newbie okinawa

I agree with wife...

 

rodger, WILCO.
the waters are quite nice here.
for the gravel should I use just the white sand found on the beach or should I go for a mix of naturally broken up coral and the sand?

should I pull wet sand from the beach that is about 5 foot out into the water, or some off the shore that is dry?

I believe after reading up that a 1.5-2" thick gravel base should work well.. lava rock and coral are a natural thing around here as well so my decor rocks will be made of it.

my plans are such:
1 move tank and do a tap-water fill and test run to rinse and also make sure it works well
2 install sand, rocks and water picked up from local beach, adding a handfull of snails and a few hermits to the mix

3. wait a couple weeks, expect to see various forms of algae and such crop up and balance out while monitoring salt, ph, ammonia..

should I add a couple of plants an anemone after step 3 or between 2 and 3?

 

Try and stay away from the lava rock due to minerals embeded in the stone, you don't want that stuff in your tank. I would wait more then 3 weeks to add a anemone. If it goes to die on you make sure you get it out of the water ASAP. You might want to try your hand at some easy corals first to make sure you are not throwing money away.

 

oh ok, I meant the ol volcanic stuff that I could pull out of the oceans here, the reefs are absolutely beautiful and while diving I see a lot of rocks on the bottom.

does a sea urchin do any good for a SW aquarium?

 

They help clean. Are you going to put a sump in for your equipment?

 

I hadn't quite planned on it, honestly i am learning all I need as I am talking with you guys. LOL

the silly tank kit I bought must be setup just for FW but capable of SW

 

Sumps are nice so that you can put all your equipment in and not have to look at it in the display tank. Expecially since it will be right there in the kitchen. I would look for a place to put a sump but that is totally up to you. I believe the kit you have is for FW but it will probably run a SW as long as you didn't over load the tank.

 

A sump not necessary. You will want to get a hang on skimmer of one sort or another.

And even it would not be necessary with lots of good LR and really religous water changes with good water, which you seem to have an unlimited source of.

Running any kind of filter will help remove gunk from water.

 

I have never had a sump on any of the reef tanks I have set up (24G,40G and 75G). I always make sure I have lb = gallon of water (ie: 55 lbs of rock for 55G). Def a good protein skimmer and adaquate lightings. SPS need MH as where you can get away w/ PC lights for softies such as leathers, frogspawns, mushrooms, etc... I have 4X130 watt PC's on my 75G, 20" deep. Anemone's need established tanks and generally MH. On my 40, I had 45 to 50 LB's of live rock w/ a protein skimmer and a HOB filter that I used to run chemipure in. I wouldn't add anything until your ammonia and nitrites are at 0.I am against cycling w/ damsels, too cruel. I would think, using actual live rock and water direct would speed up your cycle process, I could be wrong though. This is just my 2 cents and all from my experiences' in this hobby. As always, take it slow and read, read and read. Good luck, you will be addicted soon.

 

Some people like all that crap hanging in their tanks but not me. Pumps for skimmers, discharge lines, electrical cords, heaters, etc. To me all that stuff clutters up a tank and takes away from the beauty of it. Just my thinking though! That is why a sump is nice so you can put all that unsightly stuff in, but hey if you don't mind looking at all that gunk hanging in your tank then by all means pass up on the sump. It also adds more water volume to your system and is more forgiving to mistakes you make.