Back after 12 yrs....help me get my feet wet again (LONG)

Abouna · 12/27/2006, 11:05 AM

Hello all.

First let me say I'm quite happy to find what seems to be a strong Iowa reef contingency. I stopped at Petco the other day and saw the GIRS poster, it piqued my interest so here I am.

I'll give a little history for starters (boring as it may be). I came into reef keeping about 15 years ago. Needless to say reef keeping was just becoming mainstream then, I had to do a lot of leg work and reading to learn and there was obviously no web presence at all (what a difference it will make for me now!). I never kept large reefs, the largest being 29 gal. I was however brave enough to establish a micro reef when these were as yet fairly unheard of, 5 gal (I'll post some old pics later if anyone is interested). The 5 gal was much harder to handle than was the 29! My reading then was mostly Sprung, Tullock and Delbeek (I can barely remember these names), not sure if these guys are still at the forefront or not. After a few years we had our first child and I gave up the hobby as I had less time and less money.

Fast forward 12 years. My oldest is going on 13 and I'm itching to get a tank going again. I think he will be pretty interested also (which will relieve me of some of the work). Unfortunately I've forgotten pretty much everything I ever knew and will have to relearn it all (I can't even remember water temp, 72 sounds right though). I certainly don't remember anything about water chemistry!

What I had, not sure if any of this is still applicable today so I'm looking for suggestions:

- live rock reef, Florida I think
- glass bottom. I used a method that was very effective for me. PVC in the shape of a U going from the top rear corners down to the bottom rear corners and across the back bottom, drilled with holes, then power heads at the top shooting down. This created current and constantly pushed all detrius towards the front where it could be vacuumed.
- mostly soft corals, giant clams and a few small reef fish
- MH lighting, not sure what it was but it was 6500k (I think) pendant. Actinics for evening. I went with MH because fluorescents at the time could not produce a natural look (sunlight filtered look, shimmering).
- A skimmer, home built if I recall correctly
- kalkwasser drip
- Bio-wheel, worked great for me but not sure anymore
- Fluval canister with mechanical filtration only

That's all I can remember. I'm not set on anything at this point and plan on taking a long time to make decisions. I do have some rough ideas though:

- fairly large tank this time. I'd like the width of a 55 but with more height I think. I really prefer sqaureish to long and skinny though I know this allows for less surface area (not sure if this is still a big deal?).
- small reef presence, more water. I'd like to do a central reef mound with lots of empty space for swimmers (yellow tangs, etc).
- As compact as possible. I was never a wet-dry filter fan and hope they are not still the rage

Well, now that I've sealed my fate here as being long winded, I guess that's all.

Cheers.

DSMpunk · 12/27/2006, 12:38 PM

Funny enough bare bottom tanks are pretty popular these days. Skimmer technology has come a long way in the last few years. ASMs, Euroreefs, Deltecs and Octopus skimmers seem to be the most popular.

Wetdrys are not popular anymore, most people that had them turned them into sumps. Kalkwasser is still a great way to keep your tank buffered. Live rock is still a bg source of filtration. Biowheels and canisters arent used as much anymore. A lot of people just seem to run carbon.

MH lighting and T-5 (compact VHO like flourecent) are the most popular lighting. 6500k is pretty yellow. The lowest we go these days are the 10ks (for the most part).

If you like the length of the 55, but you want a more squarish tank, then you should look into a 120g. I think its 48X30X30.

Abouna · 12/27/2006, 02:53 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by DSMpunk
Funny enough bare bottom tanks are pretty popular these days. Skimmer technology has come a long way in the last few years. ASMs, Euroreefs, Deltecs and Octopus skimmers seem to be the most popular.

Wetdrys are not popular anymore, most people that had them turned them into sumps. Kalkwasser is still a great way to keep your tank buffered. Live rock is still a bg source of filtration. Biowheels and canisters arent used as much anymore. A lot of people just seem to run carbon.

MH lighting and T-5 (compact VHO like flourecent) are the most popular lighting. 6500k is pretty yellow. The lowest we go these days are the 10ks (for the most part).

If you like the length of the 55, but you want a more squarish tank, then you should look into a 120g. I think its 48X30X30.

