Just want to start out, let ya'll know I'm in Salt Lake (Sugarhouse area) and just starting into this salt water tank thing.  I'm very new and just learning about all this, so please bear with me as I am sure I will ask stupid questions!  I'm very excited to get this up and running, and know I'm in for a long period of being patient.  I'm in no huge hurry, but want to do things right.

 

I just recently got a 75g tank from a friend who just had this sitting in his garage.  It is "drilled" with an overflow in the back left corner.  It has two holes behind the overflow wall.  One for outgoing, one for input I'm learning.  I just built a canopy for the tank and it looks great (empty however).  So here is where my mass confusion begins.  I've researched for hours and just get more and more confused by the minute. 

 

So as of now thats all I have.  No pumps, sump, protein skimmer, rock (live or dead) or any of it plumbed.  Some research says I don't need a protein skimmer, some says I do.  Most all say Yes to a sump, some say submersible pump, some say put an inline pump. 

 

When all is said and done I want to have a tank with quite a few fish, live rock, coral, etc.  Any light you pro's can shed would be greatly appreciated. 

 

Next, I know and expect this to be expensive, and I am going in to this aware, however I am on a pretty tight budget.  Any inexpensive ideas would be even better!  Thanks!

First bit of advice is go see other set ups. Most everybody will welcome you over to see what they have done/ are doing and what they would like to have done different. My home is always open.

 

By doing this you can see many different options as you head down life's little adventure. You will see everything from the extreme in automation and equipment to the extreme of diy. And of course everything in between. Then you can start to formulate your ideas and plans and go from there.

 

The buy/sell forum here is awesome to pick up used equipment for great prices. And as always research this board to all ends. There is years worth of information just waiting to be used. And don't forget our meetings. Typically the first Thursday of every month. This month its today!!! (see the home page for more details)

 

And foremost Welcome to our slice of heaven!

I would echo what Dion said.  I went and saw a bunch of tanks after I had set up my own, and I immediately regretted some choices that I had made.  Luckily, it turned out okay.  I'm just up by the University, and you're welcome to come over and see my set-up (meager though it may be compared with some other local tanks).

 

Also, I would recommend reading others' Tank Build threads.  The hobby can totally add up, money-wise, and learning how to do things yourself, or on the cheap can really help.

 

My favorite so far is Bob's.  He is proud of being cheap, and has some good instruction. Here's the link to his Thread, and his tank is now Tank of the Month (TOTM).

http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=24146&KW=build&PN=1 - http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=24146&KW=build&PN=1

 

Again, welcome!

 

Scott

 

Mike

 

Also, I painted the back of the tank yesterday with black paint (on the outside of course).  How big of a sump would you all recommend I put under the tank?  As big as will fit? Is there a typical size to shoot for with a 75g tank?  Also looking at the 210 gallon tank you linked me to I see he put a grate then screen on the bottom of his tank.  Do I need that?  I had never seen that before.  I think the more I look the more concerned I get that I will make huge mistakes.  I will for sure make it to look at other's tanks to get more ideas.  Again, thanks all!  You are putting my mind at ease, as this seems a bit overwhelming for someone just trying to jump into this awesome hobby!

Mike

 

I'm pretty stoked to get it stoked myself.  Question for you pro's out there.  If I plan to have live rock, coral, fish, anenomes, basically a bit of everything, what kind of lights do I need?  I have been told metal halides give that "rippled" look in the water and on the bottom of the tank.  I love that look, if thats those lights.  So what do I really need though?

 

Matt

 

I'm pretty excited to get it up and running myself.  Question though, what kind of lights do I need?  I like the look metal halides give as far as the rippled look on the tank bottom, but what do I need?  I want fish, coral, live rock, anenomes in the tank.

I highly recommend visiting a few tanks first.  Don't buy lights without knowing what you want.  It sounds like you want halides, and most here would probably recommend it.  But there are a ton of lighting options.

I'd find people who live by you, or simply spend an evening driving around, and see some tanks.  Know what type of tank you want before you set it up.

 

Adam

ps- you can visit me and Linn in Centerville... on your way to Dion's in Farmington for example

 

Hi Matt -

 

Thanks for your kind comments.

 

The weight of a 75g setup should be able to be easily supported by your floor, espcially if the floor joists are running perpendicular to the length of the tank (meaning the tank's "footprint" spans several floor joists)... if the joisting is parallel to the length of the tank you should still be OK but your floor may "deflect" a little bit when you walk near the tank. If you are not dead set on the location of your tank you can always move it to make it run perpendicluar to the joists if it is not already that way.

 

I chose to place additional support under my tank because A) I placed my tank in a location where the tank length runs parallel to the floor joists rather than perpendicular, and didn't want to change the tank location; B) my 225 gallon tank weighs 3 times as much as your 75g will once filled; and C) my custom tank stand is also super-heavy compared to the 'normal' stands that most people use (like yours).

 

For a sump I reccommend you go as big as will fit inside your stand. I made my own sump setup as it can be quite expensive to go out and buy a purpose-built sump system at the LFS (Local Fish Store). You can occasionally find used sumps for sale on our "Buy / Sell" Forum; the prices there are usually much cheaper than new retail...

 

The "grate" on the bottom of my tank is called a plenum and is used for biological filtration. I have used them forever and love them; however, most people here do not use one and you certainly do not  have to use one.

