20gal Reef Tank | New Jersey | 1st Timer!

[FrickMasterFlex]

My first foray EVER into reefing! I used to have a 55gal freshwater aquarium growing up, got out of the hobby for about a decade, but finally jumping back in now that I have a house and a small corner of my basement that is just perfect for a tank. Breakdown of the build below:

- AquaClear 50 filtration system with BioMax/Carbon/Sponge (rinsed every 3 days)
- Eheim Jager Heater
- Hydor Koralia Evolution 550/600 GPH
- Caribsea Live Sand
- Dry rock from LFS
- NICREW ClassicLED Marine Aquarium Lighting
- SeaClear 20gal Acrylic Tank

I have Oscellaris clowns that I got about a week ago, named Mika and Igor after Mika Zibanejad & Igor Shesterkin of my beloved NY Rangers. I'm doing weekly 15-20% water changes, chemical levels are fantastic, and alkalinity has been holding steady for about a week so I am preparing to introduce some corals, but I'll be patient and wait a bit for that coralline algae to come. I know I need to test for Calcium too. I learn something new everyday, and patience seems to be key! Always open to suggestions as I begin to progress with the tank, so let me know if you have any. Thanks for taking a peek at something that has really bought me a lot of fun and joy this last month.

 

[harley32907]

Good start!

 

[TriggersAmuck]

Cute Clowns! One mod you can do to the AquaClear is to put a round foam sponge at the end of the plastic inlet. I find it very easy to remove the inlet tube daily and rinse that sponge to keep detritus out of the water column (to prevent it from breaking down to Nitrate). Of course the larger sponge in the main chamber serves the same function, but it is more of a pain to get out to rinse. With the small inlet sponges I don't even bother turning off the pump, just let it run, grab the entire plastic pipe, and go. Here are the sponges I found that fit the AquaClear 70:




One difference between freshwater and reef tanks is that whereas in freshwater tanks the majority of the biological filtration is usually accomplished in rough media in the filter, in a reef tank it is desirable to keep the biological activity in the display tank (live rock and sand). There is no problem using the biomax media provided you keep it from becoming a trap for detritus, but most reefers don't bother using any such media directly in their filters.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

Looks great! WIll you be planning on adding any corals at all?

* I got into this hobby during the first lockdown thinking all I would have is clowns, then i bought a CUC, then I got my first corals for my birthday. Now I'm hooked. You have been warned... XD

 

[FrickMasterFlex]

Cute Clowns! One mod you can do to the AquaClear is to put a round foam sponge at the end of the plastic inlet. I find it very easy to remove the inlet tube daily and rinse that sponge to keep detritus out of the water column (to prevent it from breaking down to Nitrate). Of course the larger sponge in the main chamber serves the same function, but it is more of a pain to get out to rinse. With the small inlet sponges I don't even bother turning off the pump, just let it run, grab the entire plastic pipe, and go. Here are the sponges I found that fit the AquaClear 70:




One difference between freshwater and reef tanks is that whereas in freshwater tanks the majority of the biological filtration is usually accomplished in rough media in the filter, in a reef tank it is desirable to keep the biological activity in the display tank (live rock and sand). There is no problem using the biomax media provided you keep it from becoming a trap for detritus, but most reefers don't bother using any such media directly in their filters.

Thanks for the feedback! I eventually want to get away from that for that reason, so I was thinking of keeping the biological filtration in the filter as long as I can, maybe 6-8 months. At that point, I'm assuming I'll have solid bacteria WITHIN my tank as well on the rock, sand, walls, heater, etc. Then I'll remove the biological filtration and maybe just get a bigger sponge for inside the main filter. Do you think that's a good idea? I have carbon in there as well, but figured as long as I am diligent about constantly rinsing it out, I don't think I'll have a problem.