First tank...

[MrMiggiDude]

Well I work at an aquarium store. Pretty big, too. We have over 100 tanks. 30 or so are Salt. Our owner is a self proclaimed expert but i have learned not to trust him from other workers. I've read many books and I still am confused because of conflicting data.


My boss says to have a saltwater tank, I need a mud filter. I need Chalerpa in it, and need to spend over 500 dollars on a tank and lighting system+ the fish and corals i want. From books, i've read that wet/drys, canisters, the berlin system, etc are all good ways of maintaining a saltwater tank.

I haven't gotten a direct answer from anything and now i'm turning to you. I want to keep a 'nano' tank. 10-20 gallons. Maybe 7. I want to keep small fish like a red lip scooters, yellow head goby, maybe some perculas. I want to keep Soft corals such as Frogspawn, Hammers, Bubble Coral, Elegant Coral and things of that sort.


What kind of lighting system and filtration would i need to achieve that. The books i've read (the nano reef handbook, mostly) is not very clear and what is the best and what doesnt work. Any help would be much appreciated.

[PatMayo]

You do not need a mud filter to keep a salt tank. Really all you need is some live rock, a way to move the water around and a decent light for the corals. With a tank that small your light will not be very expensive. Some fine sand in the bottom. With a small tank like that you really won't need a skimmer. You can keep the water clean by doing partial water changes.

But by the time you buy the tank, get the light and live rock and the other misc things including the corals and fish, you likely could have $500.00 wrapped up in the tank. That is to do it right.

I would spend some time on this web site and in the nano tank forum. Those guys can help you a lot.

Not to disparage your boss but I got to tell you, he sounds like most LFS owners, he does not know what he is talking about.

Here is the link to the Nano tank forum.

Good luck in your quest for the real truth.

Regards,

Pat

http://reefcentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=75

[mg426]

I have to agree, the mud system most likely works but there are a bunch of folks on here doing it with LR. i would take a few more laps around here, lots of smart guys and gals here that will give you great advice. nobody here is trying to sell anything either.

[MrMiggiDude]

Yeah i've definately been looking a lot before posting. But a thread for me would be suited best for me, obviously lol. Well. I get it wholesale aka 50% off. So he really isnt trying to sell me anything at all. The sad part is that i actually think he believes it is the absolute only way to go for salt water. ugh...my quest continues.

[Fast Fred]

Miggi,

One thing to keep in mind is that the smaller the tank, the more difficult it is to have success. Smaller tanks are much less stable, and require much more of your attention to keep everything ballanced.

I had a 5g eclipse reef set up previously. It was a lot of work compared to the 125g that I have now.

[MrMiggiDude]

Thanks so much for the replies! I was thinking about it and I might go with a 30 gallon. But still treat it as a nano, as in having small fish and caring about ever minute detail.


Picture this. 30 gallon. Live rock, Live sand. Frogspawn, Elegant, Bubble, hammers. Other softies. Anenomes maybe? Nudibranch, Hermits, Yellowhead Goby, Hi-fin goby, Red lip scooter, Clowns maybe, a few turbos. Some other things you guys can recommend. Power Compact lighting, as many watts as required (or maybe t-5 lights. recommend either one.) What else would i need?

[yeame]

if u go with a 33g or a 20g lighting will cost much less

[tkenm377]

true that... I just started a 30L and I've probably spent $700 - $800 on equipment and that includes stand, canopy, tank, skimmer, sump, plumbing, bulkheads, lighting (175W MH and 2 T5 actinics), fans etc. You have to be prepared to spend alot at the beginning and then it starts to taper off. Also I have LR, about a 4in sandbed (50#), powerheads, and the sump which contains the skimmer; from personal experiances this works wonders, not to mention looks better than mud filters.. Good Luck with everything!