Wanting to start a reef tank

[TakAttack]

Im wanting to start a reef tank, it will be my first saltwater tank. I have ow ed plent of freshwater tanks. I have a roughly 50 to 65 gallon tall cube tank that was given to me that I want to use. I would rather not do a sump and I cant find a AIO to put in it at all so hang on back seems like my way to go. If I go with hang on what brands and sizes of everything do i need? The same with if I go with a sump. Im looking for more specific info on the products and what sizes I need. I know they need to be good ones but thats not telling me which one exactly to get or anything. Im ready to get this tank started so please help me out!

 

[Dan_P]

Im wanting to start a reef tank, it will be my first saltwater tank. I have ow ed plent of freshwater tanks. I have a roughly 50 to 65 gallon tall cube tank that was given to me that I want to use. I would rather not do a sump and I cant find a AIO to put in it at all so hang on back seems like my way to go. If I go with hang on what brands and sizes of everything do i need? The same with if I go with a sump. Im looking for more specific info on the products and what sizes I need. I know they need to be good ones but thats not telling me which one exactly to get or anything. Im ready to get this tank started so please help me out!

Welcome to R2R!

Keeping a freshwater aquarium is a good start but you are going to be surprised at the differences between keeping a freshwater and a saltwater aquarium. I predict you will convert all your freshwater systems to saltwater in 2 years

You can rely on manufacturer’s suggestion about matching their equipment to your aquarium size. Just keep telling yourself that your just setting up an aquarium not putting a satellite into orbit.

Many decisions in thus hobby are biased by what the person prefers to do, not a carefully calculated engineering analysis. Consider how much time and effort you want to put into each piece of equipment. You are likely to find that saltwater aquaria and attached equipment require quite a bit more attention than freshwater. If you don’t like spending time cleaning, make sure filtration equipment is quick and easy to clean.

An important idea to remember is that you don’t have to buy everything on day one. Equipment can be added as the need arises. Also, when setting up the aquarium, be aware that you will develop cravings to add more and more equipment to aquarium. Make sure you leave room around and under it. Some aquarists equipment cabinets look like oil refineries.

It is very important to decide up front what animals you want to keep. This will influence how to set up the aquarium and what equipment to buy.

Good luck!

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

As mentioned above, salt is a lot different than fresh, proper due diligence is very important for saltwater.

A lot of answers will depend on what you want to keep in that tank, but in a tall tank like that, you definately will need a skimmer, no matter what you keep. Tall tanks are hard to oxiginate, so a skimmer will really help with that.

Besides a skimmer, you will need rocks and powerheads (google 'the berlin method', this is how biofiltration works in a salt tank).

Also need a light, but the light depends what you want to keep.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Welcome to Reef2Reef. I would look around here for advice on what to get for your tank, there are plenty of helpful people here that can point you in the right direction regarding what you should get. Also, I recommend using BulkReefSupply as well as a resource. They have plenty of helpful videos and can show you more info on a certain product if you have questions. Best of luck with starting your new tank!