Thinking Of Trying Saltwater

[tony m]

ihave had a malawi tank for a couple of yrs now and just upgraded my tank so I'm left with a empty tank and was thinking of starting a fowlr set up.
heres what I was thinking.
the size of the tank is 31" length 16" hieght 15" width around 120ltrs

substrate: live caribsea sand

live rock is pricey so I was thinking 10kg which cost around £100

lighting: after some research but still unsure fowlr can run on normal t8s the tank is fitted with 2 18w standard t8s I was thinking swop one t8 for a marine blue t8 and have one standard and one blue.

filtration: will there be enough live rock with the sand for biological filtration. I also have a spare fluval 305 I was gonna run this for mechanical filtration. because after some research but still not sure some people say you can run a fowlr without a skimmer . plus a power head if needed

water: can i use tapwater with seachem prime in this setup or is R/O needed

livestock: a clean up crew, clown fish, as for what else ideas welcome as i dont know much about stocking or compatibility in saltwater

this is all I can afford to be doing at the moment if this will not work the way I have explained and I need to invest more money I think I will just set up a new freshwater tank
thanks
tony

 

[rabbut]

ihave had a malawi tank for a couple of yrs now and just upgraded my tank so I'm left with a empty tank and was thinking of starting a fowlr set up.
heres what I was thinking.
the size of the tank is 31" length 16" hieght 15" width around 120ltrs

A good starter size and a clear idea of what you want. This is great as it helps us help you

substrate: live caribsea sand;

This is the marine equivelant of "bacteria in the bottle". By the time the sand has got to you, the live bit is dead It will increase your cycle-time and will have to re-sead off your liverock. Save some cash and get plain argonite sand or coral sand

live rock is pricey so I was thinking 10kg which cost around £100

The guide is a minimum of 1KG of live rock to every 10l, so you need at least 13KG. More is always better, but 10KG won't be enough unless you are stocking very light Look on Craigs list and Aquarists classifyeds, along with Ebay. You can get it from about £3 a KG

lighting: after some research but still unsure fowlr can run on normal t8s the tank is fitted with 2 18w standard t8s I was thinking swop one t8 for a marine blue t8 and have one standard and one blue.

Looks and sounds good

filtration: will there be enough live rock with the sand for biological filtration. I also have a spare fluval 305 I was gonna run this for mechanical filtration. because after some research but still not sure some people say you can run a fowlr without a skimmer . plus a power head if needed

I would leave the Fluval out. They are prone to leaks and salt water makes a mess when it gets on the floor. It will also need weekly cleans to prevent it becomming a nitrate factory. You will need a powerhead These are not optional unless you are running multiple exturnal filters You idealy want two pumps that do 1250lph between them, though 2500lph would be better. Look at Tunze nanostreams and Koralia's for these pumps

water: can i use tapwater with seachem prime in this setup or is R/O needed

For FOWLR, tap water if fine, so long as you are careful about what CUC you add. Many won't like the heavy metal content of many tap water supplies

HTH
Rabbut

Edited to sort out quotes...

 

[tony m]

thanks rabbut you have really helped me now i think i will give it a go once ive found everything i need. so i will just get normal coral sand and think i will save up the money to get around 15kg of live rock leave the fluval and get a pair of powerheads. i will get advice on cuc and stocking when i get to that stage. i dont know when i will be starting but when i do i may do a day by day photo journal and see if people on these boards will help me through as so not to make mistakes.
thanks tony

 

[SkiFletch]

Don't forget sea salt mix . If you're going FO, just buy the cheapest brand you can

 

[tony m]

i wouldnt of forgot that skifletch but thanks for the advice on getting cheapest for fo that i will do

 

[SkiFletch]

Hehe, I figured, but but stranger things have happened . Looking forward to pics of your tank