# help me peice together everything i need for my tank



## herrrerrera (Sep 10, 2009)

Just bought a 36gallon aqueon bowed aquarium. need help finding out everything i need as well as finding best bang for buck products..
ive searched for live rock,koralia power head, aragonite substrate, refractometer, hang on protien skimmer.. i'll list them all, and let me know which on i should go with. if you guys know of a cheaper site to buy from, please chime in. thanks.

-Aragonite sand.. (note: i want the whitest sand..)
1. http://www.bigalsonline.com/edealinv/servl...arison+Shopping

2. http://www.petco.com/product/7452/Nature&#...da-000423bb4e95

3. http://www.nextag.com/Nature-s-Ocean-Natur...722/prices-html

4. http://www.petblvd.com/cgi-bin/pb/WWI10651...l?mv_pc=froogle

-Live Rock..
1. http://www.justliverock.com/catalog/item/6833052/6764647.htm

2. http://www.petsolutions.com/Fiji-Standard-...31L+C16301.aspx

3. https://www.gulf-view.com/new-pricelist.html

-Protien Skimmer 
1. http://cgi.ebay.com/Aquatic-Life-Internal-...34.c0.m14.l1262

2. http://www.whatafish.com/servlet/the-45/Aq...-Nano-HO/Detail

3. http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsUS/ctl36...oteinskimmer100
4. http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsUS/ctl36...tproteinskimmer
5. http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsUS/ctl36...oteinskimmer115
6. http://www.allpetfurniture.com/Aqua-Euro-U...NS-AEU1020.html

7. http://www.allpetfurniture.com/Aqua-Euro-U...00-AEU1018.html

8. http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod...e=24-51193221-2

and with the refractometer be sufficient? http://cgi.ebay.ca/Salinity-Refractometer-...6QQcmdZViewItem


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## herrrerrera (Sep 10, 2009)

also i just started to hear there is alot of fish you cant have in a reef tank?
is this true?

i already have my fish planned out. 
2 trigger fish
2 clown
1 tang
1 black and white striped angel(forgot what their called)
1 rose tip anemene
with they be ok in a reef tank?
and will alll the fish i listed get along?

also im new to this. i understand the live rock is the filtration, 
but should i as a hang on filter?

and once i fill up the tank and mix with sand, can i add the live rock right away?
and is there a way to know when my tank is ready for fish? or do i just wait 
4-6 weeks? do i still do water changes once a week with out any fish in there?
How important is R/O water for reef tank? will tap water, and water conditioner be officient enough?


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## Ghost Knife (Mar 12, 2008)

If this is your first aquarium that you have ever kept then I would suggest setting up a freshwater tank before you try to tackle saltwater. Saltwater tanks require a lot more work, time, and effort than freshwater. Also, saltwater fish are much more sensitive to changes in salinity, ph, and temperature. Finally, saltwater fish cost about three to 10 times as much as freshwater fish. It's entirely up to you though.


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## SouthernBelle23 (Mar 24, 2009)

Hi and welcome. 

Alot of your links don't work, just FYI.

Aragonite sand is good. The brand is up to you. I'd skip any bagged live sands.

You'll want about 1.5-2 lbs of live rock per gallon, so a total of 54-72lbs in your tank. You can do part base rock and part live rock if you want to save some money. The first live rock link is to dry live rock which is basically base rock. You'll want to seed it with some live rock. Check out http://www.premiumaquatics.com. You can buy it per lb.

http://www.marcorocks.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=64. 25lbs of good base rock. Then you could get around 25-35lbs of live rock to go with it.

I only have experience with 1 protein skimmer and its a Reef Octopus BH100F. So far so good. Advice given to me: Don't go cheap on the protein skimmer.

As far as your stocklist goes, you shouldn't put Triggers or Tangs in a 36g. There isn't enough swimming room and those fish get rather large. You should think about some reef safe Wrasses, Blennies, Gobies and other smaller fish. I'd have a max of about 5 fish in a 36g.

I would also skip the anemone. Wait until you have some experience in the tank and the tank is mature.

I would put the rock in, then the sand, then the mixed salt water. Having the rock in first helps keep it in place in case you get some sand sifting/digging fish later on. Too many people have had their rocks collapse.

RO/DI water is very important to reef tanks. You want to start with the cleanest water possible. Nitrates, Phosphates and other stuff are bad for reef tanks so you don't want your source water adding them to the tank. Here is a link: http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-05/rhf/index.php.

As long as you have powerheads for water movement and live rock and a skimmer for filtration, you don't need a hang on back filter.

As for cycling, if you go with all live rock, you still might want to add in a couple deli shrimp to cycle the tank. It can take anywhere from a couple weeks to 6 weeks. You'll want to get a saltwater test kit as well and if you plan on having a reef, you will want tests for calcium, magnesium, and KH/alkalinity as well.

Do alot of reading before you buy and set the tank up. www.reefkeeping.com is a good site to learn. Go to forums and read about beginning a tank.

Here are some good links to read:
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-02/dw/index.php
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.php
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-03/rhf/index.php
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-11/nftt/index.php
3 Steps to a Reef Tank


What kind of lighting are you planning on?


