want to try saltwater and got ?

got some questions... trying to work with a budget.. would a canister filter work for a saltwater tank, and if so what size would I need on a 25g (24x12x20) I need to turn the tank over 8-12 times right?

or would a sump be better?

protein skimmer would a hob one work, or should I get one that sits in the sump?

do I need a refugium?

lighting, what type of lighting would I need? would 2 t5 ho bulbs work or should I do 4 bulbs. I plan for some soft corals... or maybe just an anemone.

live sand - is just live sand right is any brand better then the other, and how many pounds do I need?

live rock, how many pounds do I need and what type is the best. what should I get? tonya,fiji,vanuatu,etc.

salt/water will more or likely just buy local and make a couple of trips.

power head, will more or likely get a hydor k-nano, or should I get a k 1 ?

fish --- I like the pajami cardinals, banggai cardinals, and royal dotty back. are this fish reef safe, is my tank big enough?

canister fiter will work but will need to be cleaned often to prevent nitrates.
HOB skimmer is better and a sump/fuge is even better for multiple reasons.
no you dont have to have a fuge.
a 2 bulb fixture will work fine for softies but you would need better light to support anemone.
I like the black and white Caribsea ocean direct they come in 40lb bags
live sand will help jump start your cycle.
1 1/2 -2lbs per gallon of water of live rock what kind is up to you and what you like the look of mine is a mix of the above.
for a 25 gallon tank I would use 2 Koralia 2's
all the fish you listed are reef safe the PJ's and Bangaii's do best in groups. the Dotty if fine but they can be territorial.
keep in mind nems need really good water quality/ good flow and good lighting
and a well cycled tank. I keep 5 nems in a 40 gallon under 150 watt MH

so if I had a canister that does 265gph would that work ? check..

hob skimmer - will find a red sea prizm.

live sand will get from local fish store.

rock I can get from salt water members or /at lfs.
lighting, would a t5 ho 2x24 watt ballast, with a 10,000k and antic work to grow softies? if I use single bulb reflectors(so each bulb has it own reflector in the canopy?

and when you say group for the pj's or bangaii's that means at least 5 right?

are poly's soft or hard corals?


a local saltwater club is meeting at the local saltwater store, so I can ask them a lot of question, and I bet they would help me get started...

canister - yes but like she said watch nitrates. This is more important for a nem than the softies.

skimmer - If you're running one of these you don't need the canister unless you want to run carbon or just do sporadic water polishing.

refugium - These are great ways to raise tank food, and serve as a means of nutrient export from the water when combined with macro algae. CPR actually makes a really nice combo unit skimmer/refugium that's pretty easy to set up. But no this is not required.

lighting - cwhip covered that pretty good. Yes retrofit t5 will work that way for softies.

I don't know on the bangaii's I don't have any fish in my 29... maybe today that changes.

I'm not sure what this question is. All corals have polyps. If you're up for a drive once you get cycled come see the pope. I'll hook you up with some softies that'll do well in a nano. (Affectionately the pope's holy softie starter pack. GSP, Xenia, and whatever else I can lop off while you wait!)

I'll be there between 12 and 1. 20% off! That store is known for their softies (zoanthids) and they should have a lot of cool stuff.

Joey ....I would bet money that you go back to fresh!

yeah fresh is easier and pretty much a no brainer:) just think you can water your house plants with the same water you top off your tanks with..

so you will be at neptunes cove pope? and I have saltwater before but I didn't get in to corals I just did a fowlr tank.

I guess I'm trying to ask what is sps and what is hps or all the short names when people talk about corals...


so I guess I just need to set the tank up where I want it, get a hob protein skimmer.
25-30 pounds of live rock, live sand, 2 foot reflectors, a 10k,a antic bulb, a hydor power head, and then get saltwater, let it cycle then ad corals and fish.

Actually I herd SW is much easier once you get it going. I have done it once....but I am to addicted to my breeding of African Cichlids.

will be there...

SPS - small polyp stony - acropora would be a species to google. these are what most people think of when they think of coral reef. These generally require the most light and stable parameters.

LPS - large polyp stony - these are like your hammers or frogspawn. They'll have some sort of skeleton with large fleshy polyps. Easier to care for than SPS, but they can be aggressive toward other coral.

