Possible SW options for a SW less than newbie

[ThatNewFishGuy]

The sprawling design sounds sounds cool. One thing you might want to take into account is how much rock is on the sand bed. I've heard rock on the sand tends to cause detritus to build up. Maybe go with laying down egg crate, then the base of ur rock structure, then ur sand, and then the rest of ur rock.

Yeah I have no experience with the petsmart rock either. Honestly, I tend to stay away from petco and petsmart for fish related things. Maybe I just have the worst ones around me, but everytime I go there for my dog, I stop by the fish section and it looks like a nightmare. If the rock is dry, you dont need to pre cure it, maybe just a rinse/scrub. Even if it was LR I doubt you would need to cure it since ur just getting it from ur local petsmart and taking it home-there shouldn't be too much die off. At this point though, the die off is what you want as that'll kickstart the cycle. Also, are you sure it was limestone? I am not sure that you can even use limestone rock in a SW tank.

Locline is basically just this flexible pipe looking thing that alot of people use as the final return piece in their tank.

Since you have the HOB filter, I'm not sure if the same dynamics apply as far as power going out and siphons and such.

Flow is really important for SW tanks. 10-30x ur tank volume may seem like alot of flow but these creatures have adapted to these kinds of conditions. Some basic powerheads would be the hydor koralia line. You could also look at the vortechs but becareful, seeing the price of those has been known to cause heart attacks.

 

[authmal]

How much tank overhang is too much overhang? I found a shelving unit that's rated to hold 1000 pounds per shelf, if it's evenly distributed. Each shelf is 48 x 24 inches. If I place a 55 or 75 on the top shelf, it'll overhang by 1/4 or 1/2 inch or so. Is that too much to be safe? If so, would a 49 x 24 inch piece of half or three quarter inch plywood laid on top of the shelf be sufficient?

 

[SubRosa]

Inconsequential amount of overhang. You're basically talking about having the plastic frame hanging over.

 

[authmal]

Inconsequential amount of overhang. You're basically talking about having the plastic frame hanging over.

Good to have that thought confirmed. That's what I was thinking. Doing some research, and looking at different stocking possibilities. If we end up getting that stand, I'll have to see if it's sufficiently cost effective that I can convince the wife we should get a 75 and turn the already owned 55 into a sump instead of setting up the 55 as the tank, and buying a sump. I just don't particularly like the idea of a 55 as a SW tank due to the narrowness.