New 100g Setup Questions

khrios · 06/03/2006, 12:47 PM

Hi everyone,

So it's my first try at setting up a marine aquarium, and after much research, I'm feeling very confused. I have many years experience with freshwater systems, but have never tried SW before. I have a 100g acrylic tank with a builtin 18g w/d sump in the back, 4 x 55w power compact lighting from my old freshwater setup, 45 lbs of LR, 90 lbs of aragonite, and a turboflotor 1000 multi protein skimmer. First off, if I want to add LS to activate my aragonite, how much would I really need. I have read 4" is normal, but I would just like to make sure before I buy. I have bioballs in the w/d sump and everyone seems to frown on them for their production on nitrate. should I just take them out or replace them with something else, such as LR? I've been using tap water + dechlorinator, but most don't seem to do this. Is it ok? I have naturally hard water with pH around 8-8.5. I've looked into getting an RO filter, but I've heard that it can be very wasteful of tapwater. Is this true? Finally, I'm not sure what my lights are rated at, just that they said "full spectrum", they were used for my freshwater planted aquarium. If I want to eventually have some soft corals and maybe anemones, would these be adequate, and if not what else do I need.

Thanks

bertoni · 06/03/2006, 12:56 PM

To Reef Central

There's a thread on substrate choices at the top of this forum. You might be happiest with an inch or so of sand, and adding live sand would be optional, although possibly helpful.

I would get at least 100 lbs total of live rock for that setup, to allow a reasonable load of fish, etc, and most likely use the wet-dry for heaters, etc.

In the end, I bought a good RO-DI unit because of the risks with tapwater. That's what I would suggest for you. RO will waste about 75% or so of the water fed to it, although you can use the "waste" for watering plants, etc, if that's an issue.

For a marine tank, some 6,500-10,000 K and perhaps actinic bulbs are the normal choices for PC. Those lights are not adequate for most anemones, IMO.

khrios · 06/03/2006, 08:10 PM

Thank you so much for the warm welcome.

I want to add a few more questions, and say that this is a joint project between my teenage sons and I, mom... so we want to keep the costs moderate.

Filtration Questions...

It seems advantageous to have a deep layer of live sand, 4". Should we do that?

The 100lbs of live rock should be purchased already cured and then cured again once we receive them. Is that correct?

Is the turbofloter multi an adequate skimmer for this setup?

Regarding converting the wet/dry to a sump, how powerful should the powerhead be? How many times should it turn the water over/per hour.

Water Questions...

I resist the RO unit, for environmental reasons. What are the dangers with tap water? Do you know how much it costs to run those units? We can purchase RO water for 35 cents/gallon. Would owning our own unit be cheaper?

Lighting Questions....

How many watts/gallon? What do the actinic lights do? There are so many different types of lighting...what should we get.

Critters...

Soft corals - are they too difficult for newbies? I really don't want to kill any.

Anemones - These seems more difficult. We will hold off.

Scavengers...such as crabs, starfish, etc... These seems useful to have.

Fish...we don't know which yet.

But, how do we determine how many of each to have, given our parameters?

Thanks,

Ann, Jonathan & Daniel

bertoni · 06/04/2006, 12:20 AM

4" is the shallow end for a DSB but should work. They are hard to set up, though. Lots of people are happy without them, although I like mine.

You may buy either cured or uncured rock. The cured rock should finish recuring rapidly and likely will smell less.

I would target 300-400 gph of flow through the sump. You'll need to take head loss into consideration, though.

Tapwater can cause various problems, including copper poisoning and nutrient overload. I don't care to take the risks, but some people keep nice tanks with tapwater. Much depends on the city water quality in your area. I suspect a filter of your own would be cheaper over time.

Lighting depends on what animals you choose to keep. Soft corals would be happy with VHO, PC, or T5 fluorescent lights. Actinic bulbs are just very blue in color.

I don't know anything about that brand of skimmer.

Soft corals are mostly easy to keep, so there are lots of choices there. This book might help:

[ericsbook]

Stocking animals is very specific to the species being kept, as far as how many will fit, so making some first-pass choices and then doing some research will pay off.

khrios · 06/04/2006, 08:00 AM

Just noticed that you are in Foster City, CA.

We live in Santa Rosa, CA, but used to live in San Mateo.

Small world.

So, I read about the DSB and think it would be worth a try for all its benefits, is there a link that spells out how to set it up. Do you use a plenum?

Ann

bertoni · 06/04/2006, 05:10 PM

I wouldn't use a plenum. They don't seem to accomplish anything. The substrate thread at the top of the forum has a number of links and some data.

khrios · 06/05/2006, 04:15 AM

I think I am going to just add more Aragonite so I have the 4" and then get the Live Sand Activator from ipsf.com, that comes with microhermits, hawaiin strombus, bioactive aragonite, starter amphipod culture (20+), "wonder mud", and N reducer. It is $50 without a livestock order and 40 with. It seems like a much better deal but will require more patience. Will this give me the same result as buying "live sand" from my LFS?

bertoni · 06/05/2006, 12:20 PM

I would avoid the microhermits. The "Wonder Mud" was great a while ago, but I haven't heard such great reviews lately, so I'm not sure how it is. You could consider some live sand from BillsReef.com as well, although it's expensive. InlandAquatics also sells useful animals. You could try without, I suppose, and see how it goes.

I'm skeptical about live sand from a LFS, since good live sand is not trivial to get or keep.

