Newbie has questions:) Needs suggestions.

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nikkiisback32

Hi all, new to this forum. I was glad to join, as I have been visiting another forum called the reef tank. I like being able to chat with others who live in the same area as me, for obvious reasons of being able to buy/trade/sell/ etc...Anyways. Me and Hubby are new to saltwater and so far, things are going decent enough. Can't say we dont have our share of confusion, being that we have had sooo much differing advice and oppinions. (here i am asking for more) Anyways...

What I have: 55 gallon tank. This was originally a freshwater. We had fresh for 2 years before deciding to do salt. We didn't have the money to buy a rr tank, so what we have done is placed 2 AQ 110 hob on the tank. (There is no room for a sump) As you know, the filtration in this 55 is beast, getting like 5 or 6 hundred gph filtration. I also have several crabs and snails, 1 yellow tang, 1 flame angel, and 1 sandsifitng starfish. I intend on getting a few more fish and a couple soft corals, and thats about it. As of next week i will have the light i need for the softcoral. My water perameters area ll good, water is crystal clear. Here is my questions...
1. Do i need a skimmer? I do water changes 1 a week, 10 gallons
2. Do I need to add a hob refugium to keep live rocks and corals healthy and happy? For some reason, i have it in my head that the good bacterias in my tank are going to die off and dissapear...leaving my livestock,live rocks, and live sand...dead. I am thinking that this is why ppl use refugiums, is to "grow" these organisms,or bacterias that colonize the rocks that in turn feed my corals/livestock.
If someone can educate me on the matter, id appreciate it:)
 
First, I'll assume that the tank has properly cycled. How much rock is in the tank and what type is it, if you know. Did it come from an existing tank or setup where it is live? Assuming you have live rock that is established, beneficial bacteria and all that goodness will be sustained by your other livestock doing their thing. Did you seed your sandbed with some live sand from another source such as an existing tank? Same thing will go for your sandbed. The critters in there will feed off of the waste and leftover food.

What parameters do you test for when you say all your water parameters are good?

Sounds like a light enough bioload right now but a skimmer is always a plus and I think natural filtration with live rock and a good skimmer is a better way to go than say filter floss, bioballs, and chemical filtration for a tank your size. I setup a 46g for my dad and he just runs a skimmer, HOB fuge, and live rock for his filtration and the setup runs great. I'd go with a HOB skimmer and ditch the mechanical and chemical filtration.

You might actually want to go with smaller weekly water changes, say 10% of total water volume, so that things stay a bit more stable when you do a water change. Speaking of water, are you using RO/DI water for your top off and water changes?

A fuge will be good for growing amphipods and other critters that can help feed the tank and is a good place to grow macroalgae like chaeto, caulerpa, etc. to help with your biofiltration. I personally prefer running a fuge with a ton of macro to take care of excess nitrates, phosphates, and to provide a place for amphipods and such to grow. I've stopped using GFO altogether and just rely on my fuge and the macro to export phosphates and excess nitrate. Both my dad's tank and my current tank are running CPR aquafuges and I like them quite a bit if a sump and fuge section in a sump are not an option. I think a medium sized aquafuge would be a good size for your tank.
 
@MBSL55 wrote:
First said:
Great questions and all that info would help. My first saltwater setup in 2004 was a freshwater tank we converted to salt. It had HOB filters, a HOB skimmer, live sand, and live rock. It did well. I like my system now much better. It is much more stable and a lot better water perameters. :)
Click to expand...
 
Welcome to the hobby and DFWMAS. it would be great to see U at our next event.
MBSL55 gave U some good info... It is allot to learn, I hope U find the SW side of the hobby rewarding.
 
Run a hang on back refugium abstinence a skimmer on it. Watch out with the angels picking on corals and etc also what kind of lighting. What kind of salt are you using... If running corals pick a good salt like red sea pro

sent from that touch phone thingy.
 
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