Thinking of setting up my first salt tank

[Ephraim]

Well i think it's time to make the jump from freshwater to a saltwater setup. I've kept several planted tanks in the past and I'd like to try something a little different. I want to give soft corals and inverts a try. I would like to limit the amount of equipment that I have to buy and I just want to know what kind of species i can support with my current lighting. I currently have 2 Coral Life fixtures, one is a 48" 2x65 Watt compact flourecent 50/50, the other is a 24" 65 Watt compact flourecent 50/50.

The tank I will be using is 72" long x 24" tall x 12" wide and has mirrors on the back and sides to reflect light back into the tank from the lights(works well with plants). For filtration i have a Fluval 404 and a 304. What kind of HOB skimmer would you reccomend, i was thinking of a Remora. I like the slim profile since i need to put the skimmer on the side of the tank. The tank needs to be bolted to the wall since it is so top heavey

Thanks for any input!

[Joe Reefer]

Hi and welcome to the board.

In all honesty, with a tank at that depth and the lights your planning on using you probably will have trouble keeping even the lowest light demanding coral, unless they are placed at the very top of your rockscape. I would also recomend using a few powerheads for additional flow and maybe just one fluval to run carbon in.

[Ephraim]

I've heard that mushrooms will survive in lower light conditions. Are these a coral or techincally something else? How about anemones, are there any "friendly" ones that do well in low light? I've also heard that colt coral is good in low light. If I add another 48" 65x2 would that make a big difference? I've found that most halide fixtures are too wide for this thin tank.

I've got a bunch of extra powerheads i can add for more current. Is just one fluval and a skimmer really going to be enough for filtration?

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Not going to work unfortunately. I had a Remora Pro on a 110g & it was underskimming. Unless you go metal halide & at that depth you should really be looking at 250w, your 65w PCs won't penetrate very well & your corals will suffer. Minimum I would recommend for a six feet long two feet deep tank would be 3 @ 150w or 175w, but that would limit you to med. to low light species, except near the very top. So many of us went through the same thought processes & tried to save money by underbuying. It cost us more because we ended up upgrading, to bigger skimmers & better, more powerful MH lights. Yes it is possible to have a minimalist system, but you're probably never going to be quite happy with it, especially when you want anemones & none of the hosting species will do well under your proposed lighting. 65w PC just aren't bright enough & they lose their intensity sooner than most people replace them. If you don't want to spend the money now on lights, go with a fish only tank with a few very hardy corals because otherwise you're probably looking at upgrading your lights, now or later.

I have used NO, PC 65w, & PC 96w and now all my reefs are lit by MH. I do know some reefers who have had good luck with VHOm, but 65w over a 24" tank is just too little over too deep.

JMO & JME,

Anthony

[Ephraim]

What kind of skimmer would you reccomend? Keep in mind the space that i have available is 12"x 5", rather cramped. When you say 3x150w, is that on it's own or in conjunction with the PCs? Do you have any brands you would reccomend for this, I'd like the fixture to be no more than 7" wide so I can still reach into the tank with the light on.

I have no experience using MH lights, do they generate alot of heat? Can i sit the directly on the glass top safely. I was wanting the tank in my living room, and i'd prefer to not have it raised up and light the entire room. I could build a wood top if need be, but i'm lazy

[Midknight]

Where are you located?
lots of people are good with hands on help but we need to know how long are arms need to be.

[Pan]

Originally Posted by Ephraim

What kind of skimmer would you reccomend? Keep in mind the space that i have available is 12"x 5", rather cramped. When you say 3x150w, is that on it's own or in conjunction with the PCs? Do you have any brands you would reccomend for this, I'd like the fixture to be no more than 7" wide so I can still reach into the tank with the light on.

I have no experience using MH lights, do they generate alot of heat? Can i sit the directly on the glass top safely. I was wanting the tank in my living room, and i'd prefer to not have it raised up and light the entire room. I could build a wood top if need be, but i'm lazy

yes the generate a lot of heat, as in melting crispy skin if you touched them after they were running, i don't thinkanyone would recomend sitting them on the top of anything... Euroreefs are a nice little skimmer...

[Ephraim]

I'm located in Calgary Alberta. Would it still be ok to leave the glass top on there and lift the lights, say 1.5"-2" off the glass. The air is so dry here that w/o a top evap is a huge problem. With 150w bulbs, will small fans be needed/helpful? What's the useful lifespan on a MH?

I'll look up some specs on Euroreef, thanks.

*sigh* ...i'm gonna make myself broke on this one, aren't I? I've got about $900 to burn from selling all my freshwater fish before I moved.

[Joe Reefer]

IIRC euroreef doesn't make HOB skimmers. And you can kiss that 900 bux good-bye.

[Ephraim]

yeah I couldn't seem to find any HOB specs, that might be why. What about Bak Paks, are these a good product?