Here goes nothing...
After saying I wanted a reef tank for about a year now, I've finally decided to go with it. I started planning it in my head about 6 months ago. Originally, I was going to set one up a few months back... but I went through a rough spell where me and the hobby weren't getting along all that great. That's behind me now, and I am 100% dedicated to this thing.With that said, here's what I have:
-40 breeder tank and stand
-15 gallon sump
-2x Tunze 6045 powerheads.
-ATO unit with aqualifter pump
-4x39w T5HO fixture. May add another 2x39w unit later, though the inital plan seems to indicate that 4x is sufficient.
-50lbs base rock - ordered. Not sure if this is enough or not, so we'll just play that out. If not, I can easily order some more.
-40lbs sand - ordered. Again, not sure if it's enough, but we'll see. Easy enough to pick up a 20lb bag if needed. It was free with the rock, so why not?
-100gph 4 stage RO/DI unit. May upgrade to a better unit down the road, but for all intensive purposes, this should be sufficient.
-700gph Glass-holes overflow - ordered
-Refractometer
-Salt (Red Sea)
-Mag 7
-Loc-Line
-Heater (duh)
So, here's the plan. I am initially going to try and lay out a 'cove' look to the tank. The middle should be tallest, yet have more room from the rock to the front of the tank than any other spot. I also plan on having a shaded area underneath, with an almost bridge-like appearance. As it stands right now, I only plan on keeping zoas, maybe some palys, and possibly a duncan or two. I assume I'll probably end up doing the same thing as I did with plants. Initially want one look, then start to warm up to other things. At this point, I don't really like the look of the 'cactus' looking corals, though who knows what the future holds.
I don't plan on adding corals for the first couple months. While I have a good grasp on how water chemistry works, I want to have some experience with testing, water changes, and just get the tank to a point where I'm comfortable
with adding corals. Because of this, I won't be adding a skimmer right away. Eventually, I'll have some chaeto in the refugium as well running on the opposite schedule as the DT.
For now, is there anything obvious that I'm missing? The tank is the same tank I had planted, and has some nasty brown water in it right now from removing my planted substrate. I plan on documenting the drilling process, provided I have plenty of sedatives (joke btw).
As it stands right now, my initial stocking plan is a pair of clowns (occelaris probably), a firefish, and a dottyback. I'll also be ordering a clean-up crew once the tank gets started, cycled, and ready for one. Since I have no desire to seed with LR, that might be a while.
With everything said, I do want to add that I am very excited about getting this set up. It's been a long planning process, and I'm confident that it will be as rewarding as I've hoped. I welcome any advice or constructive criticism.
After saying I wanted a reef tank for about a year now, I've finally decided to go with it. I started planning it in my head about 6 months ago. Originally, I was going to set one up a few months back... but I went through a rough spell where me and the hobby weren't getting along all that great. That's behind me now, and I am 100% dedicated to this thing.With that said, here's what I have:
-40 breeder tank and stand
-15 gallon sump
-2x Tunze 6045 powerheads.
-ATO unit with aqualifter pump
-4x39w T5HO fixture. May add another 2x39w unit later, though the inital plan seems to indicate that 4x is sufficient.
-50lbs base rock - ordered. Not sure if this is enough or not, so we'll just play that out. If not, I can easily order some more.
-40lbs sand - ordered. Again, not sure if it's enough, but we'll see. Easy enough to pick up a 20lb bag if needed. It was free with the rock, so why not?
-100gph 4 stage RO/DI unit. May upgrade to a better unit down the road, but for all intensive purposes, this should be sufficient.
-700gph Glass-holes overflow - ordered
-Refractometer
-Salt (Red Sea)
-Mag 7
-Loc-Line
-Heater (duh)
So, here's the plan. I am initially going to try and lay out a 'cove' look to the tank. The middle should be tallest, yet have more room from the rock to the front of the tank than any other spot. I also plan on having a shaded area underneath, with an almost bridge-like appearance. As it stands right now, I only plan on keeping zoas, maybe some palys, and possibly a duncan or two. I assume I'll probably end up doing the same thing as I did with plants. Initially want one look, then start to warm up to other things. At this point, I don't really like the look of the 'cactus' looking corals, though who knows what the future holds.
I don't plan on adding corals for the first couple months. While I have a good grasp on how water chemistry works, I want to have some experience with testing, water changes, and just get the tank to a point where I'm comfortable
with adding corals. Because of this, I won't be adding a skimmer right away. Eventually, I'll have some chaeto in the refugium as well running on the opposite schedule as the DT.
For now, is there anything obvious that I'm missing? The tank is the same tank I had planted, and has some nasty brown water in it right now from removing my planted substrate. I plan on documenting the drilling process, provided I have plenty of sedatives (joke btw).
As it stands right now, my initial stocking plan is a pair of clowns (occelaris probably), a firefish, and a dottyback. I'll also be ordering a clean-up crew once the tank gets started, cycled, and ready for one. Since I have no desire to seed with LR, that might be a while.
With everything said, I do want to add that I am very excited about getting this set up. It's been a long planning process, and I'm confident that it will be as rewarding as I've hoped. I welcome any advice or constructive criticism.
