If You Are New to Reef Central, Introduce Yourself Here!

[capnjazz]

I'm brand new to saltwater tanks, since I started my tank in December, but I'm absolutely loving the hobby. I have a 10 gallon that I'm trying to make into a nanoreef tank. I'm currently keeping a sunset monti, green acro and purple stylo in the tank along with a pair of clownfish, skunk cleaner shrimp and a pistol shrimp. I had a yellow banded goby paired with my pistol shrimp but he kicked the bucket, despite my water levels being zeroed out. I did buy him from a cheaper LFS while the rest of my livestock is from a more expensive one, so maybe it was just the supplier.

I'm guessing that if I can keep an acro alive in a 10 gallon tank that I can keep a goby alive, lol. I ordered a yasha to replace my banded goby. I'll post a thread later specifically asking for help and I'll also post a picture of my set up. I'm glad to have entered this hobby as it's extremely fun and rewarding, even if it is a bit expensive to learn. I hope to be extremely active in this community and learn as much as possible from you guys.

[r64un94me]

I will be getting my set up this week (reef) and am new to saltwater and reef systems. I have done a lot of research. Any suggestions or advice is greatly welcomed. I have a 125g tank coming this week, I have the water in reservoirs at the moment. The reservoirs are piped to a faucet near the tank with a switch and pumps, one will be for just water and one for backup saltwater. Advice about how long to wait to add corals/fish/inverts. What type of equipment will be helpful, I am planning on getting a skimmer soon. How much rock is Ideal LB/GAL? Planning on 1 to 1. Going to have a refugium as well, should I wait a certain amount of time to start this? Any feedback would be great, Thanks!

[Jexster66]

New to saltwater! I have wanted to start a tank for years finally talked the wife into a Red Sea 250 reefer. Just picked up a vectra m1 and looking for a good skimmer. Excited for this new journey!

[EquinsuOcha]

New to RC and happy to be here, I posted in the parent page of this thinking that it was the introduction page.

Steve

[TheFishMan320]

Hi all, I've been an addict for about 35 years. I've kept many freshwater fish. I had a saltwater tank over 20 years ago and finally decided that I wanted a reef tank. I am in the process of turning my 125 into just that.

[PrtorcnFury]

Hi all,
I am new to the hobby and have spend several hours trying to ID 2 new guys that grew in my tank but had no luck. I'm hoping that someone can help me figure this out and if they are corals how to keep them alive.

Some background on my tank. I bought a 40 gal tank about 3 weeks ago and put in the water, salt and live sand. Waited 2 weeks and went to a local shop and bought 30 pounds of Fiji rock. The shop owner buys the dry rock and cures it before selling it. When I picked my rocks they all looked clean and white, no traces of life or color. 4 days after I set the rocks in the tank I took a water sample to have it tested and got my first cheap fish just to try it out. When I put the fish I noticed that most of the rocks have already been partially covered with coralline and found 2 creatures that look like corals and some other green plant looking stuff growing. I'm surprised because the tank has been running for almost 3 weeks and I am already seeing signs of life. Here are some pics to see if anyone can help me figure out what is in my tank and if its good how to keep it alive.

Its night time and they seem to have retracted a lot so its a bit difficult to get a good picture of them but here is what I go.

[Kaidman]

The first and last picture look like aptasia. Normally considered a post.

[PrtorcnFury]

Thank you. I looked it up and that is what it is. Should I remove that rock and leave it out under the sun until it dies?

[MrGuyPerson]

Hi everyone. Just thought I would say hi. I'm not totally new to the forum -- I just realized that I made my account in 2002! -- but I was mostly been a lurker, and have been out of the hobby for over 10 years. Life, school, and all kinds of things have made it hard to have an aquarium, but I'm getting to a place where I can start to think about getting my feet wet (see what I did there?). I'm sure a lot of things (technology, husbandry, species availability, etc.) has changed since I last had a marine aquarium, so I am hoping to catch up on everything I've missed, relearn a lot of things, and learn some entirely new things. Looking forward to spending time on the forum again!

Cheers!

