new tank

[Grizzlyreef]

so ive had a 55 gallon tank runnin since i was 13 before that i had a 10 gallon tank for 6 months. now im 17 and the tanks been running for 3 and a half years unfortunatly about 6 months after i started the 55 some soap got in the tank and killed everthing recently me and a real good friend of mine decide we were going to invest in a bigger tank so we bought a 220 with stand sump hood and tank which im goin to pic up tomorow i was wonderin does any one kno how much a 220 weighs is it light enough for two guys to carry any way the tank ended up costing us 525 now we dont have much money lft i think we have just enough for salt and some sand we plan to set it up as areef tank for in terms of filters i have a cascade 1000 2 whisper 60 gallon hang on the backs a fluval 403 2 heaters three power heads and about 70 lbs of live rock and about 60 to 70 lbs of live sand we also have about 20 lbs of base rock . i was thinking of making the light fixture for the tank by combining my old 65 watt power compacts 2 white 2 actinic with led lights does any one kno anything about LEDs? also any tips for starting this new tank i think im going to start off with polyps zoos and leathers and maybe eventually do hard corals right now in the 55 i have gsp yellow polyps green eyed brfown skirted zoas neon green mushrooms nepthia yellow finger leather toadstool leather frogspawn a pagoda cup a pink green and white fuzzy mushroom some button pollyps and a cabage leather

thanks for any advice

 

[ZANYMASTER]

Wingo is your man for LEDS.

 

[ZBT3091]

congratulations on the new tank that is a nice size. To be honest, if your out of money after buying only the tank you should start saving alot fast. My 75 has cost me roughly $3,000 dollars, and i still have some more things I want before I finish. In terms of your filtration, if you plan on doing a reef any canister or hob is pretty much useless, especially for a 220 gallon tank. What your going to really want is alot of sand to give about 5-6" in depth and at least 1 lb per gallon of live rock to denitrify your tank and act as natural filtration. I would also get rid of the powerheads depending on what they are and upgrade to more reef efficient and appropriate powerheads. Your going to want to add a sump to hide all of the remaining filters you would need, which would consist of a protein skimmer and some sort of phosphate remover such as phosban. Your also going to want a nice light. For the leathers and zoas you can have powercompacts, which will run you between 600-800 for a 96" tank. If you want to do hard corals you will need metal halides which will easily cost you a thousand+. I would suggest you start with zoas and soft corals. It sounds like you have alot of reading to do. All i can say is take it really slow and do things right to save problems later. With reefs money really does solve problems so save up. To save money you should definitely check out the for sale threads to get good deals on used equipment.

 

[Will C]

good advice, and the cost estimate is accurate. I estimate a tank will cost ab $50.00 per gallon with that CPG decreasing slightly as the tank size increases and some smart shopping - take your time buying the equip and you will get good deals. I'm guessing but if you target 6 mos to get lighting, filtration, powerheads etc you should do well. You asked ab the weight, I don't know the weight of a 220 g but I know my 90 was heavy so I can guess your 220 will be a load! (4 people to move) Don't forget to consider the total weight when set up - your floor may sag! all that being said - don't get discouraged I would love a 220, you could set this up to be unbelievable! Good Luck

 

[Grizzlyreef]

well thanks for all the info guys i hope the floor doesnt sag im puttin it on a cement floor in the basement