New to SW, need some help please!

Ash3r · #1 07-02-2008, 12:29 AM

Hello everyone,
Im happy to find a nice little place for my SW needs and qustions that is close to home.

Well as my title says I'm new to the SW world. I have been keeping a 55 gallon cichlid mixed tank for just about 1 year now as well so I do know about keeping fish and a healthy tank. But I do know when moving over to a SW, its a whole diffrent ball game.

Anyways Im looking at buying a book called "The New Marine Aquarium: Step-By-Step Setup & Stocking Guide". I was j/w if anyone has read this book and would recommend it.

Also the tank I'm looking to use is a 29 gallon and came with a T12 5000k corallife 50/50 bulb. I got this set up off castanet.net a couple weeks ago. I dont know if this light will work for what I wanna do but I know that if I buy the cheap stuff it will kick my *** later. I dont wanna spend tons of cash but enough so that I will not have to do too much upgrading while still haveing a great tank setup. Any help on this would be great!

Thanks again!

michika · #2 07-02-2008, 01:00 AM

Have you visited the Just Starting out Forum? Take a look at it and see if you can't narrow down what you want to keep in your new system. What you want to keep will dictate your lighting needs.

chevyjaxon · #3 07-02-2008, 02:11 AM

29 gallons is kinda ambitious for a beginner in marine the larger the better when things go wrong in marine they can really go south quick at least with a larger tank 50 gallons or more you have time to react to changing water conditions to start with youll need 1 lb of live rock per gallon of water used also a nice deep sand bed(not playground sand) is an important part of keeping nitrates down in marine you must stock your tank slowly(fish and corals) this is important due to the fact that your live rock and sand bed are used as biological filters the bacteria on them needs time to colonize in order to keep up with a larger bio load if you think getting started in marine is cheap you are wrong. just to get started with a 29 gallon tank youll drop a grand easily live rock is not cheap it ranges from 8 to 10 dollars a pound i dont say this to scare you but belive me it is the truth do some research on the cost involved before you get too involved welcome to canreef and good luck there are many fellow reefers on this forum that know way more than I do and are always willing to lend a hand

Ash3r · #4 07-02-2008, 02:35 AM

Thank you for your replys

I understand that getting into SW isnt cheap, I know I will spend more then $1000 easy but I ment like $3000+ lol...I need a new car

anyways I would love to start this out in a bigger tank, just dont have the room at this time. I will get a bigger one later on.

I also know a guy that can get things at cost and that may help me a little too lol. But I will head over to the link and check it out. I will do plenty of research before I jump into the SW world lol

Thanks again!

chevyjaxon · #5 07-02-2008, 02:38 AM

dont let it scare you it is a sceince but once things are up and going and it becomes its own eco system and is easier to care for than freshwater

lorenz0 · #6 07-02-2008, 04:27 AM

My advice would be to just do what I did. Fill the tank with water and start getting your specific gravity up. Let that run for a week and add your sand in. Than your live rock and let it sit for a while to allow it to cycle. Alot of people say the bigger the better which is true but if you do your water changes on a nano weekly and keep on top of everything your tank will just thrive. And don't rush into anything, I did but somehow i did something right that favored me and now the tank is just thriving. esspecially once I changed my lighting which is the best thing you can do for your tank. Now with nano's you CAN fun just a fung but you will have less head acks with a sump and a skimmer.

When it comes to money with SW just don't think about it. I personally put $50 a week into my tank and try not to think about how much I have put into it. why, because at the end of the day I would rather look at my tank and watch it rather than watching tv and its extremely educational. Its the best thing I have ever done and I have no regret with this hobby.

read alot while your tank is cycling and don't even think about fish for a while. or even look at other peoples set ups.

I highly suggest this site for find tanks similar to your size and see what set up's they are running

http://www.nano-reef.com/

michika · #7 07-02-2008, 02:13 PM

29g is a great size. I also started out with a 29g for my first tank/system. You also don't have to spend $8-9 per pound of rock, and you don't have to have 1lb per gallon. Sand beds also aren't required, if you don't like them, you don't have to have 'em. Start by figuring out what you want your tank to be, a reef, a fish only system, etc. From there you can build your system geared to what you want to keep.

Watch the buy-sell forums for great deals on drygoods, hardware, and even livegoods. Visit a few stores around town and see their prices before you buy. Even ordering from stores a little further away can also save you some money, and offer you a greater variety of products.

Ash3r · #8 07-02-2008, 06:02 PM

Thats great guys, thanks alot for all the words of encouragement!
I do know I wanna go reed and not fish only, Ill use an aragonite sand bed as well

How much rock and sand would be good for a 29g tank if I dont have to go 1pound per gallon like you said?!

I will do lots of reading up before I go crazy into this! Plus I agree with not worrying about how much I will put into this. Ive put tons of money into my cichlid tank and have never looked back. I love it

michika · #9 07-02-2008, 06:14 PM

As much as you think looks good. Take a look at the past issues of ReefKeeping online, and look at the Tank of the Month features. It might help you get a good idea about the reef type look you want.

For example I have a 180g display with about 200g total volume. I have about 80 lbs of rock in my system. Some people go with less, some with more. The point is for you have good biological filtration. Try to look for porous rocks, and rocks with a lot of surface area for the beneficial bacteria you need in your system. Try a couple of rocks, place them and see what you think. If you need more then add it, if not, leave it.

Have you thought any into sumps, or refugiums? Both are great options to add extra rock for more filtration without cluttering your display.

Ash3r · #10 07-02-2008, 06:24 PM

I have thought about adding like a gallon sump. I know how they work, just not how to build one up. I know I can find some info on the web about building and making a sump work great. Im sure a 10g would be fine for a 29g?

I also know I need a skimmer and I will look around on the web for some good deals, The light that came with my set up was a t12 5000k 50/50 corallife...Im thinking ill need to go up to a t5 10000k? Anything else that comes to mind? I am also going to buy some books to help me learn a little more