Hello... new here, looking to setup my first salt tank and...

[whaboutbob]

... I have a question. I have found this forum very helpful already and expect to find most of the answers to many of my questions here.

I have 4 freshwater tanks (several planted with co2) and one, which was the first one I bought 4 years ago, is a 50 gal Seaclear system II. I bought this with intent of eventually setting up a marine tank some day, and I am working on making that day happen soon.

I am trying to get all of the hardware lined up that I will need to setup a FOWLER tank and so far I have found a used RO DI unit and I'm trying to find the right skimmer. I see that Seaclear has two skimmers designed to fit into the back of their system II tanks.

There's the Seaclear Venturi skimmer... http://www.aquariumpw.com/shopping/pricelist.asp?prid=1180&brandinc=3">http://www.aquariumpw.com/shopping/pricelist.asp?prid=1180&brandinc=3</a>

and the cheaper air driven skimmer... [IMG]http://www.aquariumpw.com/shopping/pricelist.asp?prid=525&brandinc=3">http://www.aquariumpw.com/shopping/pricelist.asp?prid=525&brandinc=3</a>

I would like to keep the skimmer contained within the rear of the tank if possible, but obviously if it is not going to do the job then I'd forgo looks over function any day.

So I guess I'd like to know if anyone has any advice on what my best option may be for a skimmer for this tank.

Thanks!

Bob

 

[drnecropolis]

Welcome to the group..

Dont know about those skimmers, So I cant say either way.. But welcome!

 

[mojo]

whaboutbob;453560 wrote: I would like to keep the skimmer contained within the rear of the tank if possible, but obviously if it is not going to do the job then I'd forgo looks over function any day.

So I guess I'd like to know if anyone has any advice on what my best option may be for a skimmer for this tank.

The general consensus with skimmers is that you can't have too much skimming power - some people spend more on their skimmer than any other part of their tank.

I'd personally recommend against both of the skimmers that you listed here, unless looks are of absolute importance (and even then, I'd figure out an alternative).

If you have a sump, then there are a number of skimmers that could be hidden away that are much more effective. You can find many of them used.

I don't have any recommendations for you, as I'm unfamiliar with the skimmer choices for smaller systems these days, but others here can help.

Welcome to the forums!

 

[whaboutbob]

thanks all... I am very excited about setting up this tank. I have been reading a lot and talking with the guys over at Warehouse Aquarium. I think I found the skimmer that will work with my tank. It's one of the Octopus models (BH1000 or BH100F), although blu_devl_06's Red Sea Prizm Pro may work so I'll need to find out a little more about that skimmer.

Regarding my plans for the tank, I am planning on starting with live rock and may get some soft corals. I don't have plans to upgrade the lighting any time soon, but I get the feeling the marine environment is way more addicting than most freshwater setups. Although I really enjoy my planted tanks. As for fish, I am pretty limited with this tank (probably 3 or 4 depending on size), but I guess I'll just add slowly and stay on top of the water parameters and see how things progress. The few I have my eye on at WA are the Flame Angel (Centropyge loricula) and the goby's, but I really haven't given it much thought yet. I know my kids would love some hermit crabs, and I'm sure a few snails and some sort of shrimp would be interesting. I'm really looking forward to reading up on suggestions and figuring out a nice combination of fish and invertabrates.

Anyway, thanks for the warm welcome and I'll try to get some pictures at some point.