Some SW Equipment Questions

FreddytheFish

FreddytheFish

Nano-Reefer
Aug 29, 2005
1,800
1
0
Cincinnati, OH
Hi. I'm setting up my first SW tank. I've done a lot of research, so I think I'm pretty well prepared. The tank is a 55 gallon. Here are a couple questions on equipment:

Can I use an undergravel filter with sand (if i find a big enough grain size)? I already have an Aquaclear, but the guy I bought the tank from gave me the undergravel too, so I was wondering if I could use it. If yes, how do you do maintenance on it?

For a skimmer, is a Visi-Jet a good choice? I really like the price, and have read good reviews on it. Has anyone had one?

Are there any other realatively inexpensive skimmers out there? (I'm on a 13-year-old budget)

I'm planning on having a QT tank, but have a couple questions on it:

Should I do water changes on it when theres nothing in it? Should
i run the filter?

(this may seem kind of wierd but...) When nothing is in the QT tank, could I use it as a breeder tank? I'm planning on either having Clarkii or Sebae clowns and it would be cool if I could breed them.

Oh yeah, this isn't about equipment but:
I'm thinking about getting a starfish, how do you feed them? Do they just pick stuff out of the sand, or do you need to like drop a piece of meat in there?

Thanks in advance, Freddy
 
Unfortunatley, "budget" and "salt water tank" are usually diatmetrically opposed terms.

The first thing you have to consider is exactly what you want out of the tank. Just fish or a full blown reef? The fish only option is probably your cheapest option.

Next, you've obviously turned your mind to filtration. You can run a SW tank with properly cycled media in the Aquaclear (depending on its size). However, if you want to spend more money and have a tank that is capable of more types of life and options in the future, you can go the live rock route (a FOWLR tank).

This brings you back to your budget: I (as have many other hobbyists) have learned that it is better to save your pennies in the short term so you can plan and purchase the proper equipment in the long term. Skimp now and it will cost you more later.

If I were in your shoes, I'd get a bit of LR and turn the Aquaclear into a nice little refugium. I'd ditch the undergravel filter for either no sand or just a few inches of it. The most economical sand is "southdown" that you may be able to find at Home Depot.

Regarding the skimmer, I would not buy the Visijet. Rather, I would have low stocking levels and regular water changes and run skimmerless until I could afford a higher quality skimmer. This is one example of skimping early on and then later having to buy a better one later in any event.

Regarding the Q-tank - good idea. My setup involves keeping the Q-tank dry when I'm not using it. You can quickly mix up a batch of SW when you need to (I always seem to have some pre-prepared for one reason or another). I keep a filter sponge in my refugium at all times. So when the need arises, I simply transfer the sponge into the Q-tank and there's no need to cycle.

Getting into SW at 13 is a difficult. But with proper planning and budgeting (and going SLOWLY), it can be done.
 
Thanks for the reply. I should've been more sprecific in my first post. I am planning on a FOWLR set up, but would also like to have some inverts that don't need high lighting (ex. starfish, urchins)


Regarding the skimmer, I would not buy the Visijet. Rather, I would have low stocking levels and regular water changes and run skimmerless until I could afford a higher quality skimmer. This is one example of skimping early on and then later having to buy a better one later in any event.
Click to expand...

I was thinking of doing this, but several people told me that I wouldn't want to go that long w/o a skimmer.

Once again, thanks for the reply.

Oh yeah, for an idea of what I might be getting, see the link in my signature.
 
Last edited:
Skimmer, QT

You could use an in-tank berlin air-lift for a skimmer

You could get rock out of a very clean creek or a landscape store, pressure wash it, and soak it for a week and then add it to your tank.

Clowns are hard to breed too, and you would need no skimmer or filter on the QT if you are raising newborn fry, because the mechanical filter would take out all the food small enough for them (i.e. live rotifers)

For substate, go get silica free sand, and go to the pet shop and get one bag of florida crushed coral, and another of fine grain aragonite
Use the crush coral on the ugf plate, add a gravel tidy, add home d. sand, ande then the aragonite. Make sure you rinse the sand!
 
