The Decision

[FishHunter8]

Here is my situation:

Right now i have an 87g tank. I had originaly planned to have it heavily planted with discus. But in a last minute i decided to go salt water. Now my reef was going well until i realized i have to order my fish and corals from accros my map cause my LFs does not belive in stoking them and when they do they are very expensive. The tank has 40 lbs of live rock, some corals and some fish. Now some facts im thinking about are that in 3-4 years i will have to tear it down. So what would be easier to tear it down and do a planted tank so it will develop faster because we all no it takes lots of time and cash to build a reef tank especially when you have to order the stuff in. My original equipment i purchesed asuming i was going to do the planted stuff so thats all good. But i will have about a 100gallons of salt mix and a big protien skimmer. Im trying to do which ever one will give me the most enjoyment in the shortest period of time. What do u think?

 

[Richer]

You have the salt and the live rock... why not just go with a FO tank if you don't want to go through the trouble of setting up a reef only to have to tear it down later on? I have no experience with SW systems, the only info I have are ones that I take off of the net. But aren't there more "common" SW fish you can get that are just as nice looking as the harder to get ones?
Just FYI, an established plant tank can be just as hard to tear down as a reef. Read this thread and you'll understand why. Granted, plant tanks generally need less light compared to many reef setups, and plants themselves cost less than corals, but once you get attached to a plant tank, its hard to bring yourself to destroy one.
I kinda have the same problem as you do in regards with plants. There are a couple of plants I would love to get, but can't... *sigh* it sucks.
Ultimately, the choice is yours, I personally would go either way.

HTH
-Richer

 

[FishHunter8]

Well thanks for the reply. But i dont want to go with just a FO. I can find some fish such as blue damsels. No doubt it would be hard to tear either of them down but i just want to go with the one that is going to develop fast so i can get lots of enjoyment out of it right away. Oh i can't decide.

 

[Elmo]

If you DO decide to do a reef, J&L Aquatics have a pretty good reptutation for their marine livestock quality.

 

[FishHunter8]

You dont no any plant sites in Canada do u?

 

[Richer]

I know of no online Canadian plant distrubuter. I believe there is one or two around, but you'd have to order in large numbers to really make it worth wild. Thats the problem with living around here, its hard to get stuff sometimes. If you want something that will give you fast results, then plants could be something to look into. With the proper lighting, CO2 concentrations, and nutrients, you can have a good plant community running stable within a month or two (depending on how you go about setting the tank up).

HTH
-Richer

 

[stargurl]

Originally posted by Richer
I know of no online Canadian plant distrubuter.

www.ottawaaquatics.com but reviews (Usenet, etc) are very mixed and lean towards "takes forever to get anything from them"

 

[FishHunter8]

Decided to go planted, thanks for the help

 

[Sumpin'fishy]

Good call! SW reef tanks can take a year or more to really set up well and get established, even with everything on hand. I understand that it's a bad idea to rush a reef tank. Everything is very sensitive to ANY change and everything can go down hill in no time. This is all what I've heard, but from several reef owners that I personally know. I have never gone SW myself.