Whats up everyone me and my girl decided we want to start a fish tank soon. She loves marine life so i think it would be a cool hobby for us to do. Now we have a 75 gallon tank her dad is giving us. So i bought a few books went to the pet stores all week been online researching as much as i can. And really want to start a salt water tank just fish and maybe live rock first. After i get more experience and knowlege i deff want to add corals and anenomes, but focus on learning as much as i can about setting a tank up and begginer fish. Now my questions are what exactly do I need? i know i need the skimmer, filter, pump, heater, test kits, hydrometer, and a quarantine tank. I have the quarantine tank (old 10 gallon fresh water my dad had). Im really setting this up for her but the prices are bringing me down. Some places there so high and others not so bad. I would like to know what exactly i need & also what would the price be around just an estimate so before i invest any money in this i know what im getting myself into. Im willing to learn everything i can & be prepared i will have lots more questions coming up..........btw the reef meetings sound very good, do those cost and if so how much? Thanks in advance looking forward to your responses
Hey everyone! Newbie here Need help
- Thread starter Nawt2tawl
- Start date
frank180reef
Well-Known Member
welcome to BRS!
well a skimmer and good quality live rock, refractometer (bit better than hyrdometer), good quality test kits, if you can set up a refuge with macro algae that would be great, a few small pumps to circulate the water.................also fairly good lights if u want to raise corals
few options there also, T5, Metal halides and LEDs..........(verdictis still out with those)
ask plenty of questions and take it slow
Frank
TE]
well a skimmer and good quality live rock, refractometer (bit better than hyrdometer), good quality test kits, if you can set up a refuge with macro algae that would be great, a few small pumps to circulate the water.................also fairly good lights if u want to raise corals
few options there also, T5, Metal halides and LEDs..........(verdictis still out with those)
ask plenty of questions and take it slow
Frank
TE]
Owen386
Non-member
Hey,
Welcome to the the BRS!
Sounds like you got some idea of where to star, READ and LEARN and this is a great place to do it. Don`t think there is much you will not find scouring threw the forums on here. The Meetings are Free and open to anyone, also you can sign up for a membership if you feel so inclined to do so gets you discounts at some of the sponsors among other things.
What you need? Huh, well if your going FOWLR (fish.only.with.liverock) then pretty much all you need are a few elements that are essential as far as equipment and then everything else is Extra per the specific hobbyist.
Water movement (some power heads)
Temperature Control (heater)
Filteration (mehanical?? HOB Filter Biological Liverock
Pure water (RODI filter)
Salt (Salt)
Add all these elements to a tank and you can sustain life
Cost phewwww... I could go on and on adding numbers up. Just know it aint cheap and look for DIY projets and Used equipment, people are always getting out of this hobby.
Welcome to the the BRS!
Sounds like you got some idea of where to star, READ and LEARN and this is a great place to do it. Don`t think there is much you will not find scouring threw the forums on here. The Meetings are Free and open to anyone, also you can sign up for a membership if you feel so inclined to do so gets you discounts at some of the sponsors among other things.
What you need? Huh, well if your going FOWLR (fish.only.with.liverock) then pretty much all you need are a few elements that are essential as far as equipment and then everything else is Extra per the specific hobbyist.
Water movement (some power heads)
Temperature Control (heater)
Filteration (mehanical?? HOB Filter Biological Liverock
Pure water (RODI filter)
Salt (Salt)
Add all these elements to a tank and you can sustain life
Cost phewwww... I could go on and on adding numbers up. Just know it aint cheap and look for DIY projets and Used equipment, people are always getting out of this hobby.
First off welcome! Im a fairly new member myself and this site is great for beginners! Skimmer, plenty of rock(about 1.5lbs per gallon) nice inch and a half or more sand bed,at least two pumps for water movement and last, plenty of time! If ir located near me your more than welcome to come by and look at my setup. Good luck!
Aquaman_68
too many gadgets to fail
All the above is great...But a BIG thing that is for sure a serious thing...before u start...Make sure u have a reef ready tank....Messing with a hang on overflow is the most awful thing for a reefer...Reef tanks should all b "REEF READY"
Take it slow is a great approach...
Welcome to our slice of the online reef....
Take it slow is a great approach...
Welcome to our slice of the online reef....
Turbosnail
Non-member
Welcome to the BRS! Best advice I can give in this hobby is have patience and ask questions.
