Cali Kid Corals

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roostertech

roostertech

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I've been keeping freshwater planted tank for a while and want to eventually start my reef tank. I'm a software engineer by day and parent by night so that leave little time left for the fishies so my goal will be softies, may be lps.

The plan:
Start out with a 55g learning tank, probably no sump, with cheap/used equipments to get acquainted to the basics and try out different type of corals. This will eventually become QT tank and stay in the garage.
Once I have more confidence in being able to keep stuff alive, I want to get a 5ft DT for the living room (will have to work on getting the "boss" approval).

I'm planning to move in the summer so I won't get started till after the move.

Happy reefing.
 
Welcome, Roostertech. Good idea you plan to take it slow. I think a new hobbyist workshop will happen later this year, which might be of interest to you in addition to the forums here.
 
I talked to Denzil our webmaster. Apparently the trigger word was "software". Think he fixed it.

Definitely do your homework before buying a new or used tank.

Welcome!!!
 
Enderturtle said:
I talked to Denzil our webmaster. Apparently the trigger word was "software". Think he fixed it.

Definitely do your homework before buying a new or used tank.

Welcome!!!
Click to expand...

That is hilarious given where we are.

Anyhow, I'm still debating if I want to get a system that is factory plumbed or try to do my own piping. I love building stuff myself but I have a healthy fear of flooding the house after a back siphon incident during maintenance of my freshwater tank.
 
You would design fail safes into your sump. Just one example, my sump is only half full at any time due to the position of my baffles and where I keep the water line.

If my power turns off, the return nozzles will vacuum water into the sump but only to a small extent since they are at the top.

I designed my sump to fully handle the extra water that would drain into it during a power outtage.

Stuff like that. Also helps ALOT to look at peoples tanks and store tanks. I spent hours asking Matt at Aqua Exotic and Matt at California Reef Co about tank setups before finishing my tank build.
 
Welcome! Planning a new tank is a blast. I highly recommend a sump though. You will have a much better chance of a healthy system IMO. They have a lot of benefits..........And so the research begins. ;)


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Kmooresf said:
Welcome! Planning a new tank is a blast. I highly recommend a sump though. You will have a much better chance of a healthy system IMO. They have a lot of benefits..........And so the research begins. ;)


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The eventual display tank will definitely have huge sump since I most likely will have heavy fish bio load and need space for skimmer, fuge, mud and may be reactors.

I'm not sure if I want a sump in the practice tank that will eventually become QT/frag tank though. I probably will only have a few fish in the first tank to keep nutrient low.
 
If you want to really practice, you should have a sump. That way you can try out different setups and figure out what works for you.


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Vhuang168 said:
If you want to really practice, you should have a sump. That way you can try out different setups and figure out what works for you.


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Well, I was concerned that if I'm going to use this as QT later, then it would have to be simple/bare bone enough that it can be torn down easily to sanitize in case of disease. Wouldn't having sump in QT complicate that?
 
QT setups are easy. Petco has $1/gallon sales twice a year or so. 2 $10 gallon tanks and small HOB filters and you are set.


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roostertech said:
The eventual display tank will definitely have huge sump since I most likely will have heavy fish bio load and need space for skimmer, fuge, mud and may be reactors.

I'm not sure if I want a sump in the practice tank that will eventually become QT/frag tank though. I probably will only have a few fish in the first tank to keep nutrient low.
Click to expand...

Sounds like you may have a better handle on things than your average beginner. I just see a lot of folks try a tank and fail / give up early. A sump can make things much easier and less likely to fail. However a tank is certainly manageable without one, just a bit more work. If your plan is to make it a QT system later, I don't see a problem with that. Good luck!


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Kmooresf said:
Sounds like you may have a better handle on things than your average beginner. I just see a lot of folks try a tank and fail / give up early. A sump can make things much easier and less likely to fail. However a tank is certainly manageable without one, just a bit more work. If your plan is to make it a QT system later, I don't see a problem with that. Good luck!


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I've been lurking on reef central for a few months reading. The planned house move forces me to delay my start, which is a good thing to give more time for pre-learning lol.

I had my share of algea outbreak, unexplainable fish dead, equipment failures on my freshwater planted tank so I wouldn't dream of having glorious success right of the bat with saltwater.

Happiness = reality - expectation

Finding used tank with sump with solid plumbing would be a tad harder. But may be something will come up between now and summer.


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roostertech said:
I've been lurking on reef central for a few months reading. The planned house move forces me to delay my start, which is a good thing to give more time for pre-learning lol.

I had my share of algea outbreak, unexplainable fish dead, equipment failures on my freshwater planted tank so I wouldn't dream of having glorious success right of the bat with saltwater.

Happiness = reality - expectation

Finding used tank with sump with solid plumbing would be a tad harder. But may be something will come up between now and summer.


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Click to expand...

No need to be too concerned with plumbing. Plumbing is easy, and allows you to customize how you want it.

No reason you won't be successful with Saltwater. Algae is part of the cycling process......Turbo snails can get you all set in no time. Just don't start with SPS, or finicky LPS. Keep it simple until you start to understand / get a handle on how the tank can react under different situations (water changes, over feeding, dead fish, etc, etc).

Plan on doing regular water changes. I'm always surprised how just keeping on a schedule with them can fix all kinds of problems.

Research is huge when planning a tank. Sounds like you have that figured out. I look forward to seeing the progress and eventual display!!


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On the used tank/sump side, keep an eye out on CL. Lots of deals to be had. @wpeterson here is breaking down his setup and the tank (DSA 90g) and gorgeous cherrywood stand is going for only $600!


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