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29 Gallon (From start to finish)

A

Anthonyjiz

What's up guys, i currently have a 29gallon tank stocked with freshwater fish ranging from cichlids to catfish to puffers, and others..

I recently decided to move to the dark side because i feel in LOVE with corals and clown fish..

I've already ordered the folowing :
- 30 Inch Coralife Aqualight Dual Lamp High Output Fixture
- Coralife Deep Six Hydrometer
- Hydor Koralia 3 Circulation Pump/Powerhead UL 850 gph
- Tropic Marin Sea Salt - 50 Gallon Mix Box

So far that's $200 worth in items and i dont think im even close to finished...

Heater I already have so the two things i need really are another filter (because i have the stock Aqueon 30) and Live rock + sand..which is where im stuck... Idk where to get the cheapest rock from bc the LFS is selling it for $10/lb and that makes me wanna pull my hair out!

Another BIG BIG problem I have is what am I going to do with the current 14 fish in my tank and ornaments, etc... I don't want to donate over $100 in fish to some store and not even get store credit because most of them said no store credit.. I really need some help so if anyone could shed some light it would be amazing and helpful.

Please and thank you,
~Anthony.
 
M

mnat

Officer Emeritus
Staff member
Moderator
Welcome to the Dark Side, and yes it only gets darker. The good: Your salt choice is very good and most people on here use the same salt (including us). The Koralia 3 is a good pump but might be a bit much for your size tank and what you want to keep in there. We had two Koralia 2s on a 30 gallon cube and that was for corals that need high flow. Depending on the dimensions of your tank and what corals you aspire to keep that will truly decide what type of pump you need. Is your hydrometer a floating arm? If so, welcome to the hobby and making some mistakes early on. If you are going to be mixing your own salt water, get a refractometer. They are much more accurate and really are not that expensive. Swing arms can be highly erratic and can be moved off target by as little as an air bubble. Your lighting is really the big question I have. Depending again on what corals you want to keep your lighting may be enough or may not be. I am not familiar with your lighting fixture, it is Power compacts, or T5 lighting and how many watts is it? That will decide what type of lighting you need in the end.

We love clowns and have several different kinds? The good news is a 29 gallon is enough room for almost all of them. Good luck and keep asking for help.
 
M

mnat

Officer Emeritus
Staff member
Moderator
Forgot to mention, if you look in the for sale thread, people on here will sell live rock and sand for a lot less than what stores sell them for. Generally you can get is for under 5 bucks a pound.
 
A

Anthonyjiz

THE T5 was off marinedepot.com
and they never told me a wattage but they should be good since their HO ones 10k and another is anitic..
 
E

evoIX

a koralia 3 IMO would be pretty strong and might need to point it upwards or it would create a huge sand storm.

as mnat said - dump the hydrometer. get a refractometer

picture of stock photo of fixture? or link?

Look for another LFS, i'm sure there will be one in your area that will give you store credit.
 
JRWOHLER

JRWOHLER

If you keep the K3 just keep it towards the top you can get a good circular motion.
The how many T5 bulbs on the fixture 2 or 4. I believe the 30in fixture uses 24in bulbs ... if it is only two you are going to be under powered unfortunately in a 29 gallon tank.
A 4 bulb or 6 bulb fixture(not sure there is a 6 bulb to be honest) will be good for most corals, you will still need to put more light loving corals up on the rockwork.

Live rock ... some people are selling it here now on this board. Should be way cheaper and you will probably get some good hitch hikers.

Second all the comments on the hydrometer...get a refractometer. If you ordered all that stuff from Marine Depot tell them you want to return it IMHO, if the fixture is only a two bulb one ditto I would go with the 4 bulb. Two bulb will not be enough for many corals...maybe some softies that is it.
 
A

Anthonyjiz

E

evoIX

it would be all about testing and how your rock setup is to determine best way to kill all dead spots.

the light fixture would possibly be ok to keep low light corals but i doubt you'd get a color pop with that low of light. what's the height of the 29gallon? i'm guessing it's a 29 aga?
 
JRWOHLER

JRWOHLER

Well honestly I don't think it is enough.  I have a similar fixture on my 55G fresh water tank, it is just barely enough.  You are right about the new bulb length.  I think you want roughly 3.5+W per gallon...and believe me I am a HUGE supporter of T5 lighting it is what I have.  You will quickly learn that trying to do things cheaply rarely works in reef tanks.

evoIX said it right ... I think up high will work best.
 
A

Anthonyjiz

evoIX said:
it would be all about testing and how your rock setup is to determine best way to kill all dead spots.

the light fixture would possibly be ok to keep low light corals but i doubt you'd get a color pop with that low of light. what's the height of the 29gallon? i'm guessing it's a 29 aga?
Click to expand...

29 gallon 30" x 12" x 18" 330 lbs

Also I plan on most likely having a I I Type formation with two towers, one left one right, if you get what im saying..

