I'm really new.

[afreshoutlook]

Hello everyone,

This is a AFreshOutlook & I am really new & excited about starting up a new salt 135gal. tank.
Abit of confusion in the beginning & driving me crazy in trying to piece together a good system to start off with. I am going to start with a fish only & in approximately 6 months looking to maybe go into reef.

Any suggestions in what I might need in getting started??

Living on the N.Shore & loving it.

Dwight

[trilinearmipmap]

Suggestions for a first tank:

1. Go used rather than new, save $$$$
2. Look for a four-foot tank (90g or 75g), easier to light and a good size to work in.
3. Get a sump, get a tank with built-in overflow.
4. Invest in a good skimmer right away.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Welcome Dwight.

Check out the Vancouver Forum for the Vancouver Aquarium tour. If you come, it'll give you a chance to meet some local reefers & pick some brains. (Really, not as illegal or disgusting as it sounds - you'll pick up the lingo soon enough).

Anthony

[Aquattro]

Living on the N.Shore & loving it.

Dwight

Dwight, welcome to the board. North shore of what? N./W. Van? Maybe update your profile so we know what city you're in.

[danny zubot]

Welcome to Canreef. There's way too much to tell you, so my best advice would be to use Canreef as often as you can for all of your question.

Good luck!

[Rikko]

Welcome, Dwight!
Another North Shore boy here.

My advice that everybody always ignores: buy a good saltwater book or two before you pick up *anything* else. Read it cover to cover. Understand. Then you won't be a marine master by any stretch, but you'll have a good base knowledge and what's most important - you'll know the kinds of questions you need to ask and who to ask them to.

Regards,
Stefan

[trilinearmipmap]

Actually I disagree with the advice about getting a good book.

I have found the information on the web (Reef Central, Canreef, etc) to be more comprehensive and up-to-date than any of the books I have bought.

[hockey nut]

I concur with Stephan. A good book will help you along the way as well as a referance to guide you in the right direction.

Any other sw questions I'm sure will be answered by the awesome canreef members and staff.

Welcome to a very addictive hobby. :biggrin:

[Willow]

when i started out a had a couple of good books that helped me out alot trying to get the big picture clear in my head. i would agree the net is a great place to get more direct answers or help with specific problems but a good reference book can help you get past that initial knowledge hump.

[afreshoutlook]

Thanks to all who input some info.

Any suggestions on which book to get?? At times, reading is a weakness & retaining but I do enjoy it, but showing me gets me going :-) giddy up

I can see that I am going to get a huge rush/high in getting this new adventure up & running.

Has anyone/everybody/no-one started out with purchasing used equipment off this site????

I really don't want to sink my boat before I can really appreciate & enjoy it.

Thanks for all your assistance.
Dwight

[monza]

My favoriite books ( two part series) The Reef Aquarium Vol.1 by Charles Delbeek & Julian Sprung and Vol. 2. All the basics to advanced.

More advanced but very interesting and informative...REEF INVERTEBRATES by Anthony Calfo and Robert Fenner

Besides Canreef I like this site...http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=1


Best of luck, the more you learn before you buy any thing the better.
Always get bigger and spend more then you want, it's a hobby of upgrading.

Dave

[muck]

Has anyone/everybody/no-one started out with purchasing used equipment off this site????
I have bought a ton of used equipment when I started out. Most of my equipment is second-hand actually. It sure helps out. Just make sure it fits into your plan and don't compromise it too much because you see an item for "cheap cheap".

[Willow]

hang out here long enough and you can build yourself a killer system bit by bit for a reasonable price.

[Rikko]

I'd recommend starting with The Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Robert Fenner. It covers all your bases, and like I said above, once you have most of the methods and lingo in your head, you'll be far better equipped to utilize the internet to find what you need to know.

If you want hardcore reference books (you'll use these later on far more than any general topic books), I'd probably suggest Reef Invertebrates by Calfo and Fenner (as recommended above) and Aquarium Corals by Eric Borneman.

I've yet to see a really great fish book - I'm sure the Reef Fishes series by Scott Michael will be great once it's done, but TFH/Microcosm have really screw the pooch in publishing that one.

[Carl]

The Conscientious Marine Aquarist is great as Rikko said. A good thin starter book is The New Marine Aquarium by Michael Paletta.