Starting up a Cade 900 Reef S2 - what else do I need?

[SleepyMama1986]

I will be receiving delivery of this tank soon and am looking for recommendations. I have a Red Sea Max Nano XL already and much of that filtration is built in. I have a Nano Mat and the included skimmer. I also have an Innovative Marine Helio PTC Smart Reef Aquarium Heater which I like so far. Also using the included Red Sea lights but looking to see if anyone who has this tank has any recommendations as to what equipment to get for the tank and also if anyone has any recommendations for any of this extra equipment (skimmer, heater, return pump, lights, etc.) that they love and think works particularly well. What would you get for this tank if money weren’t an option? (Just looking to see what everyone thinks works best/is most efficient/safest for the aquarium). Also -
should I buy live rock from my LFS or are the hitchhikers not worth it? Also, not tied to this being a tank with coral vs. fish only - but that may change in the future. My kiddos love the existing tank and were looking forward to another tank with some different fish. Thanks everyone!

 

[EnterName]

I don't know the specific tank, but here is what I can recommend to keep in mind when setting up a new tank:

• You want a controller that turns the heaters on and off. Heaters with build-in controllers can get stuck "on" and fry your fish.
• You want at least two heaters in the tank and at least one heater as replacement if one fails. I personally use Aqua Medic's titanium heaters and had to replace maybe one or two in like 6 years.
• You want redundancy regarding temperature measurement. If the temperature probe fails you don't want this to stay unnoticed or you get another fried-fish-scenario.
• If it fits in your filter sump take a larger skimmer than your tank needs. It's easier to add nutrients with home-made stock solutions than it is to reduce them. Skimmers are invaluable for the gas exchange they provide even if you don't need them for the nutrient export.
• Have a spare return pump at hand. A failing return pump can cause a lot of trouble.

Regarding live rock (and sand): I personally started my current system with 100% dry rock and sand. All hitchhikers had to come from coral frags and macro algae and survive the coral dip somehow.

Starting 100% dry will reduce the amount of hitchhikers significantly, BUT

• it will prolong the time your tank needs to go through the nitrogen cycle, the ugly phase, and stop having bacteria blooms from time to time.
• It can lead to you having absolute bottomed out phosphate that you can't increase without dumping insane amounts of phosphate solutions into your tank to saturate the dry rock before you finally see numbers above 0.00ppm.
• Hermits (which I cannot recommend anyway) and snails are prone to starving.
• Dinoflagellate outbreaks are very common

Live rock is a risk, but it's very often a risk you want to take for its benefits. If you have the chance to pick the rocks yourself, take a close look for sponges (besides ball and pineapple sponges), aiptasia, and colonial hydroids, and if there aren't any, you are probably fine.