Lurker finally saying hi! New to aquariums and have questions!

[Billldg]

Welcome to R2R!!!

 

[KJ]

Welcome to R2R!!!

 

[Dj City]

1. Circuit will be fine for your tank and equipment.

2. Look up Aqua FX or BRS ro/di. Get the less expensive one. Dont get the cheap amazon ro/di.

3. Ambient light in the room will be enough for a qt tank. A better light is good for observation but ambient light is good enough.

 

[reef lover]

Welcome to r2r!

 

[vetteguy53081]

Welcome to the R2R community

 

[clffthmps]

Hi,

I've been reading stuff on this forum for a couple weeks now but I want to ask a lot of questions since I never had an aquarium before. Fresh or salt.

Well, I never had my own aquarium before.

Technically I do have some saltwater experience since back in high school I took a marine biology class where part of the class grade was to take care of a saltwater fish tank. My partner and I both chose blue-green chromis to put in our tank, and everyone in the class had the same equipment except for different size tanks. We had some kind of HOB filters with carbon and filter floss, heaters, and we mixed our own saltwater once a week to do water changes. Not sure what kind of salt. We had hydrometers, refractometers, and API test kits. Our tank was one of the smallest ones, I think it was 10 or 20 gallons. But happy to say that out of all of our classmates, our tank was the only one with 0 deaths. (RIP the beautiful firefish and blennies my classmates had though )

I fell in love with aquariums ever since then, and have been meaning to start one in my own home, but haven't really gotten around to it. But I made it my New Year's resolution this year to finally get my dream up and going! My goal ultimately is to have a 20 gallon mixed reef tank, because that is the biggest tank size that my space allows, and saltwater fish and corals are just way more appealing to me than a planted freshwater tank. (Although there are some beautiful planted tanks out there! ;Drool) Understand that nano tanks require much more maintenance and finesse, but I feel up to the challenge

Been doing lots of research since December of last year, and am halfway through BRS's 52 Weeks of Reefing. I'm on r/reeftank on Reddit, asking questions there as well. Will make a proper build thread with my stocking list and equipment list, but am still putting the lists together.

Nice to meet you all! In my short time lurking here, was so glad to see such a friendly and helpful community, and I place myself in your capable hands ;Woot

• Question 1:
  • I took a glance at my circuit breaker, but am a complete dum dum with electrical stuff. I think my livingroom (where I want to put the tank), has two 20 amp circuits. So I'm trying to figure out whether it's possible to have a nano tank running on just one 20 amp circuit? To be honest, I don't even know if I'm phrasing my question right because I'm so clueless.
  • I was thinking of using like a 70 watt heater, a DC powerhead (jebao OW-10), the return pump that comes with the IM Nuvo 20, a new AI Prime HD, a float valve for an ATO, and whatever little temp controllers and other controllers that are needed for this stuff. Again, is it possible to have all of that running on the same circuit?
• Question 2:
  • I want to get the cheap RODI buddy from Amazon, but I think the area I live in has chloramines in the water. Can I use a regular 4-stage system, and just go through changing filters more often, or do I need to get a 5-stage system to get 0 TDS?
• Question 3:
  • Does a quarantine tank need a light? Or can I get away with just a HOB filter with filter floss and carbon, with some PVC pipes in the tank?

I have a bunch more questions, but they're more specific to my livestock and equipment list, so I'll probably ask them in my build thread.

Thanks to all who tackle my first questions!

You have 2 20 amp circuits. Make sure they are dedicated circuits which means nothing else is on them.A 20 amp circuit is your overcurrent device which means anything over 20 you have a possibility of tripping the breaker. The National electrical code that I use as an electrician states the circuit should not exceed 80% Of the breaker. So I wouldn’t load each breaker no more than 16 AMPS. I hope this helps.

 

[fishface NJ]

Welcome to R2R!!!

 

[Reefnman2]

Welcome to R2R!

 

[Requiemiero]

You have 2 20 amp circuits. Make sure they are dedicated circuits which means nothing else is on them.A 20 amp circuit is your overcurrent device which means anything over 20 you have a possibility of tripping the breaker. The National electrical code that I use as an electrician states the circuit should not exceed 80% Of the breaker. So I wouldn’t load each breaker no more than 16 AMPS. I hope this helps.

Wow thank you! Very helpful

 

[Ruben's Reef]

!!! Welcome to R2R !!!

 

[AllSignsPointToFish]

Welcome to R2R!

 

[Ippyroy]

Welcome to R2R!