can you use atrifical decoration in salt water aquariums

[Jenn Cos]

im going to be setting up a 110 gallon saltwater tank

The pet store is saying that live rock is Not needed to have fish...
i do not want to get corals as i am learing they are much more difficult to keep then fish.

I want the best for my new fish and for them to be very healthy , grow big and stong : )

Do i need the live rock or is filter enough ?

im getting a 150 wet dry sytem that will come with a protein skimmer , that i will be upgrading to a better protien skimmer.

Has anybody used the artifical decoration in salt water ?

will it fade right away in the salt?

decoration says it wont fade.... but i dont know if i believe them

Id like to build something colorful for them to swim around and try to make look as natural as possible

Any suggestions on decoration , or on my new set up.

What about overflowing the water if the power goes out... i read that you have to put in a float swicth in.

I'm planning on a battey back up , but you never know

I definitly dont want a flood or to hurt my fish

I know , so many questions ...

I used to have reptiles , I had an iguana that lived for 10 years , he was 2 feet long .. now that my pal scooby is gone , this is going to be my new hobby

lots to learn

Thanks for your help

Jenn

[Grins]

im going to be setting up a 110 gallon saltwater tank
Nice starter tank!



The pet store is saying that live rock is Not needed to have fish...
i do not want to get corals as i am learing they are much more difficult to keep then fish.

I want the best for my new fish and for them to be very healthy , grow big and stong : )

Do i need the live rock or is filter enough ?

The store is right. You can do what is called a FO (fish only) tank that doesn't use live rock for filtration. Some fish will appreciate the security of some rock though.


im getting a 150 wet dry sytem that will come with a protein skimmer , that i will be upgrading to a better protien skimmer.
Unless you've already paid for the wet/dry you may want to re-consider and invest in a sump/refugium instead. It has become more popular than the wet dry in saltwater.



Has anybody used the artifical decoration in salt water ?

will it fade right away in the salt?

decoration says it wont fade.... but i dont know if i believe them

Some use it, and some of them are made better than others and don't seem to fade in the way others do. The big negative for me if I were considering them in a FO tank would be that they aren't going to stay clean and I'd have to contend with maintenance on them.



Id like to build something colorful for them to swim around and try to make look as natural as possible

Any suggestions on decoration , or on my new set up.


You might want to consider some base rock (live rock that has no life in it any longer) for a natural look. You could also consider some of the macro-algaes available as well, things like sea grass, etc.



What about overflowing the water if the power goes out... i read that you have to put in a float swicth in.

I'm planning on a battey back up , but you never know

I definitly dont want a flood or to hurt my fish

We'd need to know more about your tank to answer this one. Welcome to the forums by the way.

[WoodRight]

I had iguana for about 7 years. He was cool but we also had cats that he would wipe with his tale so we had to keep him in his own room at the end and I wasn't able to play with him as much because of that so I gave him to a really cool family that is taking really good care of him and he has run of the house. He is house broken if you guys were wondering. Here is a picture.

[WoodRight]

Oh and welcome to the forums!

[Robin Alv]

Welcome to the forum. Nice size tank and good luck with it. It'll be a fun learning experience. I'm new to the hobby and eveyone on this forum has been a great help.

Woodright - I didn't know you could house break iguanas. I also didn't know they could have the run of the house. -- Way cool but I've already got 2 cats and 2 dogs and 3 aquariums. I think I should stop.

[clown-lover]

Welcome to the forum. Nice size tank and good luck with it. It'll be a fun learning experience. I'm new to the hobby and eveyone on this forum has been a great help.

Woodright - I didn't know you could house break iguanas. I also didn't know they could have the run of the house. -- Way cool but I've already got 2 cats and 2 dogs and 3 aquariums. I think I should stop.

Sorry OT post.. But I had to answer.

Absolutely you can housebreak iguanas.. I had merlin for 8 years and had her trained to go potty in the bath tub. I just had a rug that I draped over the edge and secured with suction cups on each side so she could get in and out. Left about 1/2 inch of water in the tub and she did her thing there. A little bleach and turn on the shower head and it was gone. She was a goon for guys except one of my friends when he came around.. She shattered a window with her tail once she got so made when he came into my place.. Women she hated and in no uncertain terms.

Very cool male woodright..

[WoodRight]

Yeah there like cats they just go back to there cage to go to the bathroom.

[WoodRight]

Sorry OT post.. But I had to answer.

Absolutely you can housebreak iguanas.. I had merlin for 8 years and had her trained to go potty in the bath tub. I just had a rug that I draped over the edge and secured with suction cups on each side so she could get in and out. Left about 1/2 inch of water in the tub and she did her thing there. A little bleach and turn on the shower head and it was gone. She was a goon for guys except one of my friends when he came around.. She shattered a window with her tail once she got so made when he came into my place.. Women she hated and in no uncertain terms.

