Hi, I'm new! Have a question about filter

[WillR]

Hi, I just googled this forum and it looks like a good resource!

Anyway.. I currently have a 1/2 yo 90 gal planted discus tank. Unfortunatly I introduced some blue crayfish and they ate all my discus in just one night, lol.

But anyway. Now for my questions!

I'm going to be draining the tank and starting all over. This time I want to go with a salt water tank.

Whats a good filter to go with for my 90 gal tank? Good protein skimmer? Are any of those wet/dry combo's I see on ebay any good?

What about lighting? I currently have 4, 3 foot (tube) nutrigrow lights. Are those the kind I need or do I need something else?

I don't really have a set budget but i'm looking to spend the least amount of money that I can while still maintaining a good setup.

Thanks!
Will

 

[mogurnda]

Welcome to AC, Will!

You will certainly get a lot of opinions about that. Let me start out by asking what you were thinking about keeping. Are you primarily interested in fish, or would you like a small reef with live corals. The biggest difference will be lighting, in that corals need much more intense light than you currently have. The fish will be fine.

What a lot of people do is use live sand and live rock as their primary biological filtration. Wet/dry systems are still in use, but do nothing to remove nitrate.

To get the ball rolling, here's a possible setup:
3-4" deep bed of playsand from Home Depot
120 lbs live rock
AquaC Remora Pro skimmer
2 hagen 802 powerheads

Now it's time for the rest of the gang to nitpick and suggest alternatives

 

[Max]

now mogurnda ! Would anyone here ever do anything like that?
:laugh: jk. Morgs plan sounds great we'll start nit picking when we get more details. welcome to ac central
chris

 

[Jman]

3-4" deep bed of playsand from Home Depot

Look for aragonite if you can find it. Vinegar makes aragonite bubble and aragonite is usually white.

I prefer maxi jet pumps but to each his own.

I've heard nothing but good things about the aqua c remora skimmer.

there is a great sticky at the top of the newb forum. I used it myself. link

Welcome to AC

 

[WillR]

Ive already got about 3 inches of this stuff in the tank, would this be ok to use?
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produ...tid=7324&Ne=40000&R=12718&Nao=9&N=2004+113553

I'm actualy going to have both fish and reef.
What would be a good lighting setup for the best price? I was reading around and noticed alot of people paid around $600 for their lights. Is there anything a little cheaper?

Thanks

 

[Ray Pollett]

Until you decide what are the actual animals ( that includes corals) everything is general. Tanks and reef tanks need to be set up for what is to be keep in them.

Ray