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.
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