[bearsden]

I had a reef system 20 years ago and had to give it up to serve Uncle Sam (moved alot, war, that sort of stuff). Now I am more settled and I am getting back into the hobby- WOW have times changed!!!!! I am totally confused on which way to go and need some help. I have been reading magazines and books and have narrowed some things down but have a long way to go. Here is what I have: 36g bow front, corner tank 24"X24"X20". I have approx 25 lbs of base rock, 40 lbs of coral gravel substrate, and Red Sea Lab w/pH, Alk, NH3/NH4, NO2, NO3. Oh and a Instant Ocean hydrometer. No water, no lights, no filteration, and as of right now no clue. For lights I am leaning very strongly toward T5s but having difficulty locating a 4 bulb fixture to fit a 23"X8" area (window avail for light)- I can follow a set of GOOD blue prints and make one but prefer to grab what I need off the self. I am looking to convert a 10g tank for a sump and build my own wet/dry system w/protien skimmer and heater in the sump. I also plan on placing some live rock in the sump as well. I am concerned about the bio media and should I use it until the tank cycles then slowly wean the tank off and let the coral do the rest? Unclear here. Species I am considering is a mix of corals, anenomes, clown, yellow tang, and odds and ends (still researching what corals, fish, and odds and ends are compatable with each other and are hardy enough to survive a newbie-need a little help here too) I do not plan on more than a few fish. If I am headed in the right direction please let me know, if not let me know that too- I'd rather get off on the right foot than screw up something as precious as a reef system. Sorry for the long note- and thanks for the help!!!

Bear

[bongobrian]

Hello bear and welcome to Reefland!

It sounds like you've done some good research already (you're way ahead of some people that just run out and buy everything on inpulse) so that's a great approach. Now, to address a couple of your questions...

Originally Posted by bearsden

For lights I am leaning very strongly toward T5s

T5's are a decent choice for lighting, but this will really be determined by what you decide to keep in the tank. So as you do research on your livestock, make sure that you find out what the lighting needs are for everything. Things such as sps corals (small polyp stonies) and clams require a lot of light, and would probably not thrive under t5's whereas most soft corals and lps (large polyp stonies) would probably do just fine with t5's. I would also be cautious with anemones under t5's.. I'm sure some people have success with that, but I personally wouldn't recommend it. It also depends on how much wattage you end up running for your lights. A general rule of thumb is to shoot for roughly 4-5 watts per gallon, but obviously it's ok to push it higher than that. Once again, that is just a very loose starting point to get you in the ballpark.

Originally Posted by bearsden

I am looking to convert a 10g tank for a sump and build my own wet/dry system w/protien skimmer and heater in the sump. I also plan on placing some live rock in the sump as well. I am concerned about the bio media and should I use it until the tank cycles then slowly wean the tank off and let the coral do the rest?

Wet/dry filters are kind of an outdated method for sump filtration, do some reading on refugiums, it's the way to go. You don't really need to run any kind of bio media if you have enough live rock in your system, that will provide most of your biological filtration. I also recommend the use of a DSB (deep sand bed) which is 3-6" of fine sand, that will greatly increase your surface area for growing beneficial bacteria. Adding a protein skimmer to the mix is also a very good idea.

As far as hardy fish and corals, I would probaby hold off on the tang and the anemone until your tank gets a little more established. I would recommend waiting at least 6 months before adding a tang to a newly set up system. Clowns and Damsels are good choices for beginner fish, they're super hardy and they aren't as prone to sickness as most fish. Some good beginner corals would be things like mushrooms, leathers, zooanthids/button polyps, star polyps, and some lps corals such as caulastrea and possibly an open brain of some type.

What were you thinking of using for your source water? you might want to think about investing in a reverse osmosis system, or using distilled water. Although tap water can work, it is not advised for use in a reef system. Hope this helps and best of luck to ya!

[lps]

Soundin good so far. Definitely consider a RO system. I would skip the bio media all together and consider a refugium with a dsb and some cheato. The AquaC Urchin works great for me as a in sump skimmer. T-5's are great, im not sure of a system that would work for your tank. Some one else here could probly help with that. Perhaps some MH's would do you right. The clown would do fine, but the yellow tang should be restricted to at least a 6' tank. Good Luck!

