Need More Advice Before Starting My Journey To The Salty Side!

[snook1983]

Hi guys, new on the forum although I have been lurking for months and months.

I've previously kept freshwater topicals and african cichlids but I've always wanted to have a marine setup.

Having kept fish previously I know how important it is to learn as much before you start, and have everything planned in advance so that your not left trying to make changes to your tank with it full of water and fish! So I've been reading loads and i THOUGHT i was ready to get stuck into it all.

In terms of tank size I don't think I can really go bigger than 150 litres. For this reason the Juwell RIo 125 initially looked like a good choice of tank. I also planned to convert an old 60 litre tank into a sump.

The more I considered this the more problems I could see. I don't fancy drilling holes in the tank, and an over flow box just scares me, I can just imagine huge floods in my bedroom.

I then started to look into plug in and play marine tanks, I quite liked the look of some, however they seem pricey and i'm not sure how effective they are.

I really like tanks with no hoods, and lights hanging above them. A rimless tank would be great, I love the minimal look. I'm not really sure what i'm getting at here, I guess i would like some advice on good places to look for tanks??

Also i planned to use Live rock and flow as my filtration, but I've since seen people talk about the zeovit system, but I cant find anything that explains it simply enough, from what i gather its chemicals in the water...can anyone clarify/explain this to me? Also seen people use reef bone, which I think looks nice, and they put it in acid before hand, could someone please explain the how's and why's of this.

thanks for reading and thanks for your help, im sure i'll have more questions later, I just don't want to rush in to this with my eyes closed and then realising I could of done it better, cheaper and safer with a bit more knowledge.

 

[lljdma06]

Well, first, welcome to TFF.

Second, your questions are good ones. Plumbing and stuff intimidates a lot of people, but it's not all that bad.

All in one tanks, come in as large as 29 or 34 gallons, so I'd check out some of the larger all-in-ones. Now, that being said, many of them don't have enough light for anything but soft corals so you'll have to either be content with that, or modify the tank somewhat.

Rimless tanks are beautiful, I've got one myself, but... Most Marine fish are jumpers. I strongly recommend a lid, even if you go rimless unless you enjoy find a crispy fish on the floor.

I've never heard of the zeovit system. I just use LR flow, flow, flow and macro algae, though in one tank I run chemi-pure and purigen. Never heard of reefbone either.

If you want to do some reading, check out this resource center I made for this section. I compiled some excellent articles written by members here and put them all in one place.

MARC

That should get you started. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask us. We love questions.

L

 

[ainsy]

Hi,

I have some experience of the zeovit system. It is very good - I part used it before I shut my tank down and had a friend who went for the full-blown system.

The results were truly astonishing - the tank looked in real life just like some of those photoshopped ones look on the net! Really vibrant colours, healthy, improved water perams and growth.

Basically it is a load of different chemicals, vitamins and bacteria that you dose the tank with.

The only down side is you need deep pockets......

Make that VERY deep pockets!

As for the reef bones - I guess that people put them in acid to try and remove any trace of organics that could be trapped on/in it. I wouldn't recommend this method at all - the reef bones after all are made from Calcium carbonate so you could end up with some much smaller than you bought as the acid (depending upon it's strength) will dissolve it. This is an unnecessary step - just scrub them in hot water, or jet wash them and put them in a tank to cycle in the normal way.

Just as LLJ says - read the contents of MARC and if you have any questions just shout.

HTH

 

[snook1983]

thanks for your help guys and girls, i will get reading the suggested links asap...

Would zeovit still be pricey for a small tank like i'm planning on?