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What equipment will i need for a larger tank?

Discussion in 'Saltwater Fish Forum' started by California Cowgirl, Jun 6, 2009.

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  1. California Cowgirl

    California Cowgirl Thread Starter New Member

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    and with this being a larger tank than originally planned, for a filter do you still suggest me getting one with 400gph or will i need a stronger one then that
     
    California Cowgirl, Jun 16, 2009
    #81
  2. Anthony

    Anthony Active Member

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    400 should still work since you have a protein skimmer.
     
    Anthony, Jun 16, 2009
    #82
  3. California Cowgirl

    California Cowgirl Thread Starter New Member

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    ok thank you soooooo much for all the help. I now have an understand of everything that i will need to buy. It will at least another month or so until i can get the tank setup. But now i know and have a better understanding of what i will need. I think my questions are done for now until i start buying my stuff or setting up the equipment. Thank you again sooo much for all the help.
     
    California Cowgirl, Jun 16, 2009
    #83
  4. lostanime

    lostanime New Member

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    For the last 1.5 yrs we only ran a protein skimmer on our big tank (and live rock/sand/chaeto in tank & 'fuge)... and had MUCH better water quality then when we ran foam prefilters, bioballs, and all that mess. Alot less places for detritus to get caught up and rot :)

    When we set the nano up, we just threw a big HOB skimmer on the back, gutted the built-in filtration and filled one of the chambers with chaeto. A month later and still no measurable ammonia/nitrites/nitrates (a dozen corals, pygmy angel, 6 line wrasse, and temporarily a majestic angel in there until we get the big tank up on new stand) I know there's dozens of ways to address keeping clean water - we've personally had great success using the berlin method (heavy skimming, live rock, reef lighting)
     
    lostanime, Jun 17, 2009
    #84
  5. MOD_Dawn

    MOD_Dawn Active Member

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    I'd account it to the live rock as you stated...but again, only ran a saltwater for a short period of time due to allergies.
     
    MOD_Dawn, Jun 17, 2009
    #85
  6. California Cowgirl

    California Cowgirl Thread Starter New Member

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    also one more thing i forgot to ask, am i able to use any kind of heater for a saltwater tank or is there some special kind that i will need to get
     
    California Cowgirl, Jun 17, 2009
    #86
  7. Anthony

    Anthony Active Member

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    Heaters are the same for both salt and freshwater, as long as the heater is strong enough for a 47 gallon tank it's fine.
     
    Anthony, Jun 17, 2009
    #87
  8. California Cowgirl

    California Cowgirl Thread Starter New Member

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    ok
     
    California Cowgirl, Jun 17, 2009
    #88
  9. lostanime

    lostanime New Member

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    although standard glass heaters and titanium heaters work fine with both fresh and salt water, stainless steel heaters are for freshwater only.
     
    lostanime, Jun 17, 2009
    #89
  10. lostanime

    lostanime New Member

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    Possibly... although we had the live rock the entire time (even when we had the foam pre-filters and bio-balls...) the chaeto and sand was added when we removed the foam & bioballs which was about the time the water quality drastically improved, not 100% sure whether it was the foam & bioballs causing the water problems or if it was the chaeto/sand bed that fixed the probs, but i dont set saltwater tanks up anymore with foam or bioballs, or without chaeto
     
    lostanime, Jun 17, 2009
    #90
  11. Anthony

    Anthony Active Member

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    True, I didn't think about stainless heaters. I don't see too many people using them.
     
    Anthony, Jun 17, 2009
    #91
  12. California Cowgirl

    California Cowgirl Thread Starter New Member

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    anybody know anything about big al's or dr. forster and smith return policy? i'm getting ready to buy some stuff in a couple of weeks but i was having a little trouble locating there return policy information. I've never bought equipment online so i'm not sure what places do if something doesnt work or what not and i need to return it
     
    California Cowgirl, Jun 18, 2009
    #92
  13. lostanime

    lostanime New Member

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    dr foster & smith has always done me great. All orders I've gotten from them are packed very well and most came in great condition. Months back, they sent me a broken kalkwasser stirrer. When I contacted them, they IMMEDIATELY shipped me another one and just told me to ship the broken one back at my convenience (and mailed me everything I need to ship back the broken one for free)

    I've had both good and bad experiences with petsolutions... shipped me a light with broken bulbs, rush shipped me new bulbs for free... but later they shipped me the wrong RO/DI unit, and wouldn't ship me a new one until I either paid for the new one or shipped back the wrong one that they expected me to pay the return shipping on.