Thanks for the reply. It sounds like I may not have as much catching up as I feared.

As for the 6500k, you make me wonder if I had that right, I'm thinking now that it was a 10k, as it was perfectly white, looked just like the sun. Are the VHO better than they were back then? They were nice but mostly used to save on heat build up, they defintiely didn't have that sunlight look (the character wasn't there even if the spectrum was).

Sounds like I'll have to go with a sump if I want a decent skimmer though.

wenszoo · 12/27/2006, 03:08 PM

Well thank you for noticing the flyer I posted there. Nice to see somebody new in the area. Have you went to Pets Playhouse yet? They are currently in the proccess of expanding their saltwater. I will PM you.

DSMpunk · 12/27/2006, 03:30 PM

T-5s more or less replaced the VHO's as they put out more par due to the reflectors available for them I believe. They also save space in the hood. If you are going to go with flourescents I would recommend going with T-5s over VHO or Power Compacts. I personally am using 2x 250w double ended 14k MHs supplemented with T-5 actinics. They put out a nice balance of blue and white light.

I would highly recommend a drilled tank with a sump. Its not required of course but it makes the display look a lot cleaner and it will make your life a lot easier. Also like you said, most if the good skimmers are in-sump. You can get some decent hang-on skimmers though, you just limit yourself really.

Abouna · 12/27/2006, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by DSMpunk
T-5s more or less replaced the VHO's as they put out more par due to the reflectors available for them I believe. They also save space in the hood. If you are going to go with flourescents I would recommend going with T-5s over VHO or Power Compacts. I personally am using 2x 250w double ended 14k MHs supplemented with T-5 actinics. They put out a nice balance of blue and white light.

I would highly recommend a drilled tank with a sump. Its not required of course but it makes the display look a lot cleaner and it will make your life a lot easier. Also like you said, most if the good skimmers are in-sump. You can get some decent hang-on skimmers though, you just limit yourself really.

Until I see the current batch of fluorescents I'll have to reserve judgment. I find it hard to believe they can look as good as MH, just my antiquated opinion. I always thought the FL were too "even" with no punch. I may have to change that though as heat and price become a consideration.

As for drilling, I will definitely investigate this. I know nothing about it as it wasn't that prolific years ago. Is it something you have done or do you always buy pre-drilled? Also, are there better/worse brands for tanks yet? I know Oceanic used to be the best production tanks but I have no idea now.

Abouna · 12/27/2006, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by wenszoo
Well thank you for noticing the flyer I posted there. Nice to see somebody new in the area. Have you went to Pets Playhouse yet? They are currently in the proccess of expanding their saltwater. I will PM you.

Patrick, got your kind PM. I will be responding soon.

Cheers.

DSMpunk · 12/27/2006, 07:10 PM

I would get a predrilled tank rather than drilling your own holes, just so you dont have anything to worry about. Sometimes they use tempered glass on the bottom or the back that CANT be drilled.

Youre never going to get the shimmer lines with FL like you have with MH. I prefer the look of MH myself. But everyone has their opinions

Good luck with whatever you decide!

DSMpunk · 12/27/2006, 07:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by DSMpunk
I would get a predrilled tank rather than drilling your own holes, just so you dont have anything to worry about. Sometimes they use tempered glass on the bottom or the back that CANT be drilled.

Youre never going to get the shimmer lines with FL like you have with MH. I prefer the look of MH myself. But everyone has their opinions

Good luck with whatever you decide!

Oh and when you decide to get your lights, check out this place. Inexpensive but quality stuff with good customer service.

www.hellolights.com

leeweber85 · 12/27/2006, 08:34 PM

You seem to remember a lot. I would go with the 120 RR (reef ready= aka pre drilled) it's 48"L 24"W I believe. 55 gallons aren't very popular reef tanks because they aren't wide enough to put rock in and still leave room for coral to grow and fish to swim.

No matter what size you get, you're probably going to want to get 250w single ended metal halide bulbs.... Unless you go with a really tall tank then you'll want 400w bulbs. Electronic ballasts are pretty new, but magnetic ballasts are still used. Like sean said, hellolights.com has some really good prices / products.