Softies - Mushrooms, Zoanthids, Palythoas, Xenia, button polyps the list goes on and on. These generally lack a skeleton and easiest to care for. Several species here are tolerant of varying water parameters and moderate lighting. Your basic beginner coral.

25-30 pounds should do ya good. I was thinking of ordering from liverockranch or whatever it is at $3/pound.

I've done both but reef tanks take a good amount of knowledge with the water chemistry because if your cal,mag,alk is off corals will begin to die especially SPSs
SPS Small polyp stoney.... Acro's stag horn, montipora etc... difficult
LPS large polyp stoney... frog spawn, duncan, etc...moderate
zoanthids, paly soft but pretty much the same expect palys are larger.. easy
softy's mushrooms,leather,xenia's etc...easy

Ha! pope great minds think alike!!

softies are what I'm thinking of then. cool, be there shortly just going to go to the bank real quick ;) .

I'm Glad to see that someone is brave enough to try it out. I'm still not able to fathom it yet! But i sure think about it a lot and read up on everything i can find~!

Its not so bad born, just read up a little bit and ask lots of questions. its easier to ask people who have done it and are still in the hobby than to read something that you dont know if the person who wrote the article has ever even kept fish. Like Cwhip and Nitty on here, they have nice photos of their setups and answer any question you have that they can, Just be prepared to continually spend. I can see this is a never ending affair.

TO DAY i LEARN TO JUST PIECE IT OUT. GET THE TANK AND STAND ONE MONTH, THEN THE NEXT GET THE LIGHT OR LIGHT AND SUMP, THEN AFTER THAT SKIMMER, THEN AFTER THAT SAND AND LIVE ROCK... ONE GUY TOLD ME IT TOOK HIM 5 YEARS, MAYBE HE MEANT 5 MONTHS TO PIECE OUT HIS SETUP.

email me and i will email my number to you i have a lot of info for you as well as sand i will overnight you i keep it in my sump and it is roughly 7 yrs old it has all u need to cycle grow you name it. 25g just remember what is better a cup of water or a gallon if i put a drop of bleach in. Which would be safer to drink. I know bad analogy) But 55 g would be a great starter size. I really wouldn't go after a sump with that size of tank. And the lighting you really should feel what type of anemones or corals you want. You have to watch out for heat bulb replacement etc etc. Skimmer Tunze Automatic Skimmer 0220 / 3 this one hands down. It does contact skimming it doesn't not pull living plankton in to the skimmer and with your size of tank that is important. A refug is in my opinion for 3 reasons grow algae grow cope-pods and hold live rock for filtering. Cope-pods are little critters fish eat,mainly mandarins. But for your setup i wouldn't invest in it. Live rock I would buy 2 nice prime reef rock roughly 50 lbs. Sand i would not go more than an inch i am against dsb. I have an inch and a half 1000lbs of live rock asm g4xl skimmer and a filter sock. Im el natural. Best tank i have or ever had. I have hard tube worms yellow mask angel anemones and clowns etc etc. I will post some pics.

what is the gph for the over flow box that I will need.... and would a slim line sump rated for a 75 gallon work?

yes that will work find the return pump you want and base your return off of that i dont use overflows i drill holes with 80degree elbows

I'd probably just go hob skimmer or a hob fuge/skimmer combo on a 25, and not worry about an overflow. Sump is nice, but unnecessary for what you want to do.

^^

I just started a 30 gallon reef up 6 months ago and got a hob refugium/skimmer off ebay for under 70 bucks and it work great .i have several snails -hermit crabs-sand sifting star-yellowtail damsel-coral beauty-blenny .my opinion get the best salt mix that you can .i always mix water up a week before adding to the tank if this helps or you want to ask anything more i'd be glad to help

a week?

i have some zoo and mushrooms in my 60 cube 30 isn't ready for coral yet

YOU CAN NEVER FILTER TO MUCH. Smaller tanks have more problems that is what i would through a 20 gallon sump in there you can do more of a natural filtration with a bunch of bio rubble(broken pieces of live rock and you are also expanding your water capacity. If you have a cup of water or a gallon and ad the same amount of toxin which will take longer to containment to a unsafe level. I would def get a hob skimmer

okay so I will get a hob skimmer, what do I do about a filter?

any one local to dfw, TX got what I need?