on the tank.

[chad316]

My questions so far:
1. Glass canopies. Do I need them? I see many tanks without them, I like the look without them, but then some people say that they recommend them to keep fish from jumping out.

Like they have said, you can make one for pretty cheap...if you need help BRS has a how to video on making one on youtube.