If you got the money, Calcium reactors are probably the best way to supply calcium to a hard coral tank. If you're just doing softies/LPS then your Kalkwasser should work fine. Instead of paying $10-$20 from a fish store for kalk, you can go to the grocery store and get 'pickling lime' it's the same thing and only costs $2.

Lot's of flow is popular... Tunzes are known as 'the best' but have a big price tag. A lot of us in the club have modified powerheads which gives a lot of flow for a cheap price. (mjmods.com)

You're probably over your head right now with all this info.. but hang in there, it's easier than it sounds.

Abouna · 12/27/2006, 09:16 PM

You guys have me off to a good start. I'll probably go nuts within a few days (I've already gone nuts at both candlepowerforums.com & head-fi.org

) after delving in and getting reacquainted.

Please keep the suggestions coming though, it's invaluable.

Cheers.

Bullet · 12/27/2006, 09:27 PM

Another good idea is to go and look at other peoples tanks. You will get more ideas than you can imagine. There are a lot of good people on this forum that would gladly show you their tank if you ask.

Good luck and welcome!

wenszoo · 12/27/2006, 11:20 PM

My tank is always available for viewing. And you never know you may even have ideas for member to help improve their tank. I alway love peoples opinions and help.

12/27/2006, 11:05 AM	#1
Abouna Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Cedar Rapids, IA Posts: 15	Back after 12 yrs....help me get my feet wet again (LONG) Hello all. First let me say I'm quite happy to find what seems to be a strong Iowa reef contingency. I stopped at Petco the other day and saw the GIRS poster, it piqued my interest so here I am. I'll give a little history for starters (boring as it may be). I came into reef keeping about 15 years ago. Needless to say reef keeping was just becoming mainstream then, I had to do a lot of leg work and reading to learn and there was obviously no web presence at all (what a difference it will make for me now!). I never kept large reefs, the largest being 29 gal. I was however brave enough to establish a micro reef when these were as yet fairly unheard of, 5 gal (I'll post some old pics later if anyone is interested). The 5 gal was much harder to handle than was the 29! My reading then was mostly Sprung, Tullock and Delbeek (I can barely remember these names), not sure if these guys are still at the forefront or not. After a few years we had our first child and I gave up the hobby as I had less time and less money. Fast forward 12 years. My oldest is going on 13 and I'm itching to get a tank going again. I think he will be pretty interested also (which will relieve me of some of the work). Unfortunately I've forgotten pretty much everything I ever knew and will have to relearn it all (I can't even remember water temp, 72 sounds right though). I certainly don't remember anything about water chemistry! What I had, not sure if any of this is still applicable today so I'm looking for suggestions: - live rock reef, Florida I think - glass bottom. I used a method that was very effective for me. PVC in the shape of a U going from the top rear corners down to the bottom rear corners and across the back bottom, drilled with holes, then power heads at the top shooting down. This created current and constantly pushed all detrius towards the front where it could be vacuumed. - mostly soft corals, giant clams and a few small reef fish - MH lighting, not sure what it was but it was 6500k (I think) pendant. Actinics for evening. I went with MH because fluorescents at the time could not produce a natural look (sunlight filtered look, shimmering). - A skimmer, home built if I recall correctly - kalkwasser drip - Bio-wheel, worked great for me but not sure anymore - Fluval canister with mechanical filtration only That's all I can remember. I'm not set on anything at this point and plan on taking a long time to make decisions. I do have some rough ideas though: - fairly large tank this time. I'd like the width of a 55 but with more height I think. I really prefer sqaureish to long and skinny though I know this allows for less surface area (not sure if this is still a big deal?). - small reef presence, more water. I'd like to do a central reef mound with lots of empty space for swimmers (yellow tangs, etc). - As compact as possible. I was never a wet-dry filter fan and hope they are not still the rage Well, now that I've sealed my fate here as being long winded, I guess that's all. Cheers. __________________ Abouna

