Darya Posted April 14, 2003 Share Posted April 14, 2003 Ok, so this is my plan. See if u can spot anything missing or anything that can be improved. 1. 7g AGA minibow and a stand 2. 32w CSL kit (11 1/2 hrs on-12 1/2 hrs off) Or some DIY pc's 3. 2 60mm 5v CPU fans (1 pull/1 push) 4. AC/DC adapter for the fans 5. 3 Timers 1 for lights n fans & 2 for ph n filter 6. 1 minijet 400 series ph (around 100 gph) 7. 1 whisper HOB pwr filter (around 100 gph)-no filter media 8. 3 to 6 pieces of Lr , 8-10 lbs 9. 8-10 lbs of Ls 10. 1 heater (havent decided on brand-50w tronic perhaps!) 11. 1 glass thermometer 12. 1 hydrometer 13. Arrowhead distilled water Or a 4-5 stage RO unit 14. Salt - hmmm...whatever Prince Con recommends 15. Test kits for PH, Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate 16. Food (frozen formula 1 red or Prince Con's recommendation) 17. Supplements - iodine, calcium 18. 1 or 2 5g plastic buckets 19. 1 siphon hose/vaccum 20. couple of fish nets 21. algea magnet 22. a can of spray paint or background sheet 23. 1 small clear plastic container for quarantine 24. 1 cheapo digital camera to share my luv with y'all. Extras: refugium, sander's picollo skimmer, chiller (may really need it for a cali summer), digital thermometer, refractometer, and auto top-off (if I win the state lotto ) Ok, now what am i missing? talk to me. -Any suggestions on what brand to get for stuff i am not sure of? -Know any good RO units that I can use for both drinking and aquarium use? thanx in advance for any advice, Darya Link to comment
palaegic Posted April 14, 2003 Share Posted April 14, 2003 Your list looks good. To begin your journey you will need one more critical piece of equipment - a credit card with a $5000.00 limit and zero balance. I'm guessing you have checked out most of the mini-bows on the site. You will certainly find some successful guidelines by seeing what other folks are using successfully. If not, check these links: Members Sites Members Nano's Forum Eventually you will want to add calcium and phosphate test kits to your arsenal. You won't need them while starting up and running in, but once you are established they will be important in maintaining the correct balance or troubleshooting issues with your system. Link to comment
Darya Posted April 14, 2003 Author Share Posted April 14, 2003 AhA!...calcium & phosphate test kits.......check a $5000 credit line? geewiz..I am gonna need to work on that. thanx palaegic Link to comment
Smokin-Reefer Posted April 14, 2003 Share Posted April 14, 2003 If money is a concern, check ebay for some of the goods, Great deals to be had all over the internet if you look hard enough. The plan seems pretty sufficient to me. good luck, and welcome to the board! Link to comment
Darya Posted April 14, 2003 Author Share Posted April 14, 2003 Wish I could find a deal on a 7g mini...but oh well, I'm gonna pick 1 up as soon as this damn rain stops. Will definitely keep an eye on ebay for everything else. thanx for the comments smokin-reefer Link to comment
tinyreef Posted April 14, 2003 Share Posted April 14, 2003 couple things you may want to consider: turkey baster chopsticks or something similar (e.g. dowel rod) calendar or notebook wide spectrum additive (e.g. coral-vite, reef complete, etc.) use a two-part calcium/buffer additive plastic measuring cup (1-qt) pH buffer (not always necessary but nice to have one handy ime) digital timer (nothing fancy, even a watch will do) get physh1's float switch (in the Classifieds forum) btw get the floating algae magnet imo wouldn't bother with the RO unit. it's only 7g and a water bottle is on average 5~6g. the investment for the RO could go to better lights or more tanks. hth Link to comment
Lebowski Posted April 15, 2003 Share Posted April 15, 2003 to lazy to read your thread cause it's long, anyways whatever it is cool! :D Link to comment
Darya Posted April 15, 2003 Author Share Posted April 15, 2003 Hi tinyreef, turkey baster and chopsticks? First I thought you were giving me a recipe. lol . You gave me some very good things to think about. thanx. No idea what a float switch is, I'll find out (i'm guessin some DIY wavemaker!). But what do you use the turkey baster for? and the rod/chopstick? hmmm...I know I know...you first poke the fish with the rod and then sew it up with the baster using good ol waterproof silicone. hehe . Oh...tinyreef...your birthday is only 3 days after mine! ~~Happy Birthday~~ and thanx again. -Darya update: I just found out what I would use the baster and chopsticks for. cheers Link to comment
Darya Posted April 15, 2003 Author Share Posted April 15, 2003 Lebowski...too long? heh. I guess I coulda had a son your age! kids! these days they can't even read a few lines on somethin they obviously like. Link to comment
Darya Posted April 15, 2003 Author Share Posted April 15, 2003 forgot to say j/k lebowski...cheers! Link to comment
Darya Posted April 15, 2003 Author Share Posted April 15, 2003 tinyreef...just read physh's post...a top-off switch I can actually afford...how cool. thanx a bunch Link to comment
harbingerofthefish Posted April 15, 2003 Share Posted April 15, 2003 You may find that putting your HOB and PH on timers will cause a problem. Being that they have submersable magnet drive shafts, mine when I turn them off for whatever reason, stick. And when I turn them back on...nothing happens. debris gets in them, calcium hardens, and the magnet drive gets stuck. So if you do hook them to timers, routine maintenence on them as well as vinegar rinsing on the impeller should keep them running off and on like that pretty well. Turkey basters are good for blowing debris off rocks and causing little sand storms to push some of the "food" into the water coulmn. I know some people install fans on the 7 bow hoods, but I have never had any heat issues with mine. I live in South Alabama about 20 minutes north of the gulf. During the summer time we have 100 deg. weather with 100% humidity, and my tank is always 79-81 deg. Of course we have CH/A unlike some of you out west. A tool I use is one of those $20 2 gallon hex tanks from Wal-Mart. I use it for acclimating and water changes. For acclimating I put it on a heating pad and drop in the airstone. Then run air tubing with a loose knot in it, from the main tnak, for a slow drip. I also use it for mixing water change water. Oh and they're not 2 gallons like they say, rather 1 1/3 gallons. So if you go this route the measuring cup comes in handy for mixing the right amount of water (16 cups) per salt mix, per gallon. You wont need a "siphon vacuum" rather just some small airline tubing. Your never going to vacuum your sand, and if you do the smaller the hose the better, so as not to disturb the bed as much. oh and go ahead and buy some super glue gel now. you always run out right when your damn blue leg hermit decides to rearange some frags for you Link to comment
Darya Posted April 15, 2003 Author Share Posted April 15, 2003 Ty Harb, Altough a bit of vinegar may do the job, I am second guessing myself on the use of the timers for the phs. I mean it's not like u can even see the wave effect. If the phs keep the water moving, what's the big deal about having the timer in a 7g anyway? lol, i found out about the turkey baster. The fan thingy...I read that on Gilman's site. He even took the glass, under his lights, out. I'm gonna ask ppl having tanks down here if they have heat issues. (winkin to Prince Con) The walmart tank, airline hose, and the superglue gel sound like great ideas...already added to my list. thanx P.S. guess my plan wasn't so all-inclusive after all. Link to comment
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