New to forums and the hobby!

[mattyams]

Howdy folks! I stumbled across this site a couple days ago and decided today to join up and introduce myself. It's always hard to type these things so I will do my best. My name is Matt and I am an arcade manager at a local entertainment center. I got into aquatics about 6 months ago when I set up a 55 gallon African Cichlid tank. It's been going strong for the past 6 months with no problems at all! I just bought a 75 gallon and I am transferring my cichlids into it within the coming days...not to excited for this task.

I also have a 30 gallon saltwater tank (FOWLR) that I just got off the ground a little over a month ago. I am super excited about this tank, but I want to do more with it. Just not sure what I can do with it yet. (Hence why I am here)

And my last tank is a 44 gallon pentagon corner tank that will be a planted tank within the coming weeks. This one I am excited for as well, because I have seen some beautiful setups with planted tanks.

I will post some pictures of my tanks in a few moments, gotta get them all put together.

I am excited to see what assistance and ideas I can get from this site, and I am thinking about joining up too! :thumbs:

Pictures to follow!

 

[rdnelson]

Welcome Matt. Glad to have you aboard. You came to the right place to ask questions. There are a ton of very knowledgable people on this forum. If they can help me learn they should have no problem with you.

 

[mattyams]

Ok the pictures are attached.

1. Cichlid tank as it sits now.
2. Cichlid tank after I put in shelves and stuff.
3. My saltwater tank.
4. The before and after shots of my corner tank.
5. New 75 gallon before refinishing.
6. 75 gallon getting refinished.

Sorry about the quality on some.
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[rdnelson]

Looking good. Bet it isn't long before you catch the coral bug and go full blown reef. hehehehehe

 

[mattyams]

I think the sickness is already creeping up.

 

[jimmystephens]

Congrats on ur sw tank. I think most of us went from freshwater to chiclids to sw! Great club with tons of great advice

 

[mattyams]

I'm just concerned about cost to do reef and all that jazz...I'm not the richest man in the world.

 

[picoreefguy]

welcome to the club matt. i think youll like it here there are tons of people that are willing to help you out weather it be by giving advice, a frag of coral or a helping hand when you need to move a tank.

P.S. you dont have to be rich (although it helps lol) to fully enjoy this hobby. you can acquire lots of nice coral and equipment through trading, buying used stuff and a lot of times through the generosity of others on this site. if you ever have any questions feel free to pm me anytime

Edit: oh and heres a piece of advice i wish i had listened to when i got started in saltwater. go slow, think it though before you buy something for your tank, and most of all ask lots of questions.

 

[rdnelson]

What Pico said.

You would be amazed at what little I have in my set up and live stock. I try to build what I can myself, buy used whenever possible but most all all, the generosity of the people on this forum has made it possible.

 

[mattyams]

Well, with all that being said...what is the best, cost effective way to get corals in my tank?

PS...thanks for the warm welcome!

 

[frantz]

Welcome!!! The best way is to buy some coral from me!!! Actually, you can, but this feb there is a swap meet that there are lots of deals! Additionally you get free coral just for showing up! (more if your a member, making it worth joining just for that). Plenty LFS stores offer good deals as well and can give you good advise on what would go in your tank. Soft coral is pretty tolerant, mushrooms offer a lot of color and I like em!

 

[rdnelson]

mattyams;822686 wrote: Well, with all that being said...what is the best, cost effective way to get corals in my tank?

PS...thanks for the warm welcome!

First, tell us what king of lighting you have. If it is adequate I will give you some frags of some stuff that was given to me. Easy stuff that is nice and build confidence.

 

[mattyams]

I'm 100% sure that my 2 T8 50/50's are not adequate for coral.

 

[frantz]

Yeah, t8s won't work, but there are lots of used t5 setups that would be great! Lighting is probably the most expensive single purchase for the reef

 

[mattyams]

Meh...I've spent a ton already between my 3 tanks. :-(

I WANT CORALS NOW DANGIT!

lol.

 

[rdnelson]

mattyams;822694 wrote: Meh...I've spent a ton already between my 3 tanks. :-(

I WANT CORALS NOW DANGIT!

lol.

LOL. We know how you feel. But as you will hear over and over again, only bad things happen quick in this hobby.

But hear is what you should do. Keep working on the SW tank but don't buy equipment yet. If you buy fish, make sure they are reef safe. While you are saving for lights ask lots of questions. Many will say LED is the only way, others will say Metal Halide and others will say T5 fluorescent. You want to be sure you know which way you want to go and what types of corals you will want. Some require higher lighting than others. You don't want to spend a bunch on lights only to find you can't have the corals you want.

 

[frantz]

Many will say LED is the only way, others will say Metal Halide and others will say T5 fluorescent.

They all grow coral! Pros and cons to each, though I do find t5 to be the best budget entry to the coral field with great results. It's doesn't have to be a rich mans hobby (I may not have enough gas money to get home from my folks for xmas!) but wise investments in proper equipment pays off and the best way to do this is exactly what rich said, ask questions and then research the answers folks give ya.

 

[islandreef]

Welcome to the MADNESS. You will get many questions answered.

 

[ripped tide]

Hey Matt, welcome to the salty side and the ARC. Lots of great folks here, and lots of great suggestions so far.

I have one more suggestion to add. If your lighting isn't ready for photosynthetic corals, why not look into some non photosynthetic corals? These are referred to as NPS. Gorgonians, sun corals, sea fans, and dendros are a few that come to the top of my mind.

These corals don't rely on photosynthesis to produce energy, they must be fed. There are quite a few members that keep NPS, and I bet that they would love to offer assistance.

 

[heathlindner25]

Ripped Tide;822846 wrote: Hey Matt, welcome to the salty side and the ARC. Lots of great folks here, and lots of great suggestions so far.

I have one more suggestion to add. If your lighting isn't ready for photosynthetic corals, why not look into some non photosynthetic corals? There are referred to as NPS. Gorgonians, sun corals, sea fans, and dendros are a few that come to the top of my mind.

These corals don't rely on photosynthesis to produce energy, they must be fed. There are quite a few members that keep NPS, and I bet that they would love to offer assistance.

this is a great idea , just keep in mind most of those corals mention are expert level which basically means your water needs to be super stable