12/27/2006, 12:38 PM	#2
DSMpunk Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Des Moines IA Posts: 1,064	Funny enough bare bottom tanks are pretty popular these days. Skimmer technology has come a long way in the last few years. ASMs, Euroreefs, Deltecs and Octopus skimmers seem to be the most popular. Wetdrys are not popular anymore, most people that had them turned them into sumps. Kalkwasser is still a great way to keep your tank buffered. Live rock is still a bg source of filtration. Biowheels and canisters arent used as much anymore. A lot of people just seem to run carbon. MH lighting and T-5 (compact VHO like flourecent) are the most popular lighting. 6500k is pretty yellow. The lowest we go these days are the 10ks (for the most part). If you like the length of the 55, but you want a more squarish tank, then you should look into a 120g. I think its 48X30X30. __________________ -Sean Current Tank Info: SPS Dominated 150

12/27/2006, 03:08 PM	#4
wenszoo Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: marion Posts: 439	Well thank you for noticing the flyer I posted there. Nice to see somebody new in the area. Have you went to Pets Playhouse yet? They are currently in the proccess of expanding their saltwater. I will PM you. __________________ noobs looking for help Current Tank Info: 75 fresh 90 salt

12/27/2006, 03:30 PM	#5
DSMpunk Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Des Moines IA Posts: 1,064	T-5s more or less replaced the VHO's as they put out more par due to the reflectors available for them I believe. They also save space in the hood. If you are going to go with flourescents I would recommend going with T-5s over VHO or Power Compacts. I personally am using 2x 250w double ended 14k MHs supplemented with T-5 actinics. They put out a nice balance of blue and white light. I would highly recommend a drilled tank with a sump. Its not required of course but it makes the display look a lot cleaner and it will make your life a lot easier. Also like you said, most if the good skimmers are in-sump. You can get some decent hang-on skimmers though, you just limit yourself really. __________________ -Sean Current Tank Info: SPS Dominated 150

12/27/2006, 07:10 PM	#8
DSMpunk Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Des Moines IA Posts: 1,064	I would get a predrilled tank rather than drilling your own holes, just so you dont have anything to worry about. Sometimes they use tempered glass on the bottom or the back that CANT be drilled. Youre never going to get the shimmer lines with FL like you have with MH. I prefer the look of MH myself. But everyone has their opinions Good luck with whatever you decide! __________________ -Sean Current Tank Info: SPS Dominated 150

12/27/2006, 08:34 PM	#10
leeweber85 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Cedar Rapids, Iowa Posts: 2,482	You seem to remember a lot. I would go with the 120 RR (reef ready= aka pre drilled) it's 48"L 24"W I believe. 55 gallons aren't very popular reef tanks because they aren't wide enough to put rock in and still leave room for coral to grow and fish to swim. No matter what size you get, you're probably going to want to get 250w single ended metal halide bulbs.... Unless you go with a really tall tank then you'll want 400w bulbs. Electronic ballasts are pretty new, but magnetic ballasts are still used. Like sean said, hellolights.com has some really good prices / products. If you got the money, Calcium reactors are probably the best way to supply calcium to a hard coral tank. If you're just doing softies/LPS then your Kalkwasser should work fine. Instead of paying $10-$20 from a fish store for kalk, you can go to the grocery store and get 'pickling lime' it's the same thing and only costs $2. Lot's of flow is popular... Tunzes are known as 'the best' but have a big price tag. A lot of us in the club have modified powerheads which gives a lot of flow for a cheap price. (mjmods.com) You're probably over your head right now with all this info.. but hang in there, it's easier than it sounds. __________________ -Lee Current Tank Info: 120g reef, 20g reef

12/27/2006, 09:16 PM	#11
Abouna Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Cedar Rapids, IA Posts: 15	You guys have me off to a good start. I'll probably go nuts within a few days (I've already gone nuts at both candlepowerforums.com & head-fi.org ) after delving in and getting reacquainted. Please keep the suggestions coming though, it's invaluable. Cheers. __________________ Abouna

12/27/2006, 09:27 PM	#12
Bullet Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Clear Lake, Iowa Posts: 1,759	Another good idea is to go and look at other peoples tanks. You will get more ideas than you can imagine. There are a lot of good people on this forum that would gladly show you their tank if you ask. Good luck and welcome!

12/27/2006, 11:20 PM	#13
wenszoo Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: marion Posts: 439	My tank is always available for viewing. And you never know you may even have ideas for member to help improve their tank. I alway love peoples opinions and help. __________________ noobs looking for help Current Tank Info: 75 fresh 90 salt