First Saltwater Tank

[djherb08]

Hi all, I have always had freshwater tanks however I have always dreamed of having a reef tank. I recently moved and gave away all my livestock so it seems like the perfect time to start. I plan on getting something around 75-100 gallon. I have several smaller tanks so I will use one of those for a sump with an in sump skimmer, a calcium reactor, possibly a carbon reactor and biopellet reactor, and possibly an ozone reactor. It will be a long process until I have the money to buy everything piece by piece but I want to start with the tank. I really like corner tanks but the cost seems outrageous. Im looking for some recommendations on good tanks for a decent price.

[mikem101]

my first tank was a 40G breeder and I loved it as a matter a fact I still have it! and I bought one at petcos dollar a gallon sales lol! i started with that used a HOB skimmer (Remora which i wasnt to found of since been repalced) and live rock with 2 mp10's. Oh and my lighting of course. The tank did awesome grew everything and anything i wanted including SPS, so you really dont NEED all the equipment to start a 40-75 gallon tank? again thats just my opinon.

[thebkramer]

WELCOME TO RC & THE ADDICTION!!

best advice to give IMO....

GO SLOW!!! BE PATIENT!!! and DO LOTS OF RESEARCH!!!! and of course... HAVE FUN!!!!

here are some great Reads from RC for the beginner.. LOTS of Awsome Info here!!!

WaterKeepers New to RC
WaterKeepers New to RC2
Capns Log Book
Sk8rs-How to Start a Tank
Sk8rs Blog
Sk8rs Recommended Reads
RO/DI Unit

and again.... WELCOME!!!!

btw... stay away from a 55g!!!! one of the worst IMHO!!! hard to really work with! I wish I had started with a 75g to 90g. Those are perfect sizes to start with to me!!!

[Rokiman]

Started with 29 gallon here luckily it only took me $165 to get everything started.

[Monkeyfish]

My first SW tank was a six gallon Eclipse softy display with a clip on 18 watt compact fluorescent light. Ran great for year until a power outage.

I had a 29g softy with 130 watt compact fluorescent light and two HOB filters. Best tank I ever had. Only maintenance I ever did was a weekly 5 gallon water change. Grew everything from mushrooms to monti caps. Then I "upgraded" to a 75 SPS and it's been nothing but headaches since.

[Phinnay]

If it holds water, it can be a tank - some crazy people in the nano community have made flower vase reefs!

Best bet is to keep an eye on Petco and their dollar-per-gallon sale. The 40 breeders are nice (if you are going to go coral, the shallow-ness helps more light reach your animals) but they do take up a lot of space. The more water volume the better!

Originally Posted by thebkramer

btw... stay away from a 55g!!!! one of the worst IMHO!!!

Eeeyyy, Don't be hatin, 55's are not perfect but totally do-able! They are tall and long but not very wide - great for small spaces.

The best way to make them work for reefing is placing your corals at the top of your rockwork (closest to the lights) or picking lights strong enough or with proper lenses to pass adequate light down.

a 20L will fit perfectly under a 55g stand and be a great sump. Same width but shorter.

You *really* don't have to spend a ton to have a great tank. Price things out and see what is available used - Craigslist / ebay is your friend. Personally, 3/4 the fun of having a tank is building (and improving) what I see for sale in the store.

[djherb08]

Wow thanks for all the help guys, I am really excited to get this process started but I know I need to take my time and plan it out. I think the dollar a gallon sale will be my best bet for a tank compared to the price of trying to find a corner or cube tank. My next goal would be a skimmer, I have been looking at the reef octopus and their new diablos look pretty sweet. Any recomendations for a specific model or any other brand?

[Monkeyfish]

Can't beat the Reef Octopus for that price range.

[mikem101]

+1 ^

[Phinnay]

Originally Posted by djherb08

Wow thanks for all the help guys, I am really excited to get this process started but I know I need to take my time and plan it out. I think the dollar a gallon sale will be my best bet for a tank compared to the price of trying to find a corner or cube tank. My next goal would be a skimmer, I have been looking at the reef octopus and their new diablos look pretty sweet. Any recomendations for a specific model or any other brand?

Glad to hear!
No reason you can't get the corner tank down the road, and not like the one you buy now will go to waste... QT, Sump, salt mixing.... is always a use for a spare tank!

I purchased the Best Choice SKY731 skimmer for my 55 and couldn't be happier. under $100 and you get a needle wheel skimmer rated up to 300 gallons.

The motor it comes with is loud but does the job. I replaced mine with a quieter motor because tank is in my living room. If the noise level is not a concern it might be worth checking out!

[chowder12]

thanks for the info

[OnTheReef]

Originally Posted by djherb08

Hi all, I have always had freshwater tanks however I have always dreamed of having a reef tank. I recently moved and gave away all my livestock so it seems like the perfect time to start. I plan on getting something around 75-100 gallon... I'm looking for some recommendations on good tanks for a decent price.

Welcome to a beautiful, rewarding and addictive hobby!
Join a local marine aquarist or reefer club. Most of us who've been in the hobby for any length of time are up to our eyeballs in gear and will happily part with lots of it for cheap or free.
Peruse craigslist for people upgrading, moving and otherwise parting out tanks. Just the other day someone sold a glass 140 with fully encrusted Fiji live rock, stand, sump and skimmer for $400. That's easily $5k worth of gear.
Watch Petco.com, Petsmart.com, MarineDepot.com for sales. Last week I got two buckets of Instant Ocean for $40 each.
Read the "New to the Hobby" sticky threads, there is a wealth of information in there that will save you a lot of time, money and heartache.