newbie looking for help

[MIreefer]

Hello all, am new to the nano hobby, have kept fw for years and am looking forward to my first sw. First a some questions, my biggest concern is lighting, I have a 7g bow and would like to try my hand at corals. Any suggestions on the lighting, looking for info on type and where to buy.

 

Also would like any advice that could be given on lr and ls, as I plan to have both, how much and of what type. There is a lfs that sell the ls in sealed heavy plastic bags, is that a good idea to buy or would something else be better. Being that I am anxious to get started any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Crakeur]

First off, if it isn't too pricey, buy the live rock from a local store so you can hand pick the rock. ordering over the internet (this has been covered numerous times) can result in rock that isn't easily aquascaped. Not sure about the live sand but if it isn't that great you can order live sand activator and critters from ipsf.com or you can get a handfull of live sand from the lfs (from one of their tanks) or even from a local reefer.

 

Regarding the lighting, do not skimp now if you plan on keeping sps corals. You will regret it in the long run. Check the for sale/classifieds boards, I think there was a 70w hqi mh for sale there that was a good price. That should be plenty of light for sps corals in a 7 gallon. If you want to take it one step further, you can get a 70w hqi mh with a 32w actinic pc in one unit from greg.marge@prodigy.net. Just email Marge and tell her what you are looking for and she will price it out and make it to your specs (that's where I got mine and it works great and wasn't too costly).

 

Most important, try and plan in advance for what type of critters you want to keep, then figure out what is needed for those animals. Nothing is worse than setting up the tank and realizing that an upgrade is in order when you could have done it from the get go. Ok, losing everything in a blaze like glenn's post is probably worse.

 

read up on the animals you're looking for, read the posts here and on other sites, do your research and don't jump into it until you are ready. you'll be happy with the advanced planning.