Extreme Noobie!

B

bbrianmo1

I am starting early on learning about setting up a 55 gallon FOWLR tank. Let's be honest, it's just starting as a FOWLR tank and will end up as a reef tank in the (near) future. Any and all good advice is appreciated! Preferably if someone can get me a listing of all the stuff I'll need to set it up as well as the costs associated with each item...that would be super.
 
well...lets start with the obvious...TANK ($300ish)...your best bet would be to find a REEF READY one which has overflows built in, and this is to drain into an underneath area for a refugium/sump ($150ish)...if you can not get or do not have a reef ready tank, you can get hang over style things to get it down. then you need the pump to circulate the water from the tank to the sump ($50ish). The tank will need pretty good IN TANK circulation if it is to be a reef, 1000 gallons per hour or so extra and a couple koralia 3's ($40ish each) would work or some maxi jet 1200's ($40ish each) on a wave maker ($40ish). A must is a decent skimmer, and i currently use a coralife 125 ($150ish) on my 90, and it seems to work well, my friend has a das ex1 on his 110 which he likes ($300ish), up to you really. Then i would go ahead and get decent lights so you can be prepared for the reef, and some T5's ($300ish) would probably be best, but depends on what you want in your reef. A couple pounds of rock per gallon would be sufficient, so 100 lbs rock ($3-5 per lb) or so and 50 lbs or so sand. I would recommend getting a RO/DI water unit ($150ish) because it definately pays for itself in the long run. TWO heaters ($50ish), not just one because they will fail. Ummm...all rough guesses here, maybe a lil more maybe a lil less, but more or less your basics to get started. please ask questions and more questions, and welcome to the board, good luck!
 
that's roughly what I was thinking for pricing, I think I was about 200 dollars higher, which is better than being lower. As for stocking, any suggestions on fish? I was leaning towards a couple damsels, clown, goby or two....and snails.
 
Welcome to the board!

Since you are planning to add corals some day, it is important to know a little bit about your tank. If you already have a tank, you will want to know for sure that your tank has never been dosed with copper based medications since many corals are very sensitive to copper.

Also, reef tanks require better light than FOWLR tanks, so go ahead and purchase the lights you need for a reef tank. You will save yourself a lot of money in the long run if you go ahead and spend a little extra now.

The most important thing is to take your time and do your research.
 
Another good piece of advice is to consider a larger tank size than what you want.. :) I can't think of anyone that hasn't upgraded. Even when I went 45>75 I sometimes wish I had done 90g.

A hint on gobies... At the LFS when you're picking the goby, make sure it eats (not live brine, not enough nutrients to sustain life). If it doesn't eat then or they don't want to feed it - don't invest. And you don't need an anemone for a clownfish either (anemones need good water quality/lighting so wait at least 6 months before considering one).
 
@kaledrina wrote:
Another good piece of advice is to consider a larger tank size than what you want.. :) I can't think of anyone that hasn't upgraded. Even when I went 45>75 I sometimes wish I had done 90g. said:
My advice is the same, get the largest tank that you budget will allow as this will make a big difference later.

Welcome to the forum.
Click to expand...
 
ill third that...i have gone through 33-55-90 and now 180

i have also found that my 90 is easier to take care of than the 55 was, and you are not talking about a big difference in costs between the two, it is not a large enough jump to require a large increase in equipment expenses
 
I wanted to have something small, such as a 30 gallon fowlr tank, but i've already convinced myself a 55 is the way to start off. I know I'll go to bigger someday, but for now I know a 55 will suit me just fine. Worst case is a couple years down the road I want a larger tank, and then use the 55 either as a seperate tank, refugium, or qt tank.
As for anemones, I don't plan on getting one for a real long time(1 year or longer). As for corals, I plan on seeing what my live rock will have on it before doing much there.
 
If you do it right and wait for deals and learn how to wire things up correctly you can save alot of money. I got all my lr about 100 ish pounds for less than 100 bucks and my skimmer which some say sucks i dont agree for 40 which is alot less than the 125 price tag. I got my 20 gal sump for 15 and 10 bucks in acrylic to make baffles. The tank i bought used for 225 which was tank stand canopy. The corals which i got from members cheap have paid for my fish. I wired up a 250 MH setup which i only have 100 bucks in with the cost of bulbs. The pc only cost me 35 bucks since i already had the bulbs from my cichlid tank. I bought the quiet one off DFS. You get the point. If you are patient and wait for deals you can get alot more for your money. There are always people on this site and craigslist wanting to sell stuff. Being in the hobby always means upgrading and you can get stuff from people to help them and you. Growing corals and selling them at good prices to other members really helps us all since we can upgrade and you get a good deal. Patience is a virtue and a money saver.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top