New marine reef aquarium
Discussion
I'm after some advice from anyone with experiance on keeping a marine reef tank.
I’ve just picked up a new tank and having kept freshwater tropical successfully in the past I’d really like to take the step up to marine this time. The tank I’ve got is a 155ltr/40Gal cube Aquarium in oak Cabinet and hood. Tank size: 50cm x 55cm x 60cm deep. http://fishkeeper.co.uk/product/aqua...abinet-vxa043-
I’d like to set it up as a reef aquarium and I’ve been trying to read up online but it’s almost becoming information overload. I’m not rushing into this and I want to do things properly. I’d rather buy once and get the set-up I need from the offset rather than have to worry about rethinks and upgrades at a later date etc.
I know I need lighting, filtration and ideally a protein skimmer. Many marine set-ups have sump based filtration but I not sure if my cabinet will lend itself to that given the size. Will a decent canister filter do the job? What lighting can I use and still retain the existing hood and give me good tank results. Do I need to consider any specifics regarding the skimmer?
Any links to good threads or sites/books with a beginners guide would be great.
I’ve just picked up a new tank and having kept freshwater tropical successfully in the past I’d really like to take the step up to marine this time. The tank I’ve got is a 155ltr/40Gal cube Aquarium in oak Cabinet and hood. Tank size: 50cm x 55cm x 60cm deep. http://fishkeeper.co.uk/product/aqua...abinet-vxa043-
I’d like to set it up as a reef aquarium and I’ve been trying to read up online but it’s almost becoming information overload. I’m not rushing into this and I want to do things properly. I’d rather buy once and get the set-up I need from the offset rather than have to worry about rethinks and upgrades at a later date etc.
I know I need lighting, filtration and ideally a protein skimmer. Many marine set-ups have sump based filtration but I not sure if my cabinet will lend itself to that given the size. Will a decent canister filter do the job? What lighting can I use and still retain the existing hood and give me good tank results. Do I need to consider any specifics regarding the skimmer?
Any links to good threads or sites/books with a beginners guide would be great.
Thanks for the feedback and advice especially ViperDave for the detailed reply, it's given lots of food for thought.
I do accept the tank is probably smaller than ideal for marine and I would have got a 4ft+ tank had space permitted but i'm limited on a tank that fits an alcove in our front room. The theory is that given this is to be a totally a new set-up if I am to go marine with it then this is the time to do it, as deciding to change in a year or two from fresh to salt water will be more hassle and mean I've wasted money on kit which wont be fit for purpose. If it's impractical then that's fine but I didn't want to rule it out without looking into it first.
Given the size of the tank a sump would be a major plus, especially if I can co-locate the skimmer and heater. I pick the tank up on Saturday so i'll be able to confirm the internal dimensions of the cabinet and see if a sump is feasible. Can sumps be bought as a (small) unit or will I need to custom build one? I've heard that for a sump i'll need to get my tank drilled, questions I have are 1. Is there a standard sump designs/format to follow (i'm a novice here!) and if I need my tank drilled how would I go about this?
Cheers
I do accept the tank is probably smaller than ideal for marine and I would have got a 4ft+ tank had space permitted but i'm limited on a tank that fits an alcove in our front room. The theory is that given this is to be a totally a new set-up if I am to go marine with it then this is the time to do it, as deciding to change in a year or two from fresh to salt water will be more hassle and mean I've wasted money on kit which wont be fit for purpose. If it's impractical then that's fine but I didn't want to rule it out without looking into it first.
Given the size of the tank a sump would be a major plus, especially if I can co-locate the skimmer and heater. I pick the tank up on Saturday so i'll be able to confirm the internal dimensions of the cabinet and see if a sump is feasible. Can sumps be bought as a (small) unit or will I need to custom build one? I've heard that for a sump i'll need to get my tank drilled, questions I have are 1. Is there a standard sump designs/format to follow (i'm a novice here!) and if I need my tank drilled how would I go about this?
Cheers
Thanks for that.
Ideally I'd like the option of keeping sps corals but I guess that main factor is what filtration I can get to work for the tank/cabinet and ultimately cost.
The amount of information and terminology to the uninitiated is quite overwhelming. I think i need to break it done into steps (which you've help greatly with), so I'll see if I can get it sumped and then start working from that point on. Off to carry on the research!
Ideally I'd like the option of keeping sps corals but I guess that main factor is what filtration I can get to work for the tank/cabinet and ultimately cost.
The amount of information and terminology to the uninitiated is quite overwhelming. I think i need to break it done into steps (which you've help greatly with), so I'll see if I can get it sumped and then start working from that point on. Off to carry on the research!
Given size I'm thinking sps may be a step too far. Might start off with fish and live rock only to break myself in gently now. That said if I can't get a sump to work with the cabinet it might have to be a nice quality tropical setup.
Time for some more reading and head scratching!
Shame I can't just persuade the other half to loose the furniture and put a 4ft with sump in. Then it's just my budget and knowledge holding me back!
Time for some more reading and head scratching!
Shame I can't just persuade the other half to loose the furniture and put a 4ft with sump in. Then it's just my budget and knowledge holding me back!
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