New 72 gallon bowfront,FOWLR.

For SW, at least RO is 99.9% of the time a must. RO/DI is better, but not needed for a FOWLR tank. The filter, it depends how the stand is built, if it is sealed, how open the wet/dry is.. so many variables and so many tweaks you can do to make it quieter if it is too noisy for you that is usually isn't a concern.

Really, it is best to get pics of exactly what you have when you get it, and then take pics of just the equipment you have questions about and we can answer the questions for you much more accurately.

So you pulled the trigger on the bow! They are very nice looking tanks. +1 to pics, they will help out a lot. Overflow and drilled tanks are usually a bit louder than those that are not but their are a number of ways to reduce/eliminate the noise. You'll get it all worked out, just don't rush it and all will be well.

You will definitely need the following to start with:
-Hydrometer or refractometer (the later being a little more $ but more accurate). I do like my Instant Ocean hydrometer though and it was only $10.
-Sand. You can go bare bottom but if you want sand do it now. Live is not neccessary but make sure you wash dry sand really well and buy aragonite based sand either way. Buy sand not crushed coral.
-Powerheads. You mentioned 3 pumps came with the tank (assume 1 is a return from the wet dry). The other two might be able to be used as PHs for now.
-RO or RO/DI water. I really recommend against tap. LFS that sell RO/DI (mine sells it for $0.26/gaoon) usually have containers you can borrow to get the water home. Don't worry you will only need to lug 72+ gallons one time . After that you will only need 10 to 20 gallons for WC's and top offs. Definitely look into a RO/DI filter down the road. www.bulkreefsupply.com sells some great units for very good prices.
-Liverock. I would get 60+ lbs total for that tank and would buy maybe 20 lbs of premium, well cured LR and the other 40 lbs or so would be dry rock. If you don;t have a good source for dry rock Bulk Reef Supply sells some very nice dry rock (the pukani and figi are both really pretty with lots of holes and very pourous). www.reefcleaners.org is also a good place for dry rock.
-Test kits for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate and pH (advise against "test strips"). API is a good one. You might have something from your FW setups?

Congrats on the new tank

<----- in the same boat, Thanks for the thread!

Wet/dry filters don't really apply to SW, I would just use it as a sump, and definitely w/out bio balls, they are a nitrate sink.
As for sand, don't waste $$ on storebought LS, it has too much die off IMO, better to go w/ dry, and if you can, add a scoup/handful from an est system, this is fastest cycle.
RO/DI will save you a ton of headaches when it comes to nuissance algae, so I say it is a must.
Spend the $$ on a refractometer rather than hydrometer, way more accurate.
LR should be 1-2 lbs per gallon, and I would look for someone selling private for best deal, and if you can get cycled/established LR.
Many reefers getting out of hobby sell for like $2 lb.
Sump return pump should be close to 3-5x turnover, and powerheads for rest of flow, I would aim for a min of 20-30x turnover for a fowler.
Tunze nano's and koralias are great.
You will need test kits for SW, amo, nitrite, nitrate, alk, PH are most important, calcium and mag will also be needed later if any corals.
What lights did this come w/ and how old are bulbs?

davexstumpe said:

The guy i bought live rock from was selling a Coralife 4x65 watt deluxe lunar aqualight with the LED moon lights for $150 new. This is obviously a great deal, but how is this light? I wasn't intending to do corals but i need a new light anyway, so i might as well spend the extra $ and expand what i can do. Is this light good for corals?

Click to expand...

Terrible light, too much power and heat for the output you get, plus you can get a T5HO light for less $ brand new that will give you about double the output of that light for less than 1/2 the power. This link is still a entry level light, there are much better ones than this, but for the price and for a beginner I think it is a good light to start out with.

http://www.marinedepot.com/Current_...xtures-Current_USA-CU01136-FILTFIT5T5-vi.html