55 gallon equipment?

things I have:
topfin 60 filter
emperor 400 filter
heater
thermometer
2.75 lbs live rock in a 10 gallon saltwater setup
hood with flourescent light
dual output whisper airpump
powerstrip with timer

things I know i need:
salt
sand
more liverock
powerheads (if i run the hang on back filters will I need these or are these pretty much a necessity, i'm thinking necessity)

what else do I NEED for a tank that'll eventually have coral and anemone in it?
protein skimmer? if i run a HOB filter do I really need one?
lighting? will what I have be enough for that? can I just upgrade the bulb? will I need a whole new fixture?

im not an expert at SW but i know you need a skimmer, i would get a canister filter instead of a HOB, and very good lighting..

canisters are not the best for salt water tanks. Unfortunately you can not go to cheap for a saltwater tank or you will end up throwing it out a window from the headaches and tossing money out trying to fix it later. the light you have will not work for a saltwater tank. you really need at least a T5 lighting. Power head are needed. Please fully read up on starting a saltwater tank and realize how expensive a 55 gal will be to set up. Yes they are beautiful but have the think also of the health of a good environment for your tank and even cheaply the cost of it.

You'll want...

power heads -more flow equals less places for nasty stuff to build up

a skimmer - These remove organic waste from the water without adding nitrates to the system. Some people use hob filters for this, and I guess that's a viable approach, but do yourself a favor and remove any bio media associated with it or you'll never have your nitrates under control. You'll need to detach yourself from the FW mentality, if you're still holding onto it, where you water change to reduce nitrates, and nitrate production is just a sign of a healthy tank (that's actually true, but in a reef you're building a balanced system so the nitrate production is negated through consumption). Nitrates are a really bad thing in reef world, and typically you'll find people striving for systems that test out at no ammonia, no nitrite, no nitrate (ever).

better light - If you want anything to grow in the system other than algae you'll want better lighting. Nems and coral need a lot of light. I'd be looking personally for at least a 4 bulb t5 ho setup. Whatever you get you'll want to run on timers as consistency is the key with SW. If you're generally lazy, or want to save outlet space I'd go with a current sundial fixture or maybe an aquatic life one. Both have integrated timers.

more research - True story. I've been looking to get a bigger reef for the last two months. Only some of this has been shopping for a tank, and that's only been in the last week. So now the glass sits empty in my garage, and probably will another month. Why? (Other than the desire to produce furniture quality cabinetry to sit it on) Primarily it's because I'm still deciding which equipment to use with it. I'd recommend scouring reef and marine forums for build logs. There's a wealth of information out there that can really save you time and money in the long run.

Side note about nems... Make sure if you put a power head in the tank for water flow that it has some sort of pre-filter on it. There are a thousand and one "My nem got sucked into my powerhead" stories. This is NEVER a good thing as those things are toxic.

you don't want to go cheap.

lighting you need good strong light to grow the corals.. I would have at least a 4 bulb t5 ho fixture on there 2 10k, a antic, and a mix of different level atntics.

live sand, live rock, I would get tonya(spellng?) and fiji. a protein skimmer is needing. think of it as the toliet for the fish. you will need a sump/refugium with a pump that can turn the water over and filter it 10-15 times a hour...

just to turn a freshwater 55g to a saltwater 55g you will be looking at around $600.00 and thats on the cheap side.... also the price of r/o to top the water off from evapration, and the price of saltwater... like pope said lots of research I would would recomend reading everything you can on reefcentral.com or dallasmas.org or dfwmas.org

why do you remove the biowheels for a saltwater tank... i'm confused as to how that builds up the bad stuff.

the biowheel tends to harbor nitrates most people dont use them on reef tanks simply because they are not necessary if you have live rock, sand and a protein skimmer

For t5 light I think they still have a dual t5HO at simpley pets with actinic and 10000k bulb in for $99. Salt keep an eye out at care-a-lot pets they have 5 gallon buckets go on sale every now and then for $20 usually aroun$75. Sand check CL I have seen 6/7 adds advertising "breaking down my reef". Need more info ask here as always or swing by "the reef chief" in suffolk awesome store guy is down to earth and will take the time to show you what you need and explain its purpose....and not like the box stores where every answer is "well most people buy this filter for saltwater"

If you get someone's used sand you'll want to wash it. There's a good article on washing sand at reefaddicts.com.

Instead of referring to another forum please just give what you have learned.

I really wouldn't classify that as a forum. It's more of a podcast/blog for reef related stuff.

you said you are interested in keeping anemone then I would alteast get a 4x54 watt T5 fixture. I'm using a Ushio 150 Watt 20K MH pendant and supplementing with a 36"18x 3 watt LED strip on a 40 gallon breeder to keep 5 nems happy. also keep in mind they need good flow you could easliy keep them with 2- 1400 gph Koralia evolutions power heads pointed up towards the water surface and for water quality you can't go wrong with the Aqua C remora pro hob skimmer on a 55 gallon you would want to go with the 1400 Rio pump. for keeping the nems safe until they have settle in I use 2 MP40 covers they fit perfect over the power heads and keep the nems from being sucked in then after a few months when the nems have settled in their spots you can remove the covers just keep in mind when it comes to anemone any slight change in flow or lighting will get them moving again. your tank needs to be stable imo I would let your tank marinate for atleast 6 months before adding a nem.

definitely. i just want to get the equip first so i know ill be good

got a light

youre gonna love it I have the mh T5 version.

YES! That's exactly the fixture I want over my 90

When it's time for bulb upgrade swap the blues out for ati blue+ swap a white out for an ati aquablue special, a uvl pure actinic, and a fiji purple.

NICE! great choice in lighting.

popebosephus wrote:

When it's time for bulb upgrade swap the blues out for ati blue+ swap a white out for an ati aquablue special, a uvl pure actinic, and a fiji purple.

+1 thats a really nice combo!

Oh and if you decide reefing's not for you and you want to sell the fixture at an astounding loss... call me.

That is an awesome light!