Newbie setup

[Rexican]

Hi All,

I will be purchasing a lot of new equipment but wanted to another set of eyes to make sure I'm not forgetting something. I'm brand new to the saltwater said so bear with me.

I currently have a 55 gallon tank. This will be a FOWLR for the first year were I then might be able to handel some reefs. I will be buying 2 20L tanks for a sump and QT.

1 in Sump 100gal protein skimmer
http://www.bigalspets.com/fish/protein-skimmers/in-sump-protein-skimmer-100-gal.html
3 Power heads: 2 Karlia 750's for the DT and 1 550 for mixing the saltwater
2 Heaters: 1 for sump, 1 for mixing water
1 RO/DI unit for making water
160 Gal salt water mix: For filling tank and hopefully getting through a month or two of cycling.
1 Ehiem 1250 return pump for sump.
50lbs of Aragonite Sand: I read somewhere that I don't need live sand and that it will become live over time. Is this the correct stuff?
http://www.bigalspets.com/fish/substrates/bio-activ-live-aragonite-reef-sand-natural-white-0-20-lb.html
10lbs: Live Rock
60Lbs: Dry Rock
1 Refractometer
A testing Kit
I'm not quite sure about lighting as I'm in the process of reviewing that section.


Suggestions, questions, and comments please.

[Realposition]

Seems like you have a pretty well thought out list

[MrTuskfish]

Get a quarantine tank and use it with all new fish. Don't learn this the hard way, like most of us seeded to.

[joeychitwood]

You are correct that your sand will colonize with bacteria as the tank ages. As long as you have good quality live rock, it will happen fairly quickly.

[Mavrk]

I don't know how the marineland skimmers are so I can't comment on that. But I will say that the skimmer is very important and you want to make sure you are getting a good one.

The sand you linked was "live" sand. Like you said, you don't need to get that since you are getting live rock. If you can get a cup of sand from someone with a tank you trust that will help too.

For RO/DI, make sure you get a 75 gph unit (or Spectrapure markets them as 90 gph units). Find out if your water has chloramines before purchasing the unit. If you want a recommendation, I would say Spectrapure. Mostly because I like that you can adjust the flow restrictor to get the correct waste ratio. But also because they have great filters and their DI is amongst the best (although the color changing one might be similar to other places... not sure about that one because I don't get the color changing ones). Most of the places selling RO/DI have great customer service.

Add on a handheld TDS meter. Should be about 20-25 dollars. I like the HM TDS-3 as a basic unit. They are more accurate than the inline type (which are good to have as quick reference).

[klwheat]

Couple of suggestions for you...
I'm not a big fan of that marineland skimmer...very temperamental and not very good skimmer. For the money, I'd recommend this one instead
http://www.aquacave.com/Reef-Octopus-NWB-110-Needle-Wheel-Protein-Skimmer-P702C622.aspx
Also, same as above, don't waste money on live sand. A bit of live rock will seed the tank just fine for cycling.
Definitely get a QT tank too. Or, you can learn the hard way like the rest of us...lol
Thank you for planning ahead and asking questions! Good luck and welcome to the hobby/addiction :)

[Mavrk]

I wanted to add that I am glad to see the planned purchase of a 20 long for your QT. You will need some kind of filtering or at least a powerhead and heater for that. Plus some Prime or Amquel is a good idea to have for the QT. You should also figure out how you are going to run the QT (medication such as PraziPro, etc. or observation only and treat if necessary).

My personal method is tank transfer, then PraziPro and a couple weeks of observation. Of course this means an extra set of stuff for tank transfer, so it is not for everyone. I use two 10 gallon tanks for the tank transfer, then they go in my 20 long for the rest of the time (which has a foam filter with bacteria already on it).

edit to add...
[welcome]

[jgraz]

Hi All,

I will be purchasing a lot of new equipment but wanted to another set of eyes to make sure I'm not forgetting something. I'm brand new to the saltwater said so bear with me.

I currently have a 55 gallon tank. This will be a FOWLR for the first year were I then might be able to handel some reefs. I will be buying 2 20L tanks for a sump and QT.

1 in Sump 100gal protein skimmer
http://www.bigalspets.com/fish/protein-skimmers/in-sump-protein-skimmer-100-gal.html
3 Power heads: 2 Karlia 750's for the DT and 1 550 for mixing the saltwater
2 Heaters: 1 for sump, 1 for mixing water
1 RO/DI unit for making water
160 Gal salt water mix: For filling tank and hopefully getting through a month or two of cycling.
1 Ehiem 1250 return pump for sump.
50lbs of Aragonite Sand: I read somewhere that I don't need live sand and that it will become live over time. Is this the correct stuff?
http://www.bigalspets.com/fish/substrates/bio-activ-live-aragonite-reef-sand-natural-white-0-20-lb.html
10lbs: Live Rock
60Lbs: Dry Rock
1 Refractometer
A testing Kit
I'm not quite sure about lighting as I'm in the process of reviewing that section.


Suggestions, questions, and comments please.

Well thought out, I'd like to offer some suggestions that may also save you some money also, at least on the skimmer.

Skimmer: I used and loved this http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/protein-skimmers/bubble-magus/bubble-magus-bm-nac3-5-cone-protein-skimmer.html
If you can get in on a BRS group buy, it can be had for $140. Nice small footprint. Really a nice skimmer for the money.

Sand: go with dry sand instead of live. Try and find someone in the area to give you a scoop of live and your good to go. I used reef flakes from Premium aquatics I think it was 30lbs for $37. The sand you linked is also good. but dry sand can be had a bit cheaper.

Lights: Don't skimp. If you can try to get what you want now. I tried to save money on my first tank and then just ended up upgrading quickly. I ended up spending more for lights then If I had just got what I wanted the first time.

RODI: Bulk Reef Supply. Again if you can get into a group buy things will be cheaper. As suggested above 75GPD is the way to go.

Powerheads: I had the 750's in my first tank, and liked them. But for the 55gal I would go with the 1050's instead. more flow to get across that 4' span.

Again just suggestions for you to consider.