EDIT: I just realized that I have AIM listed as my contact info... Yikes.

[aaron186]

New to site. Working on setting up a 40B

[CaBrowne]

Hello! New to the site. Starting a 55g. First time Reefer convert from freshwater planted.

[pastinaca]

Hello , I present me , I call me Javier does already some years that have and had marine aquariums of reef .
At present it is of 450 100 sump ; it is true that when have doubts or look for informacion finish some times derived to this forum.
It is a pleasure pose directly my doubts and if somebody with but experience can orient me . la: la:
Thank you

[JohnnyHildo]

hey guys!
first post in what i hope is a life long hobby! looking forward to everyone's input.

[Liquid360]

My name is Nate and I'm from Birmingham, AL. Been into reefing since mid 80's. A couple of years ago while living in my loft, I had a 130g system that failed while I was gone, emptying the tank into my loft and neighbors doing over 30k in damage. I've just bought a house and am trying again I'm a glutton for punishment!

[lilphil26]

Hey guys, Name is Brad and i was into reefing years ago but life got in the way( wife and a little one) but i have just got an IM lagoon 25. Its still in the box bit hope to get it up and running shortly.

[Sharkie136]

Hi guys, I'm new. Just joined yesterday. I have a 14-gallon Biocube that I've had since 2013 which is going well with a clownfish, a Blue Spot Jawfish and corals. I am now in the coming months setting up a 115-gallon fish-only tank! Very excited about this, and to get any advice from you guys as I am certainly new to larger tanks. Happy 2016 everyone!

[rread16]

My name is R.J. and I'm 26 from N.J. I've grown up at the shore my hole life and have always wanted to do a marine tank. I've been running freshwater tanks since high school and have also had my bearded dragon for 8 years now. My wife and I recently found out we have going to have a baby and decided that its time to make the jump to Saltwater. Im setting this tank up so that my child can enjoy and become a part of a hobby that i never had the chance to.

[MattPhillips]

Hello everybody

I guess this is the initiation phase for the newbies here......
I'm the absolute beginner wanting to start a reef aquarium, Have began to do a bit of research and currently thinking of purchasing a fluval m90, hopfuly learn from this tank yet be able to hold onto to it to mature it over the years.

[CarrieB]

Hi all,

I started back in the 90's with goldfish and progressed through tropicals and finally set up a 100g reef tank with a few fish and some hardy coral (only had fluorescent lights). I loved my tank but gave it up when we moved from CA to VA.

Now I have a two year old grandson that loves fish and when my DH didn't immediately object to the idea of a new tank, I took a look on Craig's List. Turns out there is a 150g project tank that needs a home. The question is how much is this good deal going to cost me, and is there any chance I can say no? I think I may need a sponsor.

Carrie

[salt T]

The Story Begins:
It all began 1 year ago, a birthday present from my family, a small jellyfish tank from Jelly Fish Art, thus began my addiction. I do love jellyfish and I'm very passionate about them however, I needed more of a challenge. I bought a 24 gallon innovative marine tank. The tank looked big at the time and I thought it would satisfy my reef appetite. It wasn't long before I went to a bigger and better 100 gallon cad-lights artisan II tank and let me tell you if my wife or my house would have allowed it I would have gotten an even bigger tank! The 100 gallon is just going to do for now. Believe it or not I'm satisfied... I think. I eventually started replacing equipment after equipment because as you replace one part then you need another part and then as the new equipment came out I would have to have it. I found myself repeating to my loved one "I swear this is it this is the last thing I need, I don't need anything else" but it just never stops. Now I'm looking to upgrade and and go to full SPS. I have finally reached the stage where I can keep fish and grow a forest of coral.

