Newbie (sorta)

[jdunphy]

Hello!

I will start with a bit of background. I had a FO saltwater take 10 yrs ago and alot has changed in the way of the hobby so I feel that I am almost starting over but feel I know alot of what I did wrong then.

Now I want to get a reef setup going. I want just a couple few select reef friendly fish.

I have a 39 gal tank 25" tall 20" wide 18" deep. I have a marineland 350 canister with the bio filter. 35lbs of lace rock 4-5 inch sand bottom, Korilla power head, heater of course, standard floresent light (planning to buy a SUNPAC 250w metal halide light).

I have it running for about 5 days now with no live rock. I will purchase roughly 35-40 lbs of live rock and start the cycling process this week.

A couple of questions.

After reading alot I know I need a protien skimmer to keep the water quality up. I have heard that 75 different ones are the best so I am not sure what to buy. I know that the most expensive is not always the best. Since I dont have a sump system I will be buying a H.O.T. skimmer. With the size of my tank will this inexpensive skimmer do? http://cgi.ebay.com/JEBO-Aquarium-T...ryZ46313QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
I know it is not a expensive one but looks like it has everything all the other ones have.

Is the 250w sunpac metal halide 20" light the correct light for me? I dont want to worry about not being able to have a certain coral because of my lighting.

Once my tank cycles (amonia 0 nitrate/nitrite 0 ph 8.3) is there anything other than the salt and temp to consider before adding any corals/inverts

That will do it for now but before I add any corals and inverts I will be asking how to feed the suckers because I am still not sure if you hand feed everything or add suppliments or if good lighting and water is enough.

Thanks and I look forward to your comments

Jon

 

[mr_X]

i'm told those skimmers are about the worst you can buy. they are impossible to dial in and impossibe to get decent skimmate from. i'd steer clear of jebo.
if you are shopping for price, consider a used, good quality skimmer. also, choose a skimmer that is rated for more than your tank volume. most manufacturers rate their skimmers for more than they can really handle.

did you mean the sunpOD, 250 watt fixture? if so, i don't see why that wouldn't work well for you. i prefer some sort of actinic suppliment for morning/evening transitions, but i guess you can use those LED's for that.

as for corals, there are so many, and they all have different requirements. i think that question is better asked per coral, not in general.

my best advice is to not make the same mistake alot of us did and add advanced corals/inverts/fish as soon as the tank cycles. you'll end up being disappointed, and killing some stuff in the process.
take your time and research everything BEFORE you purchase it.
the more time you give your tank to mature, the safer enviornment it will be when you introduce inhabitants. :wink:

 

[jdunphy]

Yes the sunpod. Sorry not sunpac.

I am not in a hurry to add a bunch of items to the tank real fast (been there, done that $$$) I am much more patient now. I really want to cycle the tank right and have the right equipment so the water quality stays consistant.

Thanks

 

[jdunphy]

Went with the sea coral 100 HOT skimmer. I beleive that this is the middle of the road as far as I can tell but with my 39 gal a 100 gal skimmer should do the job. (i hope)

Thanks for the advice

 

[mr_X]

i had one of those and i couldn't get it to skim no matter what i did. i hope you have better luck with yours.
i returned mine for an ASM in sump model..what a difference.

 

[jdunphy]

I guess it will be hard to tell until I at least have my live rock in my tank for a bit to see if it is going to work. It does created a ton of fine bubbles and looks like if there was any "protein" to skim it would be doing it.

 

[jdunphy]

Update on the SeaClone 100 HOT skimmer.

Skimmer was running before the live rock was in tank and nothing (as expectitd) But after 24hrs of having the live rock in the tank the skimmer is now foaming and pulling out the brown liquid/foam. As you know I am new to this so I cant say that this is good after only 24hrs but I would "think" that it is. So it looks like this skimmer wont be a waste after all. Still keeping fingers crossed