JRWOHLER said:
Well honestly I don't think it is enough. I have a similar fixture on my 55G fresh water tank, it is just barely enough. You are right about the new bulb length. I think you want roughly 3.5+W per gallon...and believe me I am a HUGE supporter of T5 lighting it is what I have. You will quickly learn that trying to do things cheaply rarely works in reef tanks.
Click to expand...

Well if worse comes to worse I can defiantly buy stronger bulbs, am I right?
___________

Another big question I have is T8's.. The guy at the LFS has a 29gal JUS like me with a HOB filter and no skimmer with a T8 30" and he holds alot of corals and like 4 fish.. I'm awed by that..
 
E

evojoe67

Anthonyjiz said:
What's up guys, i currently have a 29gallon tank stocked with freshwater fish ranging from cichlids to catfish to puffers, and others..

I recently decided to move to the dark side because i feel in LOVE with corals and clown fish..

I've already ordered the folowing :
- 30 Inch Coralife Aqualight Dual Lamp High Output Fixture
- Coralife Deep Six Hydrometer
- Hydor Koralia 3 Circulation Pump/Powerhead UL 850 gph
- Tropic Marin Sea Salt - 50 Gallon Mix Box

So far that's $200 worth in items and i dont think im even close to finished...

Heater I already have so the two things i need really are another filter (because i have the stock Aqueon 30) and Live rock + sand..which is where im stuck... Idk where to get the cheapest rock from bc the LFS is selling it for $10/lb and that makes me wanna pull my hair out!

Another BIG BIG problem I have is what am I going to do with the current 14 fish in my tank and ornaments, etc... I don't want to donate over $100 in fish to some store and not even get store credit because most of them said no store credit.. I really need some help so if anyone could shed some light it would be amazing and helpful.

Please and thank you,
~Anthony.
Click to expand...
Congrats on your journey towards the dark side.May it be an easy transition.
On the subject of LR i don't know how convienently located to Hamilton you are but it may interest you to know that they sell awesome LR that is currently cured(sometimes it's not) at Allquatics over there for $3.99lb and Tonga branch for $4.99lb. It's off 195 exit 2.
They have a nice assortment of corals and fish, too.

They just got a new shipment in yesterday so go check it out.
 
A

Anthonyjiz

My location is Bergen county, that's way over an hour away and I don't own a vehicle so that won't be an option but that's for the idea!
 
G

gogol

Just went very briskly through the thread ... and first off, Welcome to the Club !!! ;D

Here are a couple of pointers in case you are still looking for more friendly advice :)

1. Read up lots and find out about the reef keeping habits and things you need to buy to keep the life stock you want. Make a cost estimate and then budget and pace yourself.. The fact that the hobby is expensive actually helps in preventing people getting in too deep to soon.
2. If you are not a member, consider becoming one since you save considerable amount of money on group buys and discounts with club sponsors. Plus you get a card that says you belong to something special :)
3. Try to check the for sale forums. Reefers often have dry/live goods that they sell for much cheaper than LFS.
4. Be very patient and try not to introduce anything in your tank (damsels, hermit crabs) that will become a real nuisance later on (I know this is hard :) )
5. If possible cycle your tank with just bacteria for a while (You could try BioSpira). Once you have sufficient algae add some snails that would eat them up and get the bio filter going even further.
6. If you have already started stocking up, keep a bottle of Amquel handy. There will be ammonia spikes, and that stuff really works.
7. Be patient, and start with mushrooms and leather corals. Some of them are pretty good looking and really gets you into the "reef-mode".
8. Contact marine depot and find out if you can return your current light for a retrofit kit of at least 4 T5s. (retrofits are good value for money) you can buy/build a hood later on to hide the uglies.
9. Try to visit local reefers and pick their brains about their setup . For me they were Jon (1f-2f), Paul (rf-bf) and Rich (diverrk) and I am ever grateful for the initial education that I received from them.
10. Try not to think of your tank as a cash drain/ a pallete of colours/ something to impress on lookers by. It is an eco system and all your thougths should be geared towards making it stable and weeding out the misfits ( hopefully from a wish list and not your tank :) )

Keep plugging ... it's not as difficult as it initially looks like but the big bang approach will never work out.
 
