Recent content by Star_Sapphire22

Our LFS is just a locally owned small business who actually has pretty good live rock. It's priced at about $7 a pound. But I have a couple friends with saltwater tanks who will only get their live rock from them and they said they've gotten some pretty cool surprises in them...even a starfish...

how many snails, etc. should I get? We are really digging the spiny star astreas.

15-20 fish in a 50 gallon?! C'mon now, even I know that's not right.

Our LFS (other than Petco and Petsmart, neither of which seem to take very good care of their fish), doesn't have a ton of selection usually. I've been going there for my dog and kitten needs as well (while by boyfriend spends hours by the fish, lol) for a few years now. They tend to have a lot...

We plan on ordering all of our fish except the first one we add from liveaquaria. The first we would actually like to bring home when we're ready, versus showing up on our doorstep whether we are ready or not.

My tank WILL be covered as much as physically possible. I have a kitten who is MUCH too fascinated by my betta. He is getting a wall-mounted bowl in the near future so she can't get to him. We're more worried about her knocking over his 1 gallon tank than actually eating him or anything. She...

Ok. Good. I thought that was how it worked but just thought I'd double check...boy, I can't wait to put this sucker together...I am not very good at stuff like that! So many hoses and nozzles and whatnot.

Ok good. That's how I thought it worked, but I just thought I should make sure first!

also, what is the difference between a pump and a powerhead? And do I need one or the other, or both? I'm seeing a lot of contradictory info out there.

What kind/how many invertabrates should we be getting? Snails, crabs, etc...and do we necessarily need snails specifically, or just a general cleaning crew? (snails creep me out a bit...)

Also, would painting the stand and wood on top of the tank negatively impact my fish in anyway?

So what would I be putting in a sump then normally?

at the risk of sound super dumb...what exactly is a sump? I keep reading about them, but can't figure out what they actually do? So I don't really need a filter as long as I get a protein skimmer?

I don't expect him to be an all-knowing fish god. But he knows more than I do! :) What filter would you guys recommend then, that isn't SUPER expensive? (A little expensive is ok, I know they're important...but I'm on a budget right now, and I still need to get a light and other equipment, and...

He said it is a Rena XP4. I have no idea what that is or means, it's all greek to me. If you can make heads or tails out of it, let me know.