 

I would not get too concerned with "making mistakes" as you will make them. We all do. If you are patient, ask questions when you are unsure on something, and go slowly, then hopefully the mistakes will all be small ones. There is a saying in this hobby that "nothing good ever happens fast in a marine aquarium" and it is a good truism. Don't rush things, especially when you first set up your tank and the water is in and you can't wait to go down to the LFS and fill up your tank with all kinds of fish and corals... take your time. Stock the tank slowly. research your fish and coral choices first to be sure you are putting compatible things together in your system that are not too delicate or demand extreme measures to keep alive, etc. And there are certainly many good books out there on the hobby; you can usually find several at your local library as well.

 

If you are patient and make good choices and informed decisions this hobby can be alot of fun... and doesn't have to cost the proverbial "arm and a leg".

 

So, Good Luck with your first marine setup - and welcome to the Club

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 - http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244

 

Little background and pics for ya.  I bought about 25 lbs of LR, and 15 lbs of dead rock.  I was told this was ok as dead would be live with time.  I also bought 15 crabs as I was told these would live through the cycle spikes I will have, and they will help keep tank clean during the cycle.  I have about 2 inches of crushed coral in the bottom, also not live.  For filtration I have one filter that ties to where the water dumps in the sump, and another filter between the two chambers of the sump, right before the return pump.  Someone told me to add "purple up" to my tank to speed up getting the dead rock to live.  So have been adding that as directed on the bottle.  My tank stays between 78 and 80 degrees, with my MH's on 10 hrs a day, and t5's on 14 hrs a day...10 hrs with MH's and 2 hrs before and after MH's.  So, what's this white film and should I be concerned?  I'm hoping its just part of the cycle and to just ride it out.  Also on a side note, the crabs are doing just fine, moving around lots and seem to be enjoying life.  Thanks for your help!

 

 

I'm completely confused by my sump at this point.  I bought an oceanic sump, like 30 gallons that sits in the stand under my tank.  The water level in my sump is what I consider somewhat low.  It's only like an inch above the intake for my return pump.  I would like it a bit higher so allow for a bit more time between adding water.  So the way I figure, if your pump is pumping lets say 800 gph, and your drain is draining 800 gph back to the sump, you should be able to add more to the sump with no problems.  So I added water to the sump.....instantly the level in my tank went high (to a point I'm not real comfortable with)  I'm very confused.  If my pump is puting out what I'm draining, wouldn't the extra remain in my sump?  Am I just too simple minded to figure this out?  How can I get my sump level higher, and not get my tank level too high?  On a side note, I did have to slow my pump by turning the ball valve above my pump, as I was pumping more than draining, but this was at initial setup.  There's the question for the day.  Sorry if I'm drivin ya'll nuts with my stupid questions, just a newby here.

I used lace rock like that in my fresh and brackish tanks in the past and always got that white film while it was cycling. I believe it is some kind of bacteria or fungus that consumes the lichen/moss on the rock. IME it never caused any problems and went away in less than a month.

 

After this week I see the sump is getting a bit low, so I add about 3 gallons of water directly in the sump.  NEVER touch the ball valves or anything, simply dump water in the sump.  Also the water was not low enough that the pump was sucking air or anything, so it was pumping as much as it could.  So after about 5 minutes after adding water to the sump, the level in the tank starts to rise, up to the point it is hitting the support bar across the top of the tank.  This is where my confusion comes from.  Anyone get this?

 

Thanks

 

Matt

 

 

 

 

trenton

 

 

 

I have put 20 crabs in there and they are doing well.  I also went and bought 3 damsels to help the tank cycle.  They have been in for 3 days and are doing great.  (I know they are going to be a nightmare to get out in the future) but I will cross that bridge when I get there. 

 

Anyway, thanks for all  your positive feedback, things have been fun.  I'm way enjoying it!

 

Matt

 

Matt

 

THESE TWO HUGE WORM THINGS CRAWLED OUT OF THE ROCK!!!!

 

They are very gross looking.  They are about 6" long and crawled out after the lights went off last night.  They are absolutely disgusting and gross.  Are they good? bad?  How do I get rid of them?  What are they? 

 

On a side note, this rock also had two crabs come out as well.  Not hermit crabs, but normal crabs about the size of a quarter.  These ok? 

 

Thanks again,

 

Matt

 

 

 

If so then they are a great part of your clean up crew. Many people think they are gross and disgusting and try to get rid of them though.

 

Mike

 

Matt

 

Mike

 

I believe the cycling is going well.  I have about 35 hermit crabs in there, and they seem to be having a hayday!  I've started to grow brown stuff on the bottom of the tank, on the glass, etc.  This seems to be under somewhat control as the crabs seem to eat it.  So I think that is going well.  Now on to my next thing, I'm getting this green stuff growing on some of the rocks, not all, but some have lots of it.  Looks like I may need to mow here soon.  Is this good/bad/indifferent?  Should I just relax and let it do it's thing or take action.  I've attached pictures.  Also the last few days there have been little bubbles coming up from the sandbed, they just seem to appear and rise to the top.  They are also all over the rock.  This normal?

 

Here are some pics of what I'm talking about.  P.S.  A lot of the shells are empty, don't think I overloaded the tank with crabs!

 

Okay for some reason I can't post the big pictures I took, anyone know how to make them smaller sized?  :)

 

Best thing you can do when setting up a tank is to leave it alone for a couple months.

 

Adam

 

http://www.zip-zero.com/wmas/uploads/4pg59k.jpg">

 

 

  http://www.zip-zero.com/wmas/uploads/l306j6.jpg">

 

Mike

One more thing, they recommended a long spine sea urchin.  Is this a good recommendation?  In all honesty I'd love to get one as once in Hawaii my mom thought she'd pick one up and needless to say she won't do that again, so I'd love to have one as a conversation piece, and I think they are way cool looking. 

 

 

This thread has some useful information about doing a successful and inexpensive reef aquarium:

http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 - http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244