A

Anthonyjiz

gogol said:
Just went very briskly through the thread ... and first off, Welcome to the Club !!! ;D

Here are a couple of pointers in case you are still looking for more friendly advice :)

1. Read up lots and find out about the reef keeping habits and things you need to buy to keep the life stock you want. Make a cost estimate and then budget and pace yourself.. The fact that the hobby is expensive actually helps in preventing people getting in too deep to soon.
2. If you are not a member, consider becoming one since you save considerable amount of money on group buys and discounts with club sponsors. Plus you get a card that says you belong to something special :)
3. Try to check the for sale forums. Reefers often have dry/live goods that they sell for much cheaper than LFS.
4. Be very patient and try not to introduce anything in your tank (damsels, hermit crabs) that will become a real nuisance later on (I know this is hard :) )
5. If possible cycle your tank with just bacteria for a while (You could try BioSpira). Once you have sufficient algae add some snails that would eat them up and get the bio filter going even further.
6. If you have already started stocking up, keep a bottle of Amquel handy. There will be ammonia spikes, and that stuff really works.
7. Be patient, and start with mushrooms and leather corals. Some of them are pretty good looking and really gets you into the "reef-mode".
8. Contact marine depot and find out if you can return your current light for a retrofit kit of at least 4 T5s. (retrofits are good value for money) you can buy/build a hood later on to hide the uglies.
9. Try to visit local reefers and pick their brains about their setup . For me they were Jon (1f-2f), Paul (rf-bf) and Rich (diverrk) and I am ever grateful for the initial education that I received from them.
10. Try not to think of your tank as a cash drain/ a pallete of colours/ something to impress on lookers by. It is an eco system and all your thougths should be geared towards making it stable and weeding out the misfits ( hopefully from a wish list and not your tank :) )

Keep plugging ... it's not as difficult as it initially looks like but the big bang approach will never work out.
Click to expand...

Haha! Thanks for the welcome buddy! And yes, when I do get this going I plan to cycle for a month-ish with just plain old live rock... Later I will add a polyp or so and a clown and from there we can see where it goes..

I've been to the only two local reef stores already (Reef encounter, Hackensack + Absolutely Fish, Clifton) and they seem to have alittle info, but then again they're just trying to make a sale bc most of the time when i get back to a forum i get a different answer then the store person says, haha.. Btw Reef Encounter is muchhhh more cheaper and smarter then A-F, although A-F has alittle more to pick from, and nice coral..

My T5 should arrive on this Monday, but I'm going to call them right when I get it and ask for a exchange, I think I'll just get this..

http://www.marinedepot.com/Current_...xtures-Current_USA-CU01011-FILTFIPCTI-vi.html

What do you guys think?!

But the big thing is that Idk if I'm going to buy a new tank, which would be a 30breeder, which also means I need a 36" light and not a 30".. That's why I think I'm just going to return it and maybe the hydor 3 also and get a lower one, but idk if they will give me that full refund...
 
M

mnat

Officer Emeritus
Staff member
Moderator
I think you are making the right decision to return the two bulb system, it would not be enough light for what you wanted to do. The new system would be enough light for softies and zoas, but not for an anem. Also, most people in the hobby are getting away from the power compact lights. They are just not that good. You are going in the right direction with the more bulbs, you just want to stick with the T5s.

Remember, this is my opinion and I have dealt with Power compacts, T5s and metal halide bulbs. Some people have had great success with power compacts, it just seems from what I have read and heard you are better off with T5s. My PC tank has had good growth on zoas and some of the hardier LPS corals. It just really limits you on some of the tougher LPS, SPS, and anems. If those corals are not your goal, then go for it. One last point, we just bought a new tank and we are going T5s on it having experienced all of them.
 
A

Anthonyjiz

Ahhh im getting all mixed messages... The reason i wanted to get that PC is bc its 2x65wat compared to my 2x30 (I THINK!) T5... and its only 99 which is cheaper then my $130 T5.. I can't get a 30 or 36" 4bulb T5 bc thats way out of my pricing =/
 
M

mnat

Officer Emeritus
Staff member
Moderator
Look around for some used fixtures on the For Sale thread. You can go ahead with the PC lighting I just wanted to let you know that you will be limited in your coral selection.
 
A

Audi0s

Ive got a fixture I might be able to part with, its an almost brand new 24" Nova extreme.It only has the single reflector, but its probably a much better start. I could sell it because Im leaning towards another sundial like on my nanocube. PM if you decide to return the other fixture, Im in Hackensack also.
 
A

Anthonyjiz

That 24" is a 24" bulb or a 24" fixture? I need to first decide if I'm keeping the 30" 29gallon tank or getting a 36" breeder.. It's a really hard decision bc Idk where to give the fish, I really don't want to give so much money away =/ I would like to sell the WHOLE tank and everything instead of just the fish and be stuck with ornaments and like 30lbs of blk sand...

What would I be limited to with 130watts? (I'm guessing at 2x65 bulbs, ill be getting 130?)
 
A

Audi0s

Its only a 24 in fixture, runs 24 inch bulbs. With the Pcs youre looking at softies, zoas, maybe some hardier acans kinda high in the tank. T5s are also putting more light out and at a better quality than PCs. But Im thinking the 65x2 would beat a 24x2 t5. If you move to a 4x24, Id say you can keep anything, harder stuff up high like SPS. I noticed a huge difference with my sundial t5.
 
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