new set up

[Vish]

I am a gr8 fan of reef set up and I am finally gonna set up one for my office. I will appreciate if I can get detailed steps I need to take to set theat up or may be pointers from where I can get that info.

 

I want a 20g reef only tak to start with. I would like to have some fishes latter if possible.

 

These are the question I am looking answers to.

 

-Is 20G a good idea? Should I go in for more?

-What hardware I need for this set up?

-I want it to be easy on my pocket. What considerations there?

 

Thanks

[Salim]

First off do a search , then take a look at the Articles & Info now go do some more reasearch.

 

If your looking on saving some money a reef tank will cost a whole lot more than a fish only with live rock "FOWLR" setup. and you can always upgrade it to a reef tank later.

 

So my advice is to do some research and decide what types of animals you want to keep then plan it out so that your not buying everything at once make a checklist and keep it by the tank and over the course of a year or so you can have the tank you want without breaking the bank.

 

Good luck

 

Salim

[ross76053]

Vish,

 

Yes, a 20G is a good size to start with. Of course the larger the tank, the less chance of errors affecting your animals (because of the increased water capacity). Your choice.

 

Minimum hardware:

 

Skimmer - you'll find that half the people here skim and half don't. IMO, any new tank should be skimmed, and if the decision is made to go skimmerless, I'd make the transition slowly, by skimming less & less until finally it is removed completely.

 

Lighting - there are books on lighting. Read all you can. Since money is an issue, start with Compact Fluourescents (PCs). You'll spend around $100 - $150 to light a 20-gallon.

 

Powerheads - not much of an expense....probably around $30 for a 20-gal. Don't buy them at your LFS - buy them off the Internet - always much cheaper!

 

Heater - again, a small expense. But I'd suggest the new Titanium ones - you can get a 100W one for around $35, and there almost unbreakable, unlike the glass models.

 

Hood - you can make your own the way you want it and save big buckage. It isn't that hard if you have access to power tools.

 

There are many other expense....test kits, a hydrometer, additives (if you choose to use them), other odds & ends.

 

I've spent around $750 on my 10-gallon so far, mostly because I've ordered just about all my corals/rock/sand online, and since the stuff weighs so much, I pay out the @ss for shipping. You can probably do it much cheaper if you buy stuff locally.

 

The best way to get stuff cheap - join a local marine aquarium society, tell them you're just getting started and you're on a tight budget. Chances are, someone (or many people) will donate frags for the cause.

 

There are many other considerations - too much to cover here. As Salim mentioned, you need to read all you can about reef tanks. I spent a couple of months reading before I ever bought anything, and it was well worth it. I haven't made a major mistake yet (of course I just jinxed myself). X)

[Vish]

Thanks Ross.

I will sure read before I buy. Actually thats why I have started researching 6 months before I actually plan to by anything. I am planning to have a tak by june-july 2003. So I thought I should start researching from now.

 

All:

Has anybody used Advance Aqua Tanks for nano reefing?

Or may be I should start a new thread for this...

http://www.advanceaquatanks.com/uniqrectangle.html

 

They look pretty cool but bit heavy on pocket I guess. But if some one can say good words about the set up, I will buy it....

 

It has a wet and dry filter, is acrylic... you will see it at the above link...any ideas or comments will be highly appreciated...