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## Tallonebball (Apr 6, 2009)

Yeah I agree with Ghost knife, if this is your first aquarium I would consider freshwater first.
Its much less expensive, it will help you get a grasp on how fish work, it will get you used to cleaning tanks and doing water changes, it has more leeway for trial and error, and there are more options with a smaller freshwater tank than with a smaller saltwater tank.

But if you choose to go with saltwater, your going to need to do more research. 

As for your fish list:
NO TRIGGERS
Tangs will get too big
Angels aren't reef safe
Anemone's will get too big and should be left to expert saltwater keepers

And if your doing a reef tank, you need a nice set of t5 or actinic lights in order to keep most colorful corals alive.

Overall I think you just need to do more research just to make sure you really want to get all into this, it seems like your sort of rushing into it.


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## herrrerrera (Sep 10, 2009)

Wow, extremely helpul info in here! thanks guys!
I've had an 80gallon freshwater tank for about 8 years, and am ready for the new challenge.

in a way, yes. i am reushing into it a litle bit. i get the jist or the "101" of saltwater care. I just want to get it filled and get it cycling, and add some deli shrimp and some plants, i'm in NO hurry to get any fish, i have patience, and i will wait months if i have too, i will make sure the tank is ready and fish friendly. and hopefully i'll have all the knowledge i will need by then to make my fish happy.

Thats sucks i can't have trigger fish, they are my favorite fish ever! but i'm glad i know my tank is to small for that.

I actually, almost forked out the cash and jumped with both feet in to a 160gallon tank, but i heard smalll tanks are alot harder to maintain and keep fish alive. so my goal is if i can keep fish alive and keep my tank maintained for 1 year, i will go bigger.

I dont know why my links aren't working, i spent hours searching and finding those for you guys to help me with urghh! is this live rock ok to buy? seems extremely cheap! http://www.petsolutions.com/Fiji-Standard-Live-Rock+I168631L+C16301.aspx

also, im ready to buy the power head. 20x the volume of my tank is 720. so do i want the 600gph or 800gph?


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## SouthernBelle23 (Mar 24, 2009)

I don't think that rock is actually live. It says you have to recure it and says that it can be used as base rock, which tells me it isn't live and is probably dried live rock. And the price is way too cheap for it to be live rock, even uncured live rock is more than that.

I would get 2 powerheads. 2 400gph ones should work. I have 2 400gph powerheads in my 38g and its perfect. 1 really powerful one would probably be too much, so dividing it up works.

Liveaquaria.com isn't the greatest resource for minimum tank size, but they are close. I would definitely use them as a guide as to what would go in your tank. That way you'll have an idea as to what your options are, then you could post what you like and maybe we can help you come up with a stocking list.


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## herrrerrera (Sep 10, 2009)

cool. 2 400gph koralias it is. thanks!

very cool fish on that site you provided! i like the following..

bicolor Pseudochromis - http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+1926+143&pcatid=143
ocellaris clown- http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+27+137&pcatid=137
flame angelfish- http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+16+444&pcatid=444
http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+2124+197&pcatid=197
orange stripe prawn goby- http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+2124+197&pcatid=197
royal gramma basslet- http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+21+53&pcatid=53

with these fish be ok to live with each other? and will they be ok with the same fine sand aragonite substate?
I really like the jawfish yellow head, but it saws dont use fine sand with them
http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+2124+188&pcatid=188


just got back from LFS and they said they could give me 35gallons of their water right out of an aquairium, they said that way, i can add fish right away.
is this true? im buying my salt, and power heads through them, they seem pretty reasonably priced, so i would like to pick up the protien skimmer from them as well to save on shipping
http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsU.../cl0/aquariumsystemsseacloneproteinskimmer100
also is this protien skimmer any good?


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## herrrerrera (Sep 10, 2009)

also ready to order live rock, but before i do, please tell me if i should go through with ordering from one of these sites, cause they are extremely cheap..

http://www.justliverock.com/catalog/item/6833052/6764636.htm

http://www.aloha-aquariums.com/servlet/the-1415/Fiji-Live-Rock-50/Detail < 50lbs for $80? cured fiji live rock???


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

herrrerrera said:


> cool. 2 400gph koralias it is. thanks! *very good pumps*
> 
> very cool fish on that site you provided! i like the following..
> 
> ...


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## herrrerrera (Sep 10, 2009)

thanks for the helpful info once again!
well i will order everything from http://www.drsfostersmith.com/ then.
can you pick out a good protein skimmer under $120 from that site? thanks.

edit: ive narrowed it down to these two skimmers, please let me know which one is better. thanks..
1. http://www.aloha-aquariums.com/servlet/the-289/Coralife-Skimmer-Needle-Wheel/Detail
2. http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=19865


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## SouthernBelle23 (Mar 24, 2009)

I'm glad someone else gave you some advice on the fish. I haven't done saltwater long enough to know what can be kept with what yet. 

I haven't heard of that brand of skimmer in the 2nd link. 

I have heard good things about the Bak Pak brand though: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4392+4409&pcatid=4409. Its just a little over your $120 price range, but probably worth it. 

That first one you linked to doesn't seem to be a hang on back type, which is what you want since I don't think you have a sump.

I've never dealt with either of those places for live rock. I'd do a search on some reef forums to see if you can find some reviews before ordering.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=13924


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

A sump would hide most of your equipment as well as give you extra water volume... something to look into.


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