Out and Back in

[srizzutto]

Hi everyone
My name is Steve
I'm from Mechanicsburg PA
A few years ago I broke down my 180g bow front Reef Tank because I was the only one who paid attention to it and the kids were babies so I needed to divert my attention to them

Well now they are 8 and 9 and guess what they want?

Anyway If only i had just the money i lost on my former setup, I would be golden.

However I managed to pick up a 75g, with built in overflow, the stand, the light, the sump (its a 20g acrylic with the bio balls which I will just remove), an rodi filter, and a coralife skimmer all the test kits, a new refractometer,and about 35lbs of what is now base rock for $250

I'm amazed at how much info I've forgotten

I attached a pic of my old Tank

sooo god help me Im back in!!!

Questions
1-I have access to a nice Reef octopus Skimmer for $75, would you swap out the coralife for the Reef Octopus, im not sure what size it is, it came out of a 120g and its only a few years old. i know the collection cup is about 6 inches across.

2- The light is compact fluorescent, im only familiar with T5 lighting, will the compacts suffice for soft corals, Its a 48" fixture and has a total of 4 2 foot lights in it.

Thanks

 

[salt_for_brains]

Hi Steve and welcome back to the hobby!

Reef Octopus makes really good skimmers. Mine has definitely done a good job.

Compact fluorescents will do alright with softies but that is pretty much it.
Looks like you had a really nice tank before so there is no reason you won't be able to duplicate that success.

 

[Aquarian]

Hi Steve welcome back to the salty side.
I agree with S for Brains ( yes Nick the S is for Salt):D Reef octopus makes good skimmers, the only problems I've had with mine were self inflicted.

 

[salt_for_brains]

Hi Steve welcome back to the salty side.
I agree with S for Brains ( yes Nick the S is for Salt):D Reef octopus makes good skimmers, the only problems I've had with mine were self inflicted.

Never had a doubt:D

 

[srizzutto]

Thanks

I really liked the one I had, so I think for the money I will get the Octopus and sell the coralife

 

[Ulta]

You would want to make a plan to phase out the CFL lights with something better LEDs are the way to go now days but you have to be careful to get some for an affordable price. Lot of companies mark up prices when targeting reefers..

Also if your CFL bulbs are old they will produce bad light frequencies with will result with nucience algae and/or cyano. So instead of wasting money on new bulbs you might want to invest that money into some LEDs.

 

[srizzutto]

You would want to make a plan to phase out the CFL lights with something better LEDs are the way to go now days but you have to be careful to get some for an affordable price. Lot of companies mark up prices when targeting reefers..

Also if your CFL bulbs are old they will produce bad light frequencies with will result with nucience algae and/or cyano. So instead of wasting money on new bulbs you might want to invest that money into some LEDs.

Thanks Ulta
I actually took that advice before I read this. I noticed that you cant even find CFL fixtures in abundance, so I figured why catch a falling knife. I went with LED