MarkAway
New Member
I had marine aquariums about 25 years ago.
I doubt anyone remembers irc and fishroom.
I have some spare time, so I thought a good time to start again.
Plus, I now live next to the beach and still do a fair bit of scuba and snorkeling.
Anyway, I recently bought two tanks for a new setup.
The first tank is a polycarbonate tank. 19mm thick.
The tank is 150cm long, 60cm deep and 75cm tall for a total of 675 litres.
(60" x 24" x 30" - 5' x 2' x 2.5' - 178 US gallons).
The tank needs a cleanup but is fine.
I will block off the two holes in the bottom.
I can source CLEAN sea water very easily. I will filter it before I use it.
No pollution or runoff issues.
I also have plenty of rainwater as well. I will also filter this before I use it.
So, no ro/di water.
Because I can use natural salt water, and can do water changes whenever I want, I will not be using a skimmer.
The display tank will have a sand bed about 5cm (1.5") deep - I love goby's and other bottom fish.
I know the sand sifters are messy but they are also very entertaining.
Live rock, mushies, lps and some sps.
Anemone and clowns of course.
Not much sps as I want to keep the tank simple to look after.
The sump is 150 x 60 x 60 = 540 litres.
The water from the main tank will come into the first chamber in the tank and there will be a coarse filter for any large bit and pieces.
The sump will have some cheato or caelerpa, but the sump is really only to make it easier for me to do water changes and to top up the water level.
If the tank is ever a bit cloudy, I can add some carbon in the tank to clear it up.
For the top-up water I will simply take some from the main storage tank and put into a smaller container. From there it can drip feed over a day or several days. No need for a seperate compartment, it can drip into where the water overlows from the main tank.
It will also have a refugium as I would like to have some mandarin fish, so this is a good place for their food to grow.
The refugium will have a 30w light, coming on at opposite times to the main tank.
Of course, if I want to dose any other chemicals, having the sump will make that much safer and easier.
I will probably break the sump up into three compartments - water in, refugium and return pump to main tank.
The water in / return do not need to be very big, so the refugium should be a decent size. If needed I can always make the refugium into two or more compartments.
I will use 40mm (1.5") Bean Animal style overflow pipes.
I had something similar before and don't want to be hearing gurgling all the time.
The ocean here is normally 28c so I will keep the tank between 26-28c.
I know this is on the higher end but with frequent water changes it should be ok.
Water change schedule will be based on the water parameters, but I am hoping for about 10-15% per week (70-100 liters).
I can change a bit every day. It is only 10 - 15 liters per day so pretty easy.
The live rock and sand will be sourced locally.
I will sieve the live sand so that it is between 1 & 2 mm grain size.
I will also try to source what fish I can locally before they get sent to the shops.
Some fish however, like the mandarins and bangaii I will need to buy.
I prefer to stay with smaller fish and have never liked having bigger fish in the aquarium - and I find them more entertaining.
I just want something I can enjoy and is simple to maintain.
I know that sounds a little mad for a saltwater aquarium.
LED lighting seems amazing these days compared to having the halogen lights with both their bulk, heat and power consumption of the past.
Return pump and some powerheads to round it all off.
Temperature gauge and test kits to finish.
I still have a lot of stuff left from the past so makes it a bit easier.
I need to decide on a return pump and lighting.
I am looking at these for lighting, but not decided yet.
More research needed.
Biggest issue is going to be the loss of power at times, but a few hours should not hurt.
If necessary, I will get backup power for the pumps and powerheads and leave the lights off.
Anyway, i'm currently away for two months and will start as soon as I get back.
First thing is to clean the tank and make a stand for it.
I will order lighting, return pump and anything else to be delivered before I get back.
Any comments, suggestions etc are welcome
I doubt anyone remembers irc and fishroom.
I have some spare time, so I thought a good time to start again.
Plus, I now live next to the beach and still do a fair bit of scuba and snorkeling.
Anyway, I recently bought two tanks for a new setup.
The first tank is a polycarbonate tank. 19mm thick.
The tank is 150cm long, 60cm deep and 75cm tall for a total of 675 litres.
(60" x 24" x 30" - 5' x 2' x 2.5' - 178 US gallons).
The tank needs a cleanup but is fine.
I will block off the two holes in the bottom.
I can source CLEAN sea water very easily. I will filter it before I use it.
No pollution or runoff issues.
I also have plenty of rainwater as well. I will also filter this before I use it.
So, no ro/di water.
Because I can use natural salt water, and can do water changes whenever I want, I will not be using a skimmer.
The display tank will have a sand bed about 5cm (1.5") deep - I love goby's and other bottom fish.
I know the sand sifters are messy but they are also very entertaining.
Live rock, mushies, lps and some sps.
Anemone and clowns of course.
Not much sps as I want to keep the tank simple to look after.
The sump is 150 x 60 x 60 = 540 litres.
The water from the main tank will come into the first chamber in the tank and there will be a coarse filter for any large bit and pieces.
The sump will have some cheato or caelerpa, but the sump is really only to make it easier for me to do water changes and to top up the water level.
If the tank is ever a bit cloudy, I can add some carbon in the tank to clear it up.
For the top-up water I will simply take some from the main storage tank and put into a smaller container. From there it can drip feed over a day or several days. No need for a seperate compartment, it can drip into where the water overlows from the main tank.
It will also have a refugium as I would like to have some mandarin fish, so this is a good place for their food to grow.
The refugium will have a 30w light, coming on at opposite times to the main tank.
Of course, if I want to dose any other chemicals, having the sump will make that much safer and easier.
I will probably break the sump up into three compartments - water in, refugium and return pump to main tank.
The water in / return do not need to be very big, so the refugium should be a decent size. If needed I can always make the refugium into two or more compartments.
I will use 40mm (1.5") Bean Animal style overflow pipes.
I had something similar before and don't want to be hearing gurgling all the time.
The ocean here is normally 28c so I will keep the tank between 26-28c.
I know this is on the higher end but with frequent water changes it should be ok.
Water change schedule will be based on the water parameters, but I am hoping for about 10-15% per week (70-100 liters).
I can change a bit every day. It is only 10 - 15 liters per day so pretty easy.
The live rock and sand will be sourced locally.
I will sieve the live sand so that it is between 1 & 2 mm grain size.
I will also try to source what fish I can locally before they get sent to the shops.
Some fish however, like the mandarins and bangaii I will need to buy.
I prefer to stay with smaller fish and have never liked having bigger fish in the aquarium - and I find them more entertaining.
I just want something I can enjoy and is simple to maintain.
I know that sounds a little mad for a saltwater aquarium.
LED lighting seems amazing these days compared to having the halogen lights with both their bulk, heat and power consumption of the past.
Return pump and some powerheads to round it all off.
Temperature gauge and test kits to finish.
I still have a lot of stuff left from the past so makes it a bit easier.
I need to decide on a return pump and lighting.
I am looking at these for lighting, but not decided yet.
More research needed.
PopBloom Led Aquarium Light Program Reef Light Aquarium Tank for 110-140cm Saltwater Coral Reef Growing Seawater Marine Aquarium Tank Lamp
Biggest issue is going to be the loss of power at times, but a few hours should not hurt.
If necessary, I will get backup power for the pumps and powerheads and leave the lights off.
Anyway, i'm currently away for two months and will start as soon as I get back.
First thing is to clean the tank and make a stand for it.
I will order lighting, return pump and anything else to be delivered before I get back.
Any comments, suggestions etc are welcome
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