Starting A Reef Tank: Part 2

The Tank

What is the best tank for your reef?  What type should you use?  What brand?  What are the styles? What about the stand?  Does Apple make a tank?  I hope they do.  :-)

There were a lot of the questions running thru my head when I was looking to get into the Saltwater Reef Tank hobby.  So lets start talking...

Here are generally the tank categories: standard(S), reef ready (RR), all-in-ones (AIO).  Within these are (loosely along size) sub-categories: frag (S,RR), pico (S),  nano (S,RR,AIO),  large (S,RR,AIO), shallow reef (RR),  peninsula (S,RR), others.  I will not focus on all of these but it is worth spending time looking into all of them.

The tank is by far the most important purchase.  You have to be careful.  Some tank makers use inferior glass.  You can tell by just simple looking at all sides and the bottom of the tank at the thickness.  A cheap tank will have different thickness of glass maybe on the side and bottom or something along those lines.  Also, the calking maybe be ugly and uneven and not double calked.  Another thing to look for is the frame on the tank.  Does it look flimsy and thin?

Some tank makers use low iron glass which helps with clarity.  This makes viewing of the contents of the tank more enjoyable and it looks cool.  I recommend a tank with low iron glass at least in the front.

As I have stated before I don't consider myself an "expert" in this hobby but because of my background I do think I am good at finding a "smart" choice.  I believe the best 2 categories for a "reef tank" is obviously reef ready and my new favorite all-in-ones.  Using a standard can be used as a "reef tank" but the others bring features to the table that make things "easier".  My first tank was just a standard tank and it is an awesome mixed reef tank.  I can say though because it was not reef ready my husbandry does take longer.

First Tank

Reef Ready

This is a tank that has an "overflow" built into it either in the back center or back corners.  These tanks usually come with the "plumbing" for the overflow (but not always).  The benefit to these tanks are because the overflow box is built-in gravity is used to pull the water into the sump.  A standard tank can have a "hang-on-the-back" overflow but it requires a siphon to pull the water over the wall of the tank.  This can be a pain to keep the siphon going and if you live in an area with "brown-outs" you dance with the chance of flooding the sump or tank.  

The overflow box wall can come in different colors and materials depending on the maker of the tank.  Typically the box has a "surface skimmer".  Some are removable to make cleaning easier.  Some are adjustable as well.

Some tank makers I like are (in preferred order):

Glasscages.com

Deep Sea Aquatics

Deep Blue

All-In-Ones

This is more than just a tank.  This is a lot of the times everything you need to get up and going.  This is my new favorite type of tank.  The reason I like it is that in this category there is a lot of "innovation" by various manufacturers.  The other reason I like these are the sizes are fun and manageable.  This category I think gets you the closest to the "Does Apple make a reef tank?".

The all-in-one typical has the sump system built into the tank in the back of the tank.  No need to have a sump system under the tank in the stand.  This allows you to get more creative with your stand not requiring you to have space under it for the sump system.  So this allows you to create a "mix media" kind of stand (if you like that kind of stuff).  The AIO typically has good flow (10-15 times and hour) and lighting (4 watts per gallon) built-in.  Some of the manufactures even have levels of support for flow and lighting.  Meaning, they have tanks for beginners, intermediate, and pros.  Some of the AIO also include a protein skimmers.  The quality of these skimmers seem to vary.  Typically you want a skimmer that turns the water volume 3-ish times an hour and a good air-to-water ratio somewhere in the range of 3-to-1.  Other features they may come with include heater, power strip, light timer, and even cooling.

I had said this category has lots of innovation going on by manufactures and it's true.  There are even really high-end expensive all-in-ones.

Here are some of my favorites (in preferred order):

Red Sea Max C Series

EcoSystems MINI Reef

Innovative Marine

JBJ

I own a Red Sea Max C-130.  I bought one because I was interested in these kinds of tanks.  I did a ton of research before my purchase.  I went with the Red Sea because of the quality of the tank and also I like their Reef Care Program.  I must say so far i'm very impressed.

Red Sea Max C-130

During my research I also was very impressed with Innovative Marine's NUVO Aquariums.  They target the hobbits that wants the AIO turn-key type solution but still having the aspects of a fun "do it yourself".  I really like their line of AUQA Gadgets.

Finally, on my first tank I use EcoSystems Miracle Mud.  I really respect Leng Sy and his efforts and contributions to this hobby.  I also like the MINI Reef aquariums he has developed.

More later...

Hydor Smart Level Control Automatic Top Off System - Review

Real quick review of the Hydor Smart Level Control Automatic Top Off System.

So I got this for my new Red Sea Max C-130 (love this tank... review on this coming).  Along with Hydor ATO I also got 6 ft 1/2 inch tubing and a Hydor Pump (320) and a 7 Gallon slim-ish (BPA free) plastic trash can to hold my RO/DI water (this will sit under the tank in the stand).

The Hydor ATO packaging was great and the instructions were OK.  I mean it's a pretty simple design most people could figure it out easy enough.  Well once I hooked it all up I started to "fine tune" the sensor.  This does not mean the sensor has any knobs for you to tune it, no.. it's just adjusting the position with the water line you want it to maintain.  Be aware that during this "tuning time" you may want to be careful especially if you have an existing setup.  For me my tank was new and I was not to concerned about dumping out water from my tank and dumping in to much RO/DI water and jacking up my salinity.  If you have an existing tank I would recommend doing the tuning during a water change time.

