new to the site and the hobby

[jrmiller]

hello everyone. I am new to the hobby just researching to buy my first saltwater setup. would appreciate any info anyone can give me in what to buy to get started. I am looking at a perfecto 180 prestige reef ready tank set up. but don't know if that is too big to start with. I want to have live rock and live sand, and corals so i could use any info anyone could give me.I think the site is great and real informative. Thanks, jrmiller

[bobby]

The tank can never be big enough LOL. You do know the cost that there is in a tank that size? You will need a good skimmer, since it reef ready I would get a in sump skimmer. You will need alot of lighting for a tank that size if your wanting to keep corals, the recomended amount for softys is 3 to 4 watt per gal. Always use ro water not tap. Well there are way to many thing to go over so the best advise I can give is to read the helpfull articals on the top of this page, and if you still have any specific questions you can post them here. Well good luck and keep us posted.

[JellyMan]

WoW you dont know what your asking your fixing to get alot of reading material

Remember slow is the key patience and stock it slow! Live Rock generally 1.5-2 lbs a gallon. The more you have the better of a biological filter you will have.

Salinity 1.023-1.025 is a good range.

Ph 8.0-8.4 is good.

temp 78-82 depending what is in your tank.

testing - keep a log book and test weekly log your results you will be thankful later.

substrate roughly 2lbs per gallon.

water- do not use tap water R/O or distilled is your best bet on this when doing a water change go the same route and remember salt doesnt evaporate on the water does so do not top off with salt water.

You want plenty of surface agitation to allow for adequate oxygen lvls in your tank.

Very important to have a protien skimmer to skim for unwanted nutrients that will decrease your water quality.

Water change 10% monthly 50% every 6 months.

Lights - depending on your forte depends on the lights you need wheter it be pc or vho or t5 or halides. 3-5 wats for softies, 6-8 for stonies and clames.

Hope this helps you out good luck.

[jhnrb]

Welcome to the site and thankyou for the inquiry. The best way for me to answer your question initially is to refer you to our helpful articles and page one. There you will see some articles designed to help the saltwater beginner in getting information on setup and equipment. once you have spent some time there come back with any lingering questions or confusion. Also if you prefer you can just ask, however, be aware there is not an exact science on a systems setup due to the many variables, so, without some background you may get confused with the many different answers to the same question from different hobbist. hope this helps, good luck and keep us posted. Again glad you found our site WELCOME.

[jrmiller]

thanks for the info a friend told me the 180 might be too big because of the weight of the water, rock, and sand. I have a guy coming to look at adding support under the floor,waiting to see what he has to say

[bobby]

Ya that will be alot of waight. One gal of salt water is about 9 pounds. So if the tank was just water it would waigh 1620 lbs not counting tank and stand, then when you add rock and sand it will waight even more, however, if you suport the floor it should hold up fine.

[JellyMan]

If your able to set it up I deffinately want to see pics please.

[Adrastos]

Hi Jr,

First things first. Before you start looking at tank sizes and accessories lets talk about you like.

Do you like large fish, schooling fish, weird fish? Do you have the time involved to do corals? Do you have the funds available to handle a reef tank (much much much more expensive than a fish only tank).

Where is this tank going to be placed? After you figure out where you want a tank then look for tanks.