Please let me know if I'm on track

[ohioone]

I'm moving to a new house in about a month and I'm considering converting my 29G fresh water to a reef tank. Here are my thoughts:

Tank: I have a custom stand I want to use. I considered a 37G with the same footprint, but I decided against it because the extra height would hard for corals. I'll wash it out, but no soap or chemicals.

Filter: I have a 1 yr. old National Geographic CF50. This is a knock off of an Eheim Ecco. I'll replace the tubing to get rid of the gunk.

Live rock: I plan to get 30-35 lbs. of Real Reef Rock in water.

Live sand: 1 20 lb. bag of Caribsea reef sand. Plus the lfs sells live ocean sand in a tank by the pound. I figure 10 lbs.

Light: I have a 24 in. Aquatic life T5. I'll replace the bulbs if I keep it, but I'm seriously considering a Current Orbit Marine LED. The tank will be in a very visible location and I want the sunrise/sunset effects.

Powerheads. I plan on getting two with 400 gph between them, one to the back side opposite the filter outtake and one opposite to the front.

Start up water: Reef water from the lfs. I figure five Home Depot buckets with lids to move rock, sand, and water.

Fish: I want to keep the bio load low. Thinking four in this order - firefish, royal gramma, and two ocellis. The lfs sells them by matched pairs. If I add a fifth, a yellow watchman goby.

Corals: Frankly, I've been scared by what I read about palytoxin. I'll wear gloves regardless, but think xenia, leathers, and mushrooms. I'd love zoas, but I have had respiratory issues in the past and don't want to chance it.

One absolute: No odor. That's why the Real Reef Rock in water. Also carbon pad in the filter.

I figure it should cycle quickly. I plan to take it slow. Fish first, then corals.

Any thoughts or watch outs will be appreciated.

[CarrieB]

Most reefers don't use the canister filters that freshwater folks are so fond of. They aren't necessary if you have a reasonable amount of live rock, and have to be frequently cleaned. I think some people use them as reactors, if you decide you need one.

You may find you want to get an HOB skimmer, depending on your bioload and water change schedule.

Beware Xenia, it can take over your tank and require frequent pruning. Some mushrooms can also spread, although I haven't seen quite the despair with mushrooms that Xenia and GSP seem to inspire.:-)

I also have chosen not to add zoas to my tank, even though they are pretty.

A healthy reef tank doesn't smell bad. Only dead things smell bad. Not sure what the inference is?


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[Dkuhlmann]

FYI, the Current Orbit Marine LED is only good for fish only and maybe soft corals at best. This is using it by itself. If you add a T5 to the tank or another LED you should be fine. I purchased one of these and know first hand that they are disappointing. Never plan on keeping an anemone with it either.

I also suggest that you do not add anymore than 2 fish at a time. If you go adding too many on a freshly cycled tank it will overload the new biofilter and create bad spikes of ammonia.

Take your time, nothing good happens fast in this hobby. All good things come to those who wait and take it slow.

Edit to add: I agree with Carrie about getting a skimmer. Chose a quality one that is designed for about double your total water volume.

[Buddy55]

Sorry, very long.
Personally I have only acquired two corals in my year and a half of this. I don't have the proper equipment to keep the tank where it needs to be and so I have been waiting to save up.

When not adding dry rock and sand you open up the possibility of having unwanted pests come in. Wet rock will have die off anyways from transport and usually yields high spikes of Ammonia and nitrite.

Get a good protein skimmer. Read testimonials on this forum about the one you like.

I have read reports on running carbon and have come to my own conclusions that I don't need to. I only run gfo in a reactor. I had a angel get hlle while I was running carbon full time. I won't say for certain that they are related. The tank won't stink unless you are not doing maintenance.

I have Xenia and while it is not big it splits and I have 3 colonies now in less then a year.

I would let your tank go through new tank syndrome (algae,cyano) for a few months before adding corals. Using fresh high quality lights and bulbs will help.


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[kmbyrnes]

No reason you can't have a successful SW tank in a 29g format.

I'll echo the light, canister filter and skimmer recommendations of others.

Don't be afraid of live rock, but you can create your own with a 'seed' piece from your LFS and dry rock from any of the online vendors. Your cycle may last longer though. Don't waste money on live sand. A pound will colonize the rest of you sand in short order.

Palytoxin is a real threat, although I have not personally has any issues. I don't always wear gloves when cleaning my tanks, but I do when handling corals.

Most of all take your time and get used to the new requirements of keeping a marine tank. Nothing good happens fast in this addiction .. er .. hobby.

[homer1475]

Wow I can't believe the amount of people scared of palytoxin and not keeping such a beautiful coral for fear of getting sick. While palytoxin should be taken seriously, it's not this huge problem people on these forums make it out to be. Most zoas and palys for that matter don't release this toxin unless they are actively in danger, and most we keep in the hobby are quite harmless. Just sitting on a rock growing, they are not in immediate danger.

Look they don't release toxins unless your actively fragging(cutting) them. And if your into fragging corals, your more then likely already taking the necessary precautions for such corals. The fear over palytoxins on these boards is way overblown.

I have several colonies of different zoas in my tank and I use no gloves when working in my tank. My train of thought on this, I don't wear gloves when I go swimming in the ocean, why should I in my tank? Besides unless I'm actively cutting them outside of water, I'll be fine.


I understand most are just trying to inform newbies about the problems with palytoxins, but 99% of the people in the hobby will never even come in contact with palytoxins, and the fear on these boards is way overblown.

[kmbyrnes]

Will most of us ever have a palytoxin incident? No. But Zoas and Palys are pretty and most folks would never imagine how deadly they can be. A lionfish advertises the danger with spikes all around, but a rabbit fish looks harmless. And anyone ever slashed by a tangs tail can tell you why they are named surgeonfish.
Healthy respect for all the dangers that hide in our beautiful tanks is not a bad thing.

[Geissijs]

I had a very successful 29g system. I drilled the back, built an overflow box, built an acrylic sump, and built a canopy with metal halide and pc lighting. I had 2 clowns, rbta, coral banded, cuc and some corals, (zoas, palys, montiporas, and devils hand). I also had about 60lb live rock, combination of tonga, marshall island, and aquacultured. I never had a smell issue.

Only problem I had was that the system needed to be constantly watched. Small volume systems can have large problems with water chemistry very quickly. I had to add make up water everyday and do, at a minimum, bi weekly water changes to keep the levels good for the corals. oc clowns and most cuc are cool with parameter shifts, but some corals can't handle a shift in any parameter.

I just bumped to a 110g dt and a custom 40g sump. maintenance is quite easier.