06/03/2006, 12:47 PM	#1
khrios Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Portland Posts: 212	New 100g Setup Questions Hi everyone, So it's my first try at setting up a marine aquarium, and after much research, I'm feeling very confused. I have many years experience with freshwater systems, but have never tried SW before. I have a 100g acrylic tank with a builtin 18g w/d sump in the back, 4 x 55w power compact lighting from my old freshwater setup, 45 lbs of LR, 90 lbs of aragonite, and a turboflotor 1000 multi protein skimmer. First off, if I want to add LS to activate my aragonite, how much would I really need. I have read 4" is normal, but I would just like to make sure before I buy. I have bioballs in the w/d sump and everyone seems to frown on them for their production on nitrate. should I just take them out or replace them with something else, such as LR? I've been using tap water + dechlorinator, but most don't seem to do this. Is it ok? I have naturally hard water with pH around 8-8.5. I've looked into getting an RO filter, but I've heard that it can be very wasteful of tapwater. Is this true? Finally, I'm not sure what my lights are rated at, just that they said "full spectrum", they were used for my freshwater planted aquarium. If I want to eventually have some soft corals and maybe anemones, would these be adequate, and if not what else do I need. Thanks

06/03/2006, 12:56 PM	#2
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	*To Reef Central* There's a thread on substrate choices at the top of this forum. You might be happiest with an inch or so of sand, and adding live sand would be optional, although possibly helpful. I would get at least 100 lbs total of live rock for that setup, to allow a reasonable load of fish, etc, and most likely use the wet-dry for heaters, etc. In the end, I bought a good RO-DI unit because of the risks with tapwater. That's what I would suggest for you. RO will waste about 75% or so of the water fed to it, although you can use the "waste" for watering plants, etc, if that's an issue. For a marine tank, some 6,500-10,000 K and perhaps actinic bulbs are the normal choices for PC. Those lights are not adequate for most anemones, IMO. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

06/04/2006, 12:20 AM	#4
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	4" is the shallow end for a DSB but should work. They are hard to set up, though. Lots of people are happy without them, although I like mine. You may buy either cured or uncured rock. The cured rock should finish recuring rapidly and likely will smell less. I would target 300-400 gph of flow through the sump. You'll need to take head loss into consideration, though. Tapwater can cause various problems, including copper poisoning and nutrient overload. I don't care to take the risks, but some people keep nice tanks with tapwater. Much depends on the city water quality in your area. I suspect a filter of your own would be cheaper over time. Lighting depends on what animals you choose to keep. Soft corals would be happy with VHO, PC, or T5 fluorescent lights. Actinic bulbs are just very blue in color. I don't know anything about that brand of skimmer. Soft corals are mostly easy to keep, so there are lots of choices there. This book might help: [ericsbook] Stocking animals is very specific to the species being kept, as far as how many will fit, so making some first-pass choices and then doing some research will pay off. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

06/04/2006, 05:10 PM	#6
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	I wouldn't use a plenum. They don't seem to accomplish anything. The substrate thread at the top of the forum has a number of links and some data. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

06/05/2006, 12:20 PM	#8
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	I would avoid the microhermits. The "Wonder Mud" was great a while ago, but I haven't heard such great reviews lately, so I'm not sure how it is. You could consider some live sand from BillsReef.com as well, although it's expensive. InlandAquatics also sells useful animals. You could try without, I suppose, and see how it goes. I'm skeptical about live sand from a LFS, since good live sand is not trivial to get or keep. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

06/03/2006, 08:10 PM	#3
khrios Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Portland Posts: 212	Thank you so much for the warm welcome. I want to add a few more questions, and say that this is a joint project between my teenage sons and I, mom... so we want to keep the costs moderate. Filtration Questions... It seems advantageous to have a deep layer of live sand, 4". Should we do that? The 100lbs of live rock should be purchased already cured and then cured again once we receive them. Is that correct? Is the turbofloter multi an adequate skimmer for this setup? Regarding converting the wet/dry to a sump, how powerful should the powerhead be? How many times should it turn the water over/per hour. Water Questions... I resist the RO unit, for environmental reasons. What are the dangers with tap water? Do you know how much it costs to run those units? We can purchase RO water for 35 cents/gallon. Would owning our own unit be cheaper? Lighting Questions.... How many watts/gallon? What do the actinic lights do? There are so many different types of lighting...what should we get. Critters... Soft corals - are they too difficult for newbies? I really don't want to kill any. Anemones - These seems more difficult. We will hold off. Scavengers...such as crabs, starfish, etc... These seems useful to have. Fish...we don't know which yet. But, how do we determine how many of each to have, given our parameters? Thanks, Ann, Jonathan & Daniel

06/04/2006, 08:00 AM	#5
khrios Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Portland Posts: 212	Just noticed that you are in Foster City, CA. We live in Santa Rosa, CA, but used to live in San Mateo. Small world. So, I read about the DSB and think it would be worth a try for all its benefits, is there a link that spells out how to set it up. Do you use a plenum? Ann

06/05/2006, 04:15 AM	#7
khrios Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Portland Posts: 212	I think I am going to just add more Aragonite so I have the 4" and then get the Live Sand Activator from ipsf.com, that comes with microhermits, hawaiin strombus, bioactive aragonite, starter amphipod culture (20+), "wonder mud", and N reducer. It is $50 without a livestock order and 40 with. It seems like a much better deal but will require more patience. Will this give me the same result as buying "live sand" from my LFS?