Frank- can you explain the refuge with macro algae. Never heard of that also I'm not planning on getting corals anytime soon. I want to get more experience I hear those are not for newbies. So just a light that is good for fish an maybe live rock. Someone tole me I don't even need a light for the fish. Just the coral.
Owen- what places do you get discounts at. I'm deff interested in getting a membership and what's the cost of the membership. Could you name some good brands for power heads, filters, etc. also good websites. I have nothing but a petco near me. But there expensive.
Joho- yeah. Where you at I wouldn't mind seeing how the plumbing and setup goes. Easier to see when it's in front of u instead of pics online.
Aqua man- I plan on getting a reef tank but not anytime soon. When. Feel more comfortable and have more knowledge. Just wanted to start fowlr for now. You think the hob filter would be a bad idea still. I'm on a budget and looking to do it as cheap as possible.
Thanks all for your input
Owen- what places do you get discounts at. I'm deff interested in getting a membership and what's the cost of the membership. Could you name some good brands for power heads, filters, etc. also good websites. I have nothing but a petco near me. But there expensive.
Joho- yeah. Where you at I wouldn't mind seeing how the plumbing and setup goes. Easier to see when it's in front of u instead of pics online.
Aqua man- I plan on getting a reef tank but not anytime soon. When. Feel more comfortable and have more knowledge. Just wanted to start fowlr for now. You think the hob filter would be a bad idea still. I'm on a budget and looking to do it as cheap as possible.
Thanks all for your input
WoodRiverTroutBum
Non-member
Aqua man- I plan on getting a reef tank but not anytime soon. When. Feel more comfortable and have more knowledge. Just wanted to start fowlr for now. You think the hob filter would be a bad idea still. I'm on a budget and looking to do it as cheap as possible.
Thanks all for your input
What he means is a tank that is drilled with an overflow. Not an actual reef tank with corals. Reef ready tanks come pre drilled so you can run all your plumbing instead of trying to deal with a hang on overflow box which can be a real PITA. I you can start with a reef ready tank you will be glad down the road. Welcome to Boston Reefers!
WoodRiverTroutBum
Non-member
Yes, if it isn't already drilled a tank that size has a tempered bottom so you can not drill it. If you only have a standard tank to work with you will be fine with hang on back equipment and/or canister filters. The more you get in to the hobby you will find yourself wanting to upgrade though.
theswindler
Non-member
welcome! im doing a fowlr right now. i would skip the hob filter and just use a skimmer
Yeah i just wana start out as cheap as possible to see the cost and stuff im sure once i no what im doing ill jnvest more money in this hobby I was looking at skimmers. Your saying I won't need a filter just slimmer instead? That would save money. But will it be enough to keep stable ph levels and be enough for the fish also Do they have the 3 stage filtration. Chemical,mechanical & biological. I read that you should have a filter wit 3 stages.
Skeeter7424
More corals than gallons
First of all, Welcome!!
Where are you located? I found that my BEST resource other than the countless hours of reading I did here was seeing members tanks in action. Many of us are more than happy to open our doors to a novice looking for help! I know I have let multiple people in to take a look at what works for me. It was nice to see a couple people's set ups, then put different elements from those together and make that work for your situation.
Where are you located? I found that my BEST resource other than the countless hours of reading I did here was seeing members tanks in action. Many of us are more than happy to open our doors to a novice looking for help! I know I have let multiple people in to take a look at what works for me. It was nice to see a couple people's set ups, then put different elements from those together and make that work for your situation.
Flame Angel
Past BRS Pres/2016MOD
Welcome Aboard!
theswindler
Non-member
if your looking for not spending money buy everything used. i spent way too much on my not so good setup. i wish i had known about this site and everyone on it before i started
afsportsguy000
Non-member
Welcome! I am fairly new here also so ill try to help you avoid the same mistakes I made.
That stage lasted 2 months for me haha! Everything was great things were healthy, Then they started going down since I did not do it right the first time and I did not have everything I wanted/Needed.
Most importantly just don't rush anything! Not to discourage you but you should not expect fish or anything but Live rock and saltwater in your tank for the first month or 2. This is a step that is the most important in the long run!
Also, DO NOT use tap water. Buy RO/DI water or go to the LFS to buy it there. Over time that started causing issues as it is not as clean as RO/DI water
Where can I buy equipment used. That would be great. I've heard about having patience. And I no I won't be getting anything I really want in the beginning. That's what I was gonna do just water. Cycle it for a week or 2 add live rock. Cycle for another week or 2. Then if things are going great and levels are where they r supposed to be Then add fish
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