[jgb23]

I made the plunge (again, for like the 3rd time) and am starting to assemble my 75 gallon saltwater aquarium. I looked back at all of my other attempts at SW aquariums and tried to deterimed why they never really took off. I have drawn the conclusion that I typically rushed everything in the past and tried to cut corners (yes, stupid on my part) and although nothing ever died quickly, it just never really took off.
Learning from my past experiences, I am going to go forward with my new tank. My plan was to install the aquarium after my flooring was down. Well, the floors are done, so here we go!

Here is my plan (please note that I am taking this tank really slow because I have an evolving budget and want to learn before I install specific things)

1. Purchase tank and stand. Done. Spent 333.00 for tank and stand at local fish store. I had to stain and poly the stand, but at least it matches my furniture. A question here is, should I stain every piece of wood to keep any possible moisture from the stand?

2. Lighting (1-2 weeks): I have this somewhat narrowed down to two routes, but am really thinking of option 2.

Option 1: 4 VHO running 3 10K URI and 1 actinic URI
Option 2: 2 250W MH running 10K bulbs and 2 VHO running 2 actinic URI

If I go with Option 1, I believe I can keep everything with the exception of SPS and clams. I also heard anenomes need MH lighting as well. I am probably beating a dead horse on this one, but what are the advantages and disadvantages of option 1 over option 2?

3. Built a canapy and retrofit lighting (2-3) weeks. I didnt really care for the canopy that went with the stand and figured I could put something together that looked a little better

4.Filtration/Refugium. (4-5 weeks). Instead of buying one of those already made wet/dry systems, I am toying with the idea of building my own. My stand can fit a tank that is 13 w 43.5 with about 24 inches of height. I would also like some room for misc stuff. I figure a 29 gallon would work great and have some plexi or acrylic partitions cut to fit. but I probably have room for something bigger. I dont want to spend a ton of money having a box made. Does 29 gallons offer enough room for a skimmer area, bio-ball compartment, refugium and return? With the dimensions stated above, what is biggest tank I can go with and still have room for pumps, chemicals, water. The buget director (aka the wife) already said nothing, other than the fish and stand will be visible.

5. Substrate (5 weeks). Another topic of interest and I have posted something about using play sand. I would like to have a DSB of 5-7 inches, but at the same time, I dont want to spend a ton of cash on sand either. I really wish the southdown plant was still running. Either way, was thinking approximately 150lbs of sand for a 75 should do that. Do I need more?

6. Water (5 weeks). I have been doing some reading on this and figured why not try taking some of Mother Natures own salt water. Living on the east coast and having a sea-worthy vessel, I figured I'd go out approximately 6-7 miles and fill up a bunch of jugs (5 gallon and 1 gallon) for my tank. I have seen a lot of testimonials and posts about how good natural sea water is versus ocean in a box. Any thoughts?

Time to test the system to make sure everything is working and not leaking

7. Live Rock (6 weeks). I heard approximately 1lb for every gallon. I may have to do this in installments, but should get their over a month or so

Tank is now cycling, testing for amonia and phosphate spikes. I assume 2-3 weeks or less before she is up and running. I heard I should put a clean up crew in now and that will help the cycle run faster, is this true?

8. Bring on the critters (8 weeks). I will start with a couple cheap fish, kind of like the canary in the coal mine theory. If they do fine, start bringing in coral friendly fish.

9. Sit back and enjoy my tank, but not for long. Water changes, check various levels, fight algae, ect.

Is this a good plan? Did I miss anything. Any advice is always appreciated.

Thanks,

Joe

[Ninong]

Originally Posted by jgb23

A question here is, should I stain every piece of wood to keep any possible moisture from the stand?

Better to do that now than wait until after the tank is stocked and then wish you had done it.

2. Lighting (1-2 weeks): I have this somewhat narrowed down to two routes, but am really thinking of option 2.

Option 1: 4 VHO running 3 10K URI and 1 actinic URI
Option 2: 2 250W MH running 10K bulbs and 2 VHO running 2 actinic URI

If I go with Option 1, I believe I can keep everything with the exception of SPS and clams. I also heard anenomes need MH lighting as well. I am probably beating a dead horse on this one, but what are the advantages and disadvantages of option 1 over option 2?

Option #2 would be overkill for a 75-gal tank with a "DSB of 5-7 inches." I wouldn't go more than about 3.5" in a standard 75-gal tank. I had a 6" DSB in a custom 120-gal tank but my tank was 27.5" tall. If I were doing that exact same tank over again, I would go with a 4" DSB. My 6" DSB was great and I had no problems with it but I don't think I would go with another 6" DSB unless the tank was at least 32" tall.

