naclh2ojunkie
03/04/2017, 04:13 PM
So I kept reef tanks for 10+ years but had to sell everything when I moved to Hawaii several years ago. I've been back for several years without thinking of starting up another tank until I bumped into an old friend who has reef tanks and guess who has the itch now! lol
I was just offered a running 65gal fully stocked reef tank for free. Catch is, it has to be out of his house in the next couple of days or his mom is pulling the plug. Tank is really scratched and he doesn't clean the glass as often as she'd like so she's giving it the boot.
So I've been running around like a chicken with its head cutoff to get equipment. Got a sweet deal on a brand new 90 bowfront that is about 10 years old but never had water in it (praying silicone is good! guess we'll see pretty soon here.) It is a JetStream with a Tidepool sump. I'm ditching the sump and making my own out of rubbermaid tubs in the basement (tank is going to be plumbed straight down through the floor.
It's been almost 9 years since I sold my tank and I'm kinda out of the loop in regards to what the newest equipment is. I think one of the biggest changes is in lighting. LED seems pretty cool but wow are they expensive. Is it equal to MH in regards to wattage? He is giving me an LED light bar he uses but I imagine my new tank is at least 12 inches deeper than his so I will need to upgrade. I have a mag 9.5 but I'm going to be dealing with about 8 to 9 feet of head so I need to get something else (not too big - I'm of the school of thought where i want things going nice and slow through the sump.) Are Mag's and Eheims still the norm? I need to get some powerhead/wavemakers. Any great advances in those in recent years?
Thanks, I would do all the research myself but I've got to get this tank stand painted and plumbed.
Also, I've never done a complete aquarium change going from 65 to 90. My plan was to go grab some new sand and live rock at the LFS and then seed it basically with is tank. I should be able to get my tank up with water in it by tomorrow - anyone have thoughts on if this will power cycle or am I setting up for a disaster? He has some type of filtration unit that he swears is worth over $1000 alone (never heard of one costing so much but whatever) I'm imagining that filter is the source of his algae problem that mom hates. I was going to hook it up and run it for a couple days/weeks to help keep everything as "normal" as it has been and then ditch it. Good idea or bad?
Thanks for any input!!
I was just offered a running 65gal fully stocked reef tank for free. Catch is, it has to be out of his house in the next couple of days or his mom is pulling the plug. Tank is really scratched and he doesn't clean the glass as often as she'd like so she's giving it the boot.
So I've been running around like a chicken with its head cutoff to get equipment. Got a sweet deal on a brand new 90 bowfront that is about 10 years old but never had water in it (praying silicone is good! guess we'll see pretty soon here.) It is a JetStream with a Tidepool sump. I'm ditching the sump and making my own out of rubbermaid tubs in the basement (tank is going to be plumbed straight down through the floor.
It's been almost 9 years since I sold my tank and I'm kinda out of the loop in regards to what the newest equipment is. I think one of the biggest changes is in lighting. LED seems pretty cool but wow are they expensive. Is it equal to MH in regards to wattage? He is giving me an LED light bar he uses but I imagine my new tank is at least 12 inches deeper than his so I will need to upgrade. I have a mag 9.5 but I'm going to be dealing with about 8 to 9 feet of head so I need to get something else (not too big - I'm of the school of thought where i want things going nice and slow through the sump.) Are Mag's and Eheims still the norm? I need to get some powerhead/wavemakers. Any great advances in those in recent years?
Thanks, I would do all the research myself but I've got to get this tank stand painted and plumbed.
Also, I've never done a complete aquarium change going from 65 to 90. My plan was to go grab some new sand and live rock at the LFS and then seed it basically with is tank. I should be able to get my tank up with water in it by tomorrow - anyone have thoughts on if this will power cycle or am I setting up for a disaster? He has some type of filtration unit that he swears is worth over $1000 alone (never heard of one costing so much but whatever) I'm imagining that filter is the source of his algae problem that mom hates. I was going to hook it up and run it for a couple days/weeks to help keep everything as "normal" as it has been and then ditch it. Good idea or bad?
Thanks for any input!!