Very cool male woodright..

thanks but it was a female. I didn't know that until she started laying eggs.

[Jenn Cos]

water changes question

thank for replying to above , lots of great info : )

I was told I could add the new water into the the wet dry system..

Being that my new tank is tall , a 110 gallon on a 48 stand , think tank is 30 " high , this is going to be a challange , but will look nice.

Not sure how i could do water changes easily , so they refered me to get the wet dry filter , and pour the new water into that.

I have it ordered , but not picked up yet ... not sure if it may be undersized as i plan to do the water changes into this system...

and will there be enough room for all the extra gagets that will need to go into there.

* I'm not understanding how that would work by adding water into the wet dry system , wouldnt it have to be running to make the water go up into the tank,,, and if your doing a water change and the water is down , wont the filter need to be turned off..

How do i add the new water correctly ?

They tolds me to get a 150 proclear wet dry reef , does up to 150 tank and 600 gph...

Do i need a larger one or a different kind to do the water changes as im planning ?

would the sump refugium work for my plan ?

if i went with a refugium , can that be converted back into a fresh water tank system , if salt water plan fails ?

I am concerned about the flooding proublem about the power outage.. what system could i get to prevent this?

thanks again

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=44665&stc=1&d=1205335555

this is my pet Scoody and kitty Buddy

Love your input

Thanks

Jenn

[Grins]

Jenn,
I'd sincerely recommend you switch to using a sump and refugium instead of the wet dry they have ordered. With it you'll easily be able to house equipment such as heaters, skimmers, return pumps. A sump is basically a second aquarium that provides an extra volume of water. Many have DIY sumps, some have expensive custom made ones, some have stock premade ones. They come in all manner of shapes and configurations and if you have the room it is popular for them to include a refugium area as well. Best site out there for information and different diagrams is MelevsReef (http://www.melevsreef.com/allmysumps.html).

For waterchanges I simply do it from the sump. You'll use an overflow box (or better yet a pre-drilled tank) that will direct water to the sump, and a pump that will return the water to the display. To prevent flooding you'll have to use some trial and error in finding the maximum fill line in the sump (as well as matching the proper sized pump to the system). By doing this correctly you'll have a situation where the power of both the input and the return are matched equally and the amount of room left in the sump can handle the water that might drain from the display before the overflow line is reached and water can no longer reach the overflow. You can also get battery backups like you said as well as float valves for extra assurance.

[Jenn Cos]

I like that web site , melevsreef , great info

learned lots more : )

I ordered books too , can't wait to read up

I learned that the wet dry has a sump as a aprt of it , but also has the bio balls within it ,

bio balls can be bad for live corals , which i am going to avoid...

but as i read , to do the water changes , i maybe should get an over sized one with a larger sump area...

go from a 150 , has a 15 gallon sump , to a 300 has a 24 gallon sump, that way i can just change the sump area to do the water changes

im going to ask the store if they sell wet dry with a refugium built in,

what do you think....

can you over size the sump to the aquarium ?

i hope the store dont get mad , they ordered the system... but i think it will be to small.. should get it set up right to avoid proublems

thanks for your input

Jenn

[Ace25]

No, you can not oversize the sump. Actually, you want to get the biggest sump you can possibly fit. I have said this before, but if it were possible to put a 500G sump on my 29G tank I would. Any amount of extra water volume can only help.

On a 150G tank I would recommend a 55G sump, on a 300G I would recommend a 90G sump. Obviously that is just my recommendation and it really is not that critical.. just helpful. Only thing that is a must is the sump has to be big enough to hold all the equipment you want to put into it.

[Amphiprion]

No, you can not oversize the sump. Actually, you want to get the biggest sump you can possibly fit. I have said this before, but if it were possible to put a 500G sump on my 29G tank I would. Any amount of extra water volume can only help.

On a 150G tank I would recommend a 55G sump, on a 300G I would recommend a 90G sump. Obviously that is just my recommendation and it really is not that critical.. just helpful. Only thing that is a must is the sump has to be big enough to hold all the equipment you want to put into it.

I agree 100%. It is even ok to absurdly size your sump. Think of it as a supersize meal without the guilt.

[Jenn Cos]

my cabinet is a 18 wide by 48 long

i took a card board cut out to see how im gona fit this
huge rectangle sump into this cabinet

looks like it will be a proublem , unless i remove the one piece of wood in middle of back of stand , thats the only way it could fit in , my stand is a perfecto and has two doors , but a middle fixed wood piece , nothing gona fit in though the front

if a get a wet/dry that was recommended by the fish dealer the biggest sump with that would be 24 gallons on a 110 tank , big enough...

or don't need bioballs , just a big sump is better

[Grins]

I'd remove the back, slide the new sump in, put the back on (if you want) and then slide it towards the wall and continue.