as for the skimmer, you really don't need one. I set up my 30g two weeks ago and it has no skimmer watsoever. All I have for filltration is a pengiun 200 or something like that (Iv'e had it for a while and I got it from a yard sale and it had no name plate).Also my friends 125g reef has a wet dry and a large penguin biowheel. The guy that's usually at my lfs has been keeping a reef tank for 14 years and never once suggested a protien skimmer(im'e sure he has a few other tanks but this is the main one i've heard about).Also here is another example: http://www.aquahobby.com/tanks/e_tank0510.php
(I havent firgured out how to post links yet, just copy and paste into your adress bar)if you do go reef it eould be a good idea to convert to a filtration method similar to the tank in the link. also you said you would like to keep some inverts that don't need to much light here is alist of what i can think of: star fish,astrea snails, turbo snails,hermit crabs,mushroom anemones,shrimps:cleaner,pepermint,fire(read up on the fish/invert before you buy also the pepermint shrimp are fond of the mushrooms and the mushrooms need at least a single tube florescent.
 
just to point this out: the moray will probably eat every other fish ecept the lion. there soposed to get up to 2 and a half feet it's not that hard to figure out that it will like to dine on the clowns!
 
Clowns are hard to breed too, and you would need no skimmer or filter on the QT if you are raising newborn fry, because the mechanical filter would take out all the food small enough for them (i.e. live rotifers)
Click to expand...

I could just turn off the filter when I'm using it to breed.

For substate, go get silica free sand, and go to the pet shop and get one bag of florida crushed coral, and another of fine grain aragonite
Use the crush coral on the ugf plate, add a gravel tidy, add home d. sand, ande then the aragonite. Make sure you rinse the sand!
Click to expand...

Alright, but how would I do maintenance on the UGF?

just to point this out: the moray will probably eat every other fish ecept the lion. there soposed to get up to 2 and a half feet it's not that hard to figure out that it will like to dine on the clowns!
Click to expand...

The snowflake moray eel is in the Echidna family, which eats crusteaceans (unlike most eels, such as the Gymnothorax species, which are piscivorous) and it usually leaves fish alone. Of course, there is always the chance that it could, but those occurences are fairly rare, so I'm not worried too much. I thank you for your concern, but I don't think it will be a problem.

Dorkfish- I know that you don't need a skimmer, but they are generally reccomended and I think it would be a good investment.

Thank you all for your replies.
 
I didn't want to argue with you at all, I try to stay away from it, but I have had a SW aquarium of large size for 6 years now and been in the business that long and and have owned and grown everything from SPS to my own rot tank etc..

Hi. I'm setting up my first SW tank. I've done a lot of research, so I think I'm pretty well prepared. The tank is a 55 gallon. Here are a couple questions on equipment:
Click to expand...

A snowflake eel, I have had one for some time along with many friends including three who have over tripple my experience and they all say the same thing I do. "A snowflake eel WILL eat any fish it can swallow if given half a chance" this isn't from a book or website, but from personal experience and the fact mine cherished live feeder fish. . . extremely so.

My experience, personally, is that it will eat fish, even tho it will say everywhere. .

The snowflake moray eel is in the Echidna family, which eats crusteaceans (unlike most eels, such as the Gymnothorax species, which are piscivorous) and it usually leaves fish alone.
Click to expand...

Just be warned is all, clowns + snowflake = possible loss of cash and a broke heart, so do as you wish with this in mind.
 
I didn't want to argue with you at all, I try to stay away from it, but I have had a SW aquarium of large size for 6 years now and been in the business that long and and have owned and grown everything from SPS to my own rot tank etc..


Quote:
Hi. I'm setting up my first SW tank. I've done a lot of research, so I think I'm pretty well prepared. The tank is a 55 gallon. Here are a couple questions on equipment:



A snowflake eel, I have had one for some time along with many friends including three who have over tripple my experience and they all say the same thing I do. "A snowflake eel WILL eat any fish it can swallow if given half a chance" this isn't from a book or website, but from personal experience and the fact mine cherished live feeder fish. . . extremely so.

My experience, personally, is that it will eat fish, even tho it will say everywhere. .


Quote:
The snowflake moray eel is in the Echidna family, which eats crusteaceans (unlike most eels, such as the Gymnothorax species, which are piscivorous) and it usually leaves fish alone.



Just be warned is all, clowns + snowflake = possible loss of cash and a broke heart, so do as you wish with this in mind.
Click to expand...

I realize that there may be some risk in doing this. I thank you for your concern, but plenty of people have done this w/o a problem. Also, I plan on buying it as young as possible, and never feeding live, so this will hopefully curve fish-eating tendencies.

Thank you for your concern. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom