Hey Y'all-new guy
- Thread starter ironman58
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i like to add the live rock before the sand so it is sitting right on the bottom of the tank, that way your fish wont make them fall by stealing the sand from under them.
welcome.
also if you think you can not set up the system by yourself just ask someone to help you out.
take it slow
buy the best equip you can buy
do not listen to the people at lfs that much without confermation from 2-3 other people.
josh(now at aquariumshowcase) is some one you should visit alot, actually the whole store will help you out correctly. i think all of the employees own tanks of their own.
also if you think you can not set up the system by yourself just ask someone to help you out.
take it slow
buy the best equip you can buy
do not listen to the people at lfs that much without confermation from 2-3 other people.
josh(now at aquariumshowcase) is some one you should visit alot, actually the whole store will help you out correctly. i think all of the employees own tanks of their own.
well-I dropped by the store on the way home toask more questions and the manager's really good, telling me the same things y'all told me. It sounds like I'm gonna come out a LOT cheaper than i thought. He told me I culd get by with flourescents and really didn't need any expensive sumps or skimmers, but I want to do it right, so I think I want to get a good filter system and skimmer. He said I won't need the skimmer for a while, and in a few weeks I could add crabs and snails a little bit at a time. He told me to bring the water by and they'd make sure everything was good before I moved to the next step.
I don't mind spending a little extra for good, quality dependable equipment. I build computers and know that by spending a little more, you get a LOT better performance and quality, so I'm going with the same strategy for my reef tank.
I don't mind spending a little extra for good, quality dependable equipment. I build computers and know that by spending a little more, you get a LOT better performance and quality, so I'm going with the same strategy for my reef tank.
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I would have a skimmer on there the second you have any livestock, and that includes liverock. I build all my own computers and it does hold very true.
well-I dropped by the store on the way home to ask more questions and the manager's really good, telling me the same things y'all told me. It sounds like I'm gonna come out a LOT cheaper than i thought. He told me I culd get by with flourescents and really didn't need any expensive sumps or skimmers, but I want to do it right, so I think I want to get a good filter system and skimmer. He said I won't need the skimmer for a while, and in a few weeks I could add crabs and snails a little bit at a time. He told me to bring the water by and they'd make sure everything was good before I moved to the next step.
I don't mind spending a little extra for good, quality dependable equipment. I build computers and know that by spending a little more, you get a LOT better performance and quality, so I'm going with the same strategy
I don't mind spending a little extra for good, quality dependable equipment. I build computers and know that by spending a little more, you get a LOT better performance and quality, so I'm going with the same strategy
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whoaaaaaaaa! before you get a sump, you might want to check first here! There are many places that you can get used, online, etc. But you need to know FIRST, what do you plan on keeping? Do you plan on fish only with live rock for the first year? Then, expanding to soft corals, or LPS? or clams & sps? Do you know? You need to plan now, so you are set up in the future without a lot of added expenses. If you plan on fish only, forever, then you're fine! However, if you want corals in the future, then you have to plan your fish now too to make sure that they are reef safe. Also, you may want t-5 fluorescents, so you can at least start with some corals, 8 months to a year from now. If so, you might want a sump that can accommodate a large skimmer & a fuge, instead of getting another one in a year. Just trying to save you money & time!
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im not far from you if you ever need some help.
Wow! This IS gonna be a great site! Thanks for the advice and help! Greg at the store told me last night that I could get a couple of small corals in about 4-5 weeks, after I get my "cleaner" crabs and snails in there and let them do some housecleaning. I don't plan on adding any fish for a couple of months at least. I'm more interested in getting corals growing first. I've been looking at pictures of some of y'alls tanks and that's what I want. They are SPECTACULAR!!!!
Also, I'm just gonna let the pumps and skimmers run 24/7 for about a week before I power on my lighting right? Greg said If I add light too soon, I'll just have algae everywhere. He's really great, spent about 30 minutes telling me about how things work,explaining the different types of lighting and even showing me how to set up my live rock. He also told me I get the 10% discount for being an ARC member!
I plan on doing a TON of research in the next couple of months. I'm just gonna be as patient as I can be, but y'all have been where I am and know how anxious and excited I am to finally get things going. I'll post every day to let y'all know how things are coming along. Now I just have to figure a way to catch those HUGE Red Bellied Pacus and all the other freshwater fish I have and get 'em in a bag to take to the store. That'll be an adventure in itself..
Also, I'm just gonna let the pumps and skimmers run 24/7 for about a week before I power on my lighting right? Greg said If I add light too soon, I'll just have algae everywhere. He's really great, spent about 30 minutes telling me about how things work,explaining the different types of lighting and even showing me how to set up my live rock. He also told me I get the 10% discount for being an ARC member!
I plan on doing a TON of research in the next couple of months. I'm just gonna be as patient as I can be, but y'all have been where I am and know how anxious and excited I am to finally get things going. I'll post every day to let y'all know how things are coming along. Now I just have to figure a way to catch those HUGE Red Bellied Pacus and all the other freshwater fish I have and get 'em in a bag to take to the store. That'll be an adventure in itself..
THANKS Barbara! I'll sure take the xenia and zoas. I'll google 'em in a sec to see what they are :confused2:.
I'm all set up! tank's up and running, salinity's not QUITE right but I'm basically letting everything run for at least 3-4 days before I adjust salinity. Greg picked out some amazing live rock for me, It stacked up beautifully with lots of tunnels and caves. I opted for the skimmer and sump, but had to by another stand since my old one was too small to put everything inside the cabinet, and I didn't want to just set it behind the old stand. It's cool because I found the PERFECT stand on sale at Petsmart.
Can't say enough about Greg at Optimum aquarium. He took the freshwater fish and gave me a really good credit for them, then he went through everything I needed to do, showed me how to hook everything up, gave me tips and hints..just really went out of the way to make sure I had what I needed and that everything would work. He spent ad good hour and a half going over everything. Even let me borrow a live rock container to get my rock home. Right now I'm looking at my tank, the water's really cleaning up nice, and everything seems fine so far. There's a nice little burbling sound as like a little brook coming from the tank..VERY relaxing..Now I'm just gonna leave it alone for the next few weeks...
I think I will buy on-line for anything else, like power heads or timers. I'll support those guys ato Optimum too though. I also build model kits and believe in supporting the local hobby shop, although I DO buy a lt on-line..
NOW I'm off to play video games, watch DVDs, be a BUM for the next couple of weeks!
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It's all good, Ralph!
I can help by giving a whole lotta ideas that *don't* work! :doh:
Really good so far! Checked the tank this morning-water's crystal clear and the pump, filter and skimmer are humming along just fine. It's a little noisy isn't it? a bit more than the old pump I had, but it's a lot bigger, so I guess it comes with the territory..I plan on posting some pics for y'all later so you can see how it's coming...
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I'll post updates pretty soon.... new lights, new heater, new growth, and the 6-line wrasse came back to life! I think I'm gonna have to call him "Lazarus!"
Pics will be coming up soon...
Pics will be coming up soon...