[bearsden]

Thanks Brian and lps!

I will start researching the refugium systems in detail. I am not partial to any particular corals- just color, but anemones I love. So I will research the anemones I like, check compatability, and light requirements for those particular species, that should let me know if T5s or MH is right for me. I do fear MH due to heat in a "small" tank and would rather do without a chiller if at all possible. I will not introduce anything (livestock wise) other than clown fish and a cleaning crew for at least 6mo. I do plan on a RO/DI system but no particular brand grabs me yet. I have copied your posts for later reference, again THANKS!

Bear

[bongobrian]

Hey Bear-

Anemones are cool, don't get me wrong, but they can also be kind of a pain in the neck as well. If you're planning on having a fully stocked reef, just remember that anemones can, and most likely will, move around your tank while stinging and irritating everything it touches. Until it finds it's "happy place" they will move around your tank. Very rarely do they stay put where you drop them initially, they will search out their ideal place for lighting and amount of flow.

Did you just want an anemone in order for a host for your clown fish? if so, then just keep in mind there are some corals out there that will make for a suitable host for clowns, and look just as cool (if not cooler) than anemones. You could look into getting a Euphyllia coral such as a frogspawn or a hammer coral. They're sweet looking and your clowns will love it, also, you won't have to worry about them moving around the tank. They still have sweeping tentacles that can sting other corals, but they're nowhere near as dangerous as an anemone. Here's a pic of a frogspawn coral.

Thanks for serving our country, and good look with your tank! keep us posted!

[bearsden]

Brian,

That frogspawn is wicked. Right down my alley. I had one anenomy back in the day that wasn't very big but was supper cool. I haven't found it in any books yet but still looking. It was a deep purple and built its own tube to live in and acted similar to a feather duster that if disturbed it would drop into its "hole". You're right on about movement, that dude was everywhere (house and all). I never knew where it would be the next day. I wasn't really considering an anemone specifically to host clowns, I just think them facinating. Interesting that they can sting corals- makes me pause and reconsider. Here is a thought, before intoducing specific corals, should I insert an anemony, let it settle and find its place? I will explore the frogspawn and hammer coral and may just go that route.

Your welcome- Just love to blow things up and shoot cool weapons, and they pay me for it!

Bear

[bongobrian]

Originally Posted by bearsden

Here is a thought, before intoducing specific corals, should I insert an anemony, let it settle and find its place?

That's actually not a bad idea at all, if you really must have an anemone, that is definitely worth a shot... I can't say it will work, but if it does, more power to ya!

Here's a pic of my clowns hanging out in their Euphyllia, it's one of my favorite things in my tank. Enjoy.

[Samper]

That is precisely what I am doing with the anemone clones I am getting from Zhenya. The idea was to let the clones settle before introducing more potential victims.

Bearsden...I would actually encourage you to go the T5 route. For the size and depth of the system you won't have any problems lighting wise keeping a broad range of corals. You also won't have the heat issues associated with metal halides. Also the watts per gallon rule doesn't really mean anything. Think of a couple different aquariums with different dimensions but the same volume. Obviously you will have a harder time penetrating the water column of a deeper tank opposed to a longer more shallow one.

I would discourage you from getting a tang at all. You simply won't have the room for it to be happy.

The substrate you mentioned...can you estimate the particle sizes of it? If you must have a substrate use oolitic sand but the sandbed will be more for asthetics than anything.

Also I'm in NE Arkansas. I don't know where you live in MO but if you're ever down this way pm me and we can get together.

[bearsden]

Brian and Sampler,

Thanks for the additional input! I can't express enough how much it has helped me define a better direction.

Sampler- I'm in the Ft Leonard Wood area. Also the more research I do, I think the T5 will be fine for my small system and I really like the less heat benefit. As for the substrate- its crushed coral but pebble size, not sand. Might just use it for a fish only tank. Ok I'll nix the Tang but I'm keeping the clown.

Thanks!

Barry