The other consideration is what you plan to do to control water temperature. You live in Florida! It's hot AND humid in Florida. If you stick 250-watt metal halides over a 75-gal tank with a DSB in Florida, you may need a chiller.

If you want metal halides, consider the 150w DE size. Another option would be T5's. You can definitely keep SPS near the top of the tank with T5's or 150w DE's. You can even keep SPS near the top of the tank with VHO. And you can keep any of the clams with the possible exception of T. crocea. Croceas do better and hold their coloration better under halides. I guess I should say that all clams do better under halides but croceas really do require them.

5. Substrate (5 weeks). Another topic of interest and I have posted something about using play sand. I would like to have a DSB of 5-7 inches, but at the same time, I dont want to spend a ton of cash on sand either. I really wish the southdown plant was still running. Either way, was thinking approximately 150lbs of sand for a 75 should do that. Do I need more?

I used 260 lbs of sand in a 120-gal tank (footprint 45" x 23") and that gave me a 6" DSB. For your 75-gal tank, 150 lbs should be more than enough to give you at least a 4" DSB. It would probably cost you about $150 for 150 lbs of Carib-Sea Aragamax (aragonite) sand. I suppose cost is in the eye of the beholder, but that's not much considering how much everything else is going to cost you. Check the various For Sale forums on the Reefkeeping Bulletin boards (especially Reef Central) to see if anyone in your area has true Southdown aragonite sand available. It's sometimes available for around $15/50-lb bag by hobbyists who picked up a lot of it on a trip north. Sometimes hobbyists have friends or family members who are truck drivers and they will persuade them to pick up some Southdown when they're in an area along the East Coast that has it.

6. Water (5 weeks). I have been doing some reading on this and figured why not try taking some of Mother Natures own salt water. Living on the east coast and having a sea-worthy vessel, I figured I'd go out approximately 6-7 miles and fill up a bunch of jugs (5 gallon and 1 gallon) for my tank. I have seen a lot of testimonials and posts about how good natural sea water is versus ocean in a box. Any thoughts?

NSW is a nice idea, in theory. If you intend to collect your own, it will cost you a lot more than if you simply purchased it or went with ASW. NSW is available in many areas in Florida now. Check it out. It will definitely be cheaper than going to sea to get your own. And it will be filtered and sterilized. If you collect your own, you will have to allow it to rest (covered) for at least a week or two to allow the plankton to die off and settle to the bottom of the container.

Too bad you don't live in Seattle. The Seattle Aquarium sells filtered NSW for only 5 cents/gallon! And if you lived near Scripps in San Diego, filtered NSW is FREE!

7. Live Rock (6 weeks). I heard approximately 1lb for every gallon. I may have to do this in installments, but should get their over a month or so

Rules of thumb based on weight are not all that reliable for the simple reason that some live rock (e.g., aquacultured Gulf of Mexico live rock) are much denser than other live rock. One hundred pounds of live rock from the South Pacific will take up a lot more space than one hundred pounds of aquacultured Gulf of Mexico live rock.

If you have a DSB of at least 3.5", you could get by with 50 lbs of live rock in your 75-gal tank. That won't exactly fill it up but it would be more than enough. You probably want to go with something between 70-90 lbs. That would be more pleasing to most people.

Tank is now cycling, testing for amonia and phosphate spikes.

Phosphate spikes??? I guess you mean ammonia, nitrite and nitrate spikes.

I assume 2-3 weeks or less before she is up and running.

The initial cycle can take a week (or less) if you used fully cured live rock or it can take 4-6 weeks if you use uncured live rock. The initial cycle is complete once ammonia is undetectable, nitrite has fallen to 0.1 ppm (or less) and nitrate is no more than 50 ppm. That's just the initial cycle. The tank will continue to cycle for months to come.

I heard I should put a clean up crew in now and that will help the cycle run faster, is this true?

Not true! Don't put a clean-up crew in the tank until AFTER ammonia and nitrite have fallen to undetectable for ammonia and no more than 0.1 ppm for nitrite. Once your nitrate is down below 50 ppm, it would be OK to put in the clean-up crew. That could be as soon as one week after start-up with fully cured live rock or it could be three to four weeks with uncured live rock.

8. Bring on the critters (8 weeks). I will start with a couple cheap fish, kind of like the canary in the coal mine theory. If they do fine, start bringing in coral friendly fish.

Very bad idea! Never buy a fish unless it's something you really want to keep. In other words, don't buy damsels unless you REALLY want to keep damsels. Obviously you don't want to add dwarf angelfish to a tank that is less than at least three months old but there are lots of choices that you could add to a tank that is at least five weeks old. Adding any fish before five weeks is rushing things.

And, besides hardiness, you have to consider aggressiveness in the order of introduction of fish. The more aggressive fish should be added last.