My first reef tank WOOT WOOT!!!

I'm setting up my first reef tank and i need advice.
It's going to be a twenty gal.(all i can afford)
So far my main three coral that i would like to keep are Zoanthus, xenia umbellata and frogspawn...
Are there any specific or particular care requirements for these guys?


I haven't set up my tank yet but i'm doing lots of research before hand. I am going to get a T-5 nova extreme w/ 10,000k and either a coral wave or red wave(haven't decided yet).
for filtration i'm going to be using a power-filter large enough for a 50gal. and a fluval canister large enough for a 75 gal. i'm rigging up the fluval so that i have multiple outputs to help with the water flow. the aquarium store by my house is pretty decent and they sell reverse osmosis water, both fresh and premade salt. I'm going to start off with 20 lb of live cured rock and see if i can keep that alive for about 2 weeks. if all goes well i'll buy a bag of agra-live crushed coral and take my time adding a coral here and there for about a year or so.
I really want to get the experience of keeping a this reef tank so that i can reassure myself when i upgrade to my 50 gal and make that kind of an investment(currently a poor college student

 

CONGRATS!!!! If you can id do a 30 long or 29 gallon, wont cost more in supplies just the tank...the one think to remeber is the bigger the tank the easier it is!

 

Agreed! even at per say like a commercial pet store, a 29g isnt to much more then a 20g. 10-25$ more at the most. Gives you a little more room and equipment wont be different really.

Otherwise if you think you can Check out sites like craigslist, 10-55 g is a common tank size and there normally are tons up for cheap prices.

 

-As far as corals I would stay away from Xenia. They are nice at first, but can become very invasive and may take over your tank if not regularly trimmed.
-I was thinking about getting that same light fixture. Good choice.
-The average recommended size filter/pump would be about twice the size of the tank you run it on. So, if you have 50g, try to go with a 100-125g rated.
-LR(live rock) will take a few weeks to cure, & the cycle period for a new tank is about 4-6 weeks. Many people have found it to be less expensive, and just as good in the long-run, to get mostly dry rock, AKA base rock and just some LR to seed the rest.
-CC(crushed coral) is alright but is seen by most people as hard to keep clean. I have it and it's been alright, but I am going to go with Arga-max for my next reef. It is pretty much an argonite base. It is much more fine and is easier for your CUC(clean up crew) to sift/burrow through. Don't spend extra money on "live sand". It is only "live" until the oxygen is used up. Then it is just dead sand. lol your CUC and micro-organisms in your LR will end up making you sand "live" anyways...
-Good luck & welcome to 3reef!

EDIT: I would recommend going with a HOB skimmer and wet/dry filter, using the same gallon rating as previously mentioned.

 

good luck, try to have a clear vision of what you want before you set it up(I would make the mistake of buying anything cool I found).

it is easier to set up a bigger tank in the beginning(not too big though).

if possible I would replace those two other filters with a protein skimmer and small powerhead.

get the sand not the crushed coral it looks better.

 

Just curious why you have a huge ReefCentral.com in your post?

 

he tired to post something from there....

 

Oh, got ya.

 

I followed the link its just a winking emoticon.

 

Welcome to 3reef, the advise given from the previous posters is spot on.