    Those are the only two online pet stores I've placed more then a few orders with... I've never used big al's.
     
    lostanime, Jun 18, 2009
    #93
  14. California Cowgirl

    California Cowgirl Thread Starter New Member

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    ok i'm hoping that one site will have everything that i will need so i can hopefully get a good deal on shipping if theres any deals at all. Tomorrow i plan on gettig a heater and temperature strip from petsmart, which that will be the only thing that i get from there, but at least it officially starts the project :D which i think will end in a couple of months :D
     
    California Cowgirl, Jun 18, 2009
    #94
  15. California Cowgirl

    California Cowgirl Thread Starter New Member

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    so i had posted this link <a class="postlink" href="http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=13975" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... atid=13975</a> earlier in the thread and that's the lighting that i plan to buy, my question is does it come with the light bulbs? and also another question about the maxijet powerhead <a class="postlink" href="http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=4609" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... catid=4609</a> will i have to buy the prefilterspone and suction cups or are they included with each powerhead
     
    California Cowgirl, Jun 18, 2009
    #95
  16. Anthony

    Anthony Active Member

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    Yes, it comes with 1 bulb and no you don't need a prefilter on the powerhead.
     
    Anthony, Jun 18, 2009
    #96
  17. lostanime

    lostanime New Member

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    That's actually a pretty nice light fixture. Be careful when you get it - if you touch the HQI bulb it'll cause it to blow within a month (use a clean rag/cloth to put the bulb in the fixture)... also make sure you keep the glass cover on it whenever it's lit because the glass filters dangerous levels of UV that those bulbs put out.

    You may want to run the lights on a timer for a couple days before you move anything living in the tank, and watch what happens to the temperature in your tank (particularly what the temperature is right before the lights cut on, and right before the lights cut off). Metal halides are our favorite form of lighting (extremely bright especially for it's size, beautiful shimmering effect...) but they are notorious for causing heat issues and "just in case" you'll want to have that ironed out before you put any livestock in danger.

    We had to use fans on our big tank, and reposition our little tank directly under a A/C vent when we started using metal halides to light both of them to stop overheating issues.
     
    lostanime, Jun 19, 2009
    #97
  18. California Cowgirl

    California Cowgirl Thread Starter New Member

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    How bad does the light overheat the tank or does the fan or whatever inside the fixture take care of things pretty well and also sincecthe lighting will be so strong do I even need to get a heater as if things overheat I won't have anything to cool the tank down. Although the tank is directly across the room from an ac vent.
     
    California Cowgirl, Jun 19, 2009
    #98
  19. lostanime

    lostanime New Member

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    The 150w light fixture on our 24gal nano has a built-in fan, with the house set to 74F the tank is at 81.5F by the end of the light cycle, which is a little too hot.

    It might not be a problem - all I'm suggesting is try it out for a couple days and make sure your temperatures are stable before you put fish in the tank. If it is a problem - that'll give you time to figure out how you want to raise the fixture or position additional external fans to help dissipate the heat without worrying about your critters, too.

    You will still want a heater so your temperatures don't drop when your lights are off. Although the temperature being in the wrong range can stress a fish out, having an unstable temperature (swinging more then a few degrees) even in the right range can quickly kill many fish!
     
    lostanime, Jun 19, 2009
    #99
  20. lostanime

    lostanime New Member

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    and regarding how badly the lights heat the tank - metal halide lights are the #1 cause for buying aquarium water chillers - you will literally melt plastic such as eggcrate within a few inches under the bulb because the bulbs run at approximately 2000 degrees. They are VERY hot, and justify being extra careful around (when glass gets that hot, it will shatter if splashed with water)

    This isn't a metal halide problem though, any lighting over 4 watts per gallon justifies being particularly mindful of the heat going into the water. After running VHOs, NOT5s, power compacts, HOT5s, and metal halides... it would be hard for me to use anything other then the halides - I enjoy looking in my tanks and the shimmering sparkle, loads of light, great penetration (very bright even in deep water), and (relatively) nominal space they take up more then makes up for coming up with creative solutions for the heat for me :)
     
    lostanime, Jun 19, 2009
    #100
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