Production:
I am a firm believer that "price is a measure of performance". I can certainly tell with aquarium equipment that it's extremely important for reliability, performance and aesthetics which is something I am extremely passionate about. I'm the kind a guy that likes to admire the exterior of the car and but when you pop open the hood it's jaw dropping.
For that wow factor I went for a clean and modern look; the sump was custom built by a company in Southern California called Advanced Acrylics. They also did the custom dosing system as well. The equipment had to be sleek and hidden, if u look closely I have two Maxspect Gyre circulation pumps that are hidden on the return column and facing 4 different directions. I'm not a fan of seeing the multiple pumps on the side of aquarium tanks. To keep the clutter minimal underneath the tank I built two cabinets on either side of the stand. One cabinet stores the temperature controlled waterproof electrical box and the second cabinet contains the automated dosing system. The cabinets also serve as convenient seating for guests to sit on and view the tank. I know I sound like a bit of a control freak... I am. The whole system is controlled through Neptunes Apex system and GHL for dosing and auto topoff. The entire system is totally capable of running solo for 3 to 5 days and I can control it from my phone, I just need my family to do some feeding. I have installed cameras so I can check on the sump and skimmer to make sure everything is doing what it should being that I travel a lot for work.



The Credits:
I wish I was retired and had a lot of time to do this hobby but I actually work more than I should and am very busy man. I'm a Chef and know nothing about water chemistry, marine biology, or how this hobby works. I could cook fish but had no idea how to keep them alive and without forums and online help I do not know how I could have gotten this far. I didn't want anybody to see how ignorant I was and was amazed at how friendly and helpful everyone has been from my local fish shop to people I have met on forums not to mention the countless hours I have spent on the help line of Marine Depot.... poor guys. It has been really heartwarming and I have to say thank you for all of the encouragement and patience that you all have had. I mean everyone has to start somewhere, everyone was new to this hobby at some point. I also have to give some credit to my loving family who bought me my first tank and who has supported me from the the beginning, putting up with long nights, leaks, dead fish, emergencies, messes and for allowing me to have the dedicated time needed to learn everything from scratch.

The Saga Continues
My plan for the upcoming year is to document my journey as I gear my tank towards an SPS dominated tank with the thought of going into the ZEOvit system (someone please stop me!) I feel like I'm pretty maxed out on the amount of fish being that I have around 30 and I'm pretty happy with the selection. Everything seems to be happy and growing well but... boy it sure takes a long time!! Until then happy reefing and see you soon.

[Louis@ghuang204]

Hallo everyone.My name is Louis.Let me talk about that it was all began 4 year ago,my girlfriend told me that she wanted a saltwater tank in her home,but she had been saw it only.I thought that all of boy understand the meaning exactly,is it right?So we chosed a nano tank of 10 gal.In the first two years I didn't have sump in my system,you know that it was difficult to opreate,the nitrate almost highly,and I didn't have skimmer in the past.
Finally,I put a sump in the system,the skimmer and return pump in the there,and some bryopsis growing in there.
Now I have got a pair of Clown fish,two tangs and some lps.

[Refutable Spy]

Hello everyone. Well, let's see. I had a 46 gallon bowfront reef tank about 10 years ago and had to break it down due to moving. I sold everything off (mistake) before I moved. I now have the itch again thanks to my girlfriends son. All he talks about now is a reef aquarium because one of his friends has one. Ah, memories. So of course I thought about RC because I used all the helpful information when I was starting up my tank many years ago. I have been lurking in the depths of the forums reading and seeing how much has changed over the years. Wow. A lot has changed as I can see so far. Looking forward to all the helpful thoughts and experiences that this community has to offer.
~Spy

[ReefTankSTL]

Hello
Hope everyone is doing great. I am brand new to this hobby and kinda of lost when it comes to everything lol. I am planning on going with a 150 gallon tank. I do want a live coral reef as well. I have no experience where do i begin?

Thanks

[Cement Mule]

Hi, while not entirely new to freshwater and saltwater aquariums, I took a 10 year vacation from the hobby, but decided to get back into it in a smaller way. I am in the process of setting up a 29 Gal Biocube tank that I plan to setup as a small reef tank with just a few fish... not many. Just started this past weekend, setting up the tank, putting in the live sand and will let the tank process for a couple of weeks before adding some live rock. Look forward to being part of this community.
Garry

[Ezekiel95]

Hi I am Ezekiel and I have an ich problem in my reef tank I have a few soft corals can I take them out and quarantine them and hypo salinity my dt