new to SW

[lmaniotis35]

Hi...i have been reading posts for several months and decided it was time to join. I will be inhereting a 72 gal(us) bow front tank with an eheim 2215 canaster fileter. This tank was used for fw fish and am planning on using it for sw. I have decided on some live rock, inverts and to start the colony when fully cycled 2 clowns and a blue tang (you guessed it 3yo niece wants nemo).

1. is the canister filter enough? I have also heard one should remove all media from canister why if true. what else will i need

2. What type of lighting will be needed

3. what are the steps i should take regarding set up (what order should water, sand, rock be placed in the tank

4. once cycled and the three initial fish are in what else and how many more can go in this tank

thanks in advance...sure to be asking many more questions....not in a rush..i prefer to take my time and do it right

 

[Great Lakes]

IF you get a HOB skimmer, the canister filter should be adequate. Just consider a pair or trio of powerheads on a wavemaker for additional circulation. Media is generally removed from the canister because live rock and balanced careful planning of inhabitants will take care of filtraton needs. The canister filter is nice to have to be able to load up with carbon on occasion though if necessary.

As far as lighting, unless you are going to get into the sps corals, I would recommend an icecap 660 with 4 VHO tubes.

Depending on substrate, it is nice to do the sand/crushed coral first with the water. It will take a day for the resulting "sand storm" to settle. The you can adjust your SG and temp and such before adding your live rock.

Due to the Nemo reference, I imagine your clowns will be Perculas. Try to get the tank raised ones. They seem to be less agressive than wild caught. Sadly, if you get a Dory Tang, you will have to trade her away in a couple years. She will grow far to large for a 72 gallon. But by then, you will be looking for a larger tank anyway...lol. Look towards Wrasses and Dottybacks to round out your fish selection. They come in amazing colors and are generally peaceful towards others. A Dwarf Angel cold also work. The Flame and Coral Beauty are two of my favorites.

Carefully research an inhabitant before introducing it. There are many popular gorgeous specimens, (Mandarin Goby comes to mind for an example), that require a fully mature system. Please note here for the future. Cycled does not equal matured. Many of us have made this mistake to be able to better help others..

GL

 

[lmaniotis35]

thanks for the feedback...i am sure to have mre questions being my first sw tank and a lot oc confusing and somewhat contridicting info on the web.

 

[impur]

If you can contact the person who had the tank before you, I would recommend that you find out if they had used copper to treat any diseases in the tank. If so, this will set you up for failure from the beginning. Corals and inverts can die from a very minescule amount of copper.