Anyways, during the "fine tuning" the pump would kick on and fill the tank to much until the sensor "alarm" mode killed the power to the pump.  Well, that works good! :-)  I kept wondering WTH?  What is going why want this thing turn the pump off faster... well turns out the sensor is really slow.  I think it's algorithm for detecting the water level is very "fuzzy" so to not be to sensitive and freak out with "waves" in the tank.  So I read more in the instructions and on their site and seems that was the problem for me.  So all I did was restricted the flow thru the tubing with 2 cheap little spring clamps I had laying around.  I know... cheap and cheesy.  Well it worked perfectly.  Also, when I get some spare time I will get around to putting a small ball valve to "dial" in the flow better.



Stars: 4 out 5

Pros:  Easy to setup.  Awesome Hydor quality and bank for your buck.
Cons:  Needs nicer instructions and maybe some recommendations for pumps.

Starting A Reef Tank: Part 1

What are the steps to starting a reef tank?  What are the things I need to know about a reef tank?  What are the types of tanks to choose from for a reef tank?  What are the components of a reef tank? So on and so on are the questions that will run thru your head when starting a reef tank.

You need a plan.  I recommend a well thought out checklist.  Below is a "pretty" good list that I put together.  You will see terms and words that you want understand.  That's ok because my future posts I will go over and expand on the more important sections.

• Types of Fishes
• Mixed community fishes
• Species tank
• Smaller ones
• Big ones
• Types of Corals
• Soft Corals
• Large Polyp Stony Corals (LPS)
• Small Polyp Stony Corals (SPS)
• Tank & Stand
• Size of tank (nano, mid-size, expert size)
• Location of tank (carpet floor not recommended)
• Tank Material
• Glass
• Acrylic
• Type of Stand
• Aquarium stand (big enough for underneath sump or not?)
• Existing desk or counter space
• DIY design
• Custom
• Hood/Cover
• Glass cover
• Full hood
• Other
• Tank Background
• Painted back
• Printed sheet
• Lighting
• T5 HO fluorescent lights (try for 4 watts per gallon)
• Metal halides
• Power compact fluorescent lights
• LEDs
• Live Rock (1.25 - 1.50 pounds per gallon)
• Base rock: pounds needed (cured/uncured)
• Reef rock: pounds needed (cured/uncured)
• Premium Reef rock: pounds needed (cured/uncured)
• Substrate
• Dry coral sand
• Live sand
• Filtration (I simplify it into 2 types depending on tank type)
• Under Stand (for tanks with pre-drilled holes... a.k.a "reef ready")
• Reef sump system (Overflow/Sump/Refugium/Skimmer)
• Canister Filter
• Wet/Dry Filter System
• Other hybrid variants
• Hang On Back (for tanks without pre-drilled holes for pipes)
• Skimmer
• Counter current type
• Venturi type
• Downdraft type
• Aspirating type
• Other types
• Refugium
• Sump
• Combination system (Sump/Refugium/Skimmer)
• Overflow Box - A box that hangs on the back that allows a non-reef ready tank to put all filtration stuff under the tank without having holes drilled in the tank.
• UV Filter - Really optional but... a device that your water runs thru and the water gets exposed to a strong UV light that kills all the bad things in the water.
• Circulation Pumps
• Flow rate (I recommend tank volume turn over 10-15 times per hour)
• Flow Types
• Laminar
• Direct focused
• Wavemaker Controller - optional controller for circulation pumps to add "randomness" to flow versus all the pumps on all the time.
• Testing Gear
• Thermometer (internal or external... I recommend just getting a good digital one that has a water probe)
• Hydrometer/Refractometers ( I recommend a refractometer because it's so easy and nice to use to check salinity)
• Saltwater Test Kits (many brands and variations... stay with API brand or Red Sea)
• Water (this is a biggie)
• Salt Mix (I like Instant Ocean and Red Sea Salt Mix)
• Water Source
• Ocean (best of course but would recommend running the water thru a UV filter)
• Reverse Osmosis De-ionization System (makes pure water from your tap water)
• Tap Water (depends on your areas water... before using it I would test it for nitrates and phosphates... and of course us a de-chlorinator
• Other Important Stuff
• Heater - 2-3 watts per gallon then divide by 2 and get 2 different heaters for redundancy.
• Example: 100 gallon tank needs 300 watts of heater so get two 150 watt heaters versus just one big 300 watt heater.
• Power Strip (get one with many outlets and GFI built-in)
• Light Timer (nice to have so you don't have to worry about turning lights on and off)
• Misc Stuff (some optional)
• Saltwater mixing and storing containers (food grade)
• Buckets (food grade)
• Net
• Cleaning things
• Pads
• Scrapers
• Vinegar (don't ever use soap... vinegar is your friend)
• Siphon (simple to advanced... I recommend just a simple one)
• Fish foods (not really need at first but once you are ready for fish I recommend frozen types)

A lot to look at here I know.  Watch for more posts where I explain the more important parts on this checklist.

Purpose

Hi.  Thanks for coming to my blog.  The purpose of this blog is to share my experience as a Saltwater Aquarist.  I want to share the "right" information so that others don't fall into the same "money" pits that I did.  Yes, there is a lot of information around this hobby.  If you are like me and like the "complexity" and "science" of things then let me just say you are going to love this hobby.

History

By trade I am a Software Architect.  Everyday I toil with complex problems and issues.  I am constantly problem solving and learning and relearning.  I love complexities and a challenge.  I love to think in the abstract.  I love to build and create.  I found myself wanting a "challenging" hobby that I could get into.  So...

A little over a year and half ago from this post I jumped into the reef world head first.  I did minor research around the "dos and don'ts" and researched tons of gear.  I researched the diversity of "life" that could be kept in a reef tank.  It was AMAZING!  I saw the incredible depth of science around every aspect of this hobby.  I knew this was the hobby for me.

Final Thoughts

Again, I plan on just sharing MY experience and opinions about this hobby intermixed with facts and common sense.  I don't claim to be an expert.  So, stay tuned and enjoy.