Converting 400g freshwater to Reef

[h0ckeyfreek20]

I already know this is going to take a lot of research and money so lets get right down to it!

Is a 400g marine tank a horrible idea for a first timer?

I was going to do a FOWLR tank. But corals look awesome, even hardy corals really make the tank look great. I think It may be worth the trade off to get hardy corals in place of non-reef safe fish.


Thoughts or opinions on the following topics?

-Substrate: I Would love sand but is bare bottom easier for maintenance? Siphoning an 8' x 3' tank would be very time consuming. Are there Any critters that can help keep the sand clean but not harm stronger corals? Would you guys recommend a shallow or deep bed of substrate? Tank has a 10x filtration cycle rate so flow is very high and always tossed around sand in the FW tank. should i lower flow?


-My fresh water drip system is a concern of mine. I currently have RO/DI 50 gallon per day unit, constantly dripping into my tank and another line that allows water to drain out of the tank. Eliminates water changes for freshwater. but Im assuming this won't work for salt water because the RO/DI water will change salinity and other water parameters in the tank? Do most reef keepers run a RO/DI filter into a container for future water changes?


-Algae: I'm worried about coralline algae on the acrylic. I don't want to scrape and scratch the viewing panel. how likely is an Urchin to scratch the acrylic? and would i need an army of them for a 400g?


-A good fish and coral combo that won't completely break the bank: recommend me your favorite beginger coral? Will tangs and angels of different sizes get along with each other and the corals? It's a big tank so i want a couple of larger fish that will get along with the smaller fish.


-Lighting: can I get away with the less expensive salt water lighting with stronger corals? or buy the expensive fixture and call it a day. Are LEDs an option?



I have all plumbing, sumps, protein skimmers, and pumps to make the swap to salt water.
Any other recommendations or comments are appreciated!!
Thanks all!

[Rover88]

Originally Posted by h0ckeyfreek20

I already know this is going to take a lot of research and money so lets get right down to it!

Is a 400g marine tank a horrible idea for a first timer?

I was going to do a FOWLR tank. But corals look awesome, even hardy corals really make the tank look great. I think It may be worth the trade off to get hardy corals in place of non-reef safe fish.


Thoughts or opinions on the following topics?

-Substrate: I Would love sand but is bare bottom easier for maintenance? Siphoning an 8' x 3' tank would be very time consuming. Are there Any critters that can help keep the sand clean but not harm stronger corals? Would you guys recommend a shallow or deep bed of substrate? Tank has a 10x filtration cycle rate so flow is very high and always tossed around sand in the FW tank. should i lower flow? Your powerheads will push detritus to gather in certain areas, and you can just siphon those up! Personally I have sandbed in mind, and a deep one just because I bought too much sand, but also I wanted some creatures that burrow/live in the sand. A wrasse, jawfish, engineer goby... If you find sand gets blown around, you can alternatively get crushed coral or heavier grain sand


-My fresh water drip system is a concern of mine. I currently have RO/DI 50 gallon per day unit, constantly dripping into my tank and another line that allows water to drain out of the tank. Eliminates water changes for freshwater. but Im assuming this won't work for salt water because the RO/DI water will change salinity and other water parameters in the tank? Do most reef keepers run a RO/DI filter into a container for future water changes? Saltwater tanks use an auto-top off device. It has a storage container for RODI (I use a 30 gallon brute trashcan) and will automatically top off any evaporated water. There are auto-water change systems, but you add saltwater and remove saltwater, otherwise as you said it'll throw off your salinity.


-Algae: I'm worried about coralline algae on the acrylic. I don't want to scrape and scratch the viewing panel. how likely is an Urchin to scratch the acrylic? and would i need an army of them for a 400g? From what I read, urchins will scratch acrylic. There are special acrylic scrapers that are supposed to avoid damaging it.


-A good fish and coral combo that won't completely break the bank: recommend me your favorite beginger coral? Will tangs and angels of different sizes get along with each other and the corals? It's a big tank so i want a couple of larger fish that will get along with the smaller fish.Leather corals or LPS... My first coral was an austrailian duncan coral, I had one that had 3 heads, and now it has about 2 dozen heads. Also, I love the green nepthea tree that I got. You are going to probably be able to find FAR better deals on local reef groups/facebook then in stores... Tons of people like to trade frags.


-Lighting: can I get away with the less expensive salt water lighting with stronger corals? or buy the expensive fixture and call it a day. Are LEDs an option? LEDs are an option and are becoming more and more common. You can get cheap lights without corals, but if you want your corals to do well you'll want to invest in the right lights for the job.



I have all plumbing, sumps, protein skimmers, and pumps to make the swap to salt water.
Any other recommendations or comments are appreciated!!
Thanks all!

[top shelf]

To answer your first question the bigger the water volume the more stability you have. The downside to this is overall cost and space. Theres also the logistics of dealing with a big tank which can be intimidating to some. However if you already have had this tank as a fw you already know and understand some of that. Rover88 gave you some really good advice to a few of your other questuons.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1031074
That link is a really good place to help you get started, it covers a lot of questions you will inevitably have. There is a lot of knowledge packed into that and can help put you ahead of the game.

[TheCamaroShow]

on that tank go with radion xr30s and a t5 combo for the spread best light money can buy and you'll never need to upgrade to something better, they can last forever honestly. cheap leds always have the leds go out and some are fire hazards so just take the punch to the wallet once and be done. also you could use coral as a substrate which is becoming very common and looks really cool

[NikonN8]

The biggest hits to your budget are going to be lights, pumps, and skimmer. Lighting doesn't have to be savage. A good skimmer will be expensive for a 400g - especially if you go fish-heavy.

Also, don't forget an ATO. Your drip system is similar but probably not a replacement.

[NikonN8]

Oh, and go bare-bottom. So much nicer than sand, IMHO. After a while I've made all my tanks bare.

[cvrle1]

Originally Posted by TheCamaroShow

on that tank go with radion xr30s and a t5 combo for the spread best light money can buy and you'll never need to upgrade to something better, they can last forever honestly. cheap leds always have the leds go out and some are fire hazards so just take the punch to the wallet once and be done. also you could use coral as a substrate which is becoming very common and looks really cool

I have to completely disagree with this. There is absolutely no proof that cheaper LEDs go out more often than CREE, and even less that they are a fire hazard. It has been shown many times over that cheap Chinese black box LED fixture will grow corals just as well as top of the line radion, AI and so on fixtures. As an example, look into ReefBreaders Photon V2+, it is 1/2 the price of xr30 (or more), it will do everything xr30 can, and he will need a lot less of them for that size of tank.

And while we are at it, coral as substrate has been used for ages, so it is nothing new. I do agree that it looks cool though.

[lpsouth1978]

Originally Posted by cvrle1

I have to completely disagree with this. There is absolutely no proof that cheaper LEDs go out more often than CREE, and even less that they are a fire hazard. It has been shown many times over that cheap Chinese black box LED fixture will grow corals just as well as top of the line radion, AI and so on fixtures. As an example, look into ReefBreaders Photon V2+, it is 1/2 the price of xr30 (or more), it will do everything xr30 can, and he will need a lot less of them for that size of tank.

And while we are at it, coral as substrate has been used for ages, so it is nothing new. I do agree that it looks cool though.

Having just recently upgraded from "chinese black box" to AI Hydra 26HD, I can say there is definitely a difference. My biggest complaint with the CBB was the disco ball effect. It was INSANE!!! I think a T5 CBB hybrid setup would be amazing on a tank that size. The LED's would give good penetration, while the T5 would even out the spectrum and reduce the disco ball effect.

[TheCamaroShow]

any updates