Well let me give this a shot...
First off a little disclaimer; I've kept a reef aquarium for four years now, this being my first saltwater system after many years of f/w.
There is an aspect to this hobby which I love: you never stop learning, there are always areas to improve apon. So this is an article written for newbies by a newbie.
How do I start??? :
I sure didn't know where to begin, info overload! I had wanted to start a reef for many years, but what little I could find out kept bringing me back to the fact this was going to cost a fortune. Look at the all the $$$ skimmers, Ca reactors, LIGHTING...and what the @#$%!? is ORP?
Bare tank bottoms, Berlin style, "Ëcosystem", skimmerless...what the @#$? is watts per gallon?
Have faith. Keep it simple. Read. PLAN. read more then go to the BB's. Then, maybe buy.
Oh yes, this will cost a fortune, but maybe I can help you stretch that a little more.
Make a plan...
so what is it you want to keep? a certain fish? softies? stonies? CLAMS???
All of the above? Great! Put away your checkbook ( unless you are about to buy a reefing book! ) start reading.
What does this type of tank need to THRIVE? What are essentials and where can I cut corners? How much maintenance will this require?
There are many different ways to run a aquarium, not all of them are right or wrong.
Strive for balance between producers & consumers of waste in your system. Try not to overstock, you will pay for it (or rather the tank inhabitants will) later.
If light loving clams are your goal, trying to save a few $$$ on lighting may not be the best approach. This goes for all your equipment purchases. Don't skimp where it counts: buy the best live rock you can find, a great skimmer, a return pump, you want to save some $$$? put them in a rubbermaid sump.
Find some good resources: BB's such as Canreef & Reef Central, advanced reefer's can be found there. Beware of LFS. Remember they have a view to gain $$$. Cherish the ones that don't such as J&L Aquatics.
A lack of dollars and knowledge has made me take things slow in this hobby. This has been a blessing in disguise as I had time to absorb and experiment slowly & my tank has flourished because of it. I stuck to "bulletproof" beginner corals and slowly went upwards from there. There was no way I could afford the lighting systems required for clams & SPS, so I started withe softies, polyps & shrooms.
This first tank has been my "learning" tank. I am just now feeling confident enough in my reef husbandry to make the jump to a more challenging system. You might be alot smarter than me and be able to make the jump alot faster, but I can tell you for certain that nothing good happens fast when it comes to a reef aquarium.
So after all this time I still feel like I'm getting started. I've stayed in my knowledge & comfort zone and now I have a tank that has little room for the fish due to coral growth. I've learned what my system can & cannot do. All the best equipment in the world won't make a tank a success if you don't undertand the process that causes you tank to grow & flourish. Just keeping things alive is not enough.
I see vast areas for improvement for myself, and I hope to address them in the next system that I'm currently designing.
Good luck. I will post the details of my current set-up (one that is easily acheived by any newcomer) to anyone who is interested.
Todd.