Biocube 32 setup help

[Shimis]

I just ordered a biocube 32 and some supplies. This is my first run at a saltwater setup so I'm pretty ignorant about everything. I have been reading and researching for weeks and just decided to go small yesterday. (and hopefully simple-at least initially) I have the following coming:

1. Mechanical foam aquarium filter, polybio filter pad, chemipure elite (all to replace the bioball filtration.

2. 200 watt heater 30-50 gallon

3. ARC reef coraline algae in a bottle. Purple helix strain

4. Digital thermometers

5. API reef test kit and API saltwater master test kit

6. Tunze 3152 ato

7. Salinity refractometer.

Questions:

1. What else is mandatory?

2. What name brand of salt to buy?

3. I some posts about protein skimmers for biocube. Is it necessary and what parameters would make it necessary?

4. I plan on upgrading the lights at some point. Should I remove the top and get a light that I could transfer to a larger tank down the road or just go with Steve's led? And does it make a big difference if I get the light now or several months from now?

Any other advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[LBReefer]

Good morning,

A couple points of advice on the front end:

* Use two smaller heaters instead of one large heater. You will be less likely to fry your fish if it fails on and less likely to chill them if it fails off. Heaters are one of the least realible pieces of equipment. I just lost $200 worth of fish in quarantine because of a faulty heater.
Skip the API tests and pay for the red Sea tests. They are more realible and easier to read.

What are you planning to keep in the tank? The stock light will be fine for most softies. Replacing the light may mean building a custom lid to prevent jumping fish and higher levels of evaporation.
I'd skip the skimmer - I didn't have good luck with any of the skimmers in my biocube.
Skip the helix. Buy a couple emails with a good amount of Coraline and use a file to scrape some of it off. Remove the mechanical filtration for a couple weeks while you are cycling the tank.

If you are planning to go bigger, go ahead and make the jump now. You will save a lot of headaches and $$$ in the long term. I've upgraded equipment too many times to count and the resell value is virtually non-existent.

 

[LBReefer]

And I'd recommend checking the ultimate guide thread on here. People a lot smarter and more experienced than I put it together. I wish I had found it when k was first starting out.

 

[Biocube32]

I just ordered a biocube 32 and some supplies. This is my first run at a saltwater setup so I'm pretty ignorant about everything. I have been reading and researching for weeks and just decided to go small yesterday. (and hopefully simple-at least initially) I have the following coming:

1. Mechanical foam aquarium filter, polybio filter pad, chemipure elite (all to replace the bioball filtration.

2. 200 watt heater 30-50 gallon

3. ARC reef coraline algae in a bottle. Purple helix strain

4. Digital thermometers

5. API reef test kit and API saltwater master test kit

6. Tunze 3152 ato

7. Salinity refractometer.

Questions:

1. What else is mandatory?

2. What name brand of salt to buy?

3. I some posts about protein skimmers for biocube. Is it necessary and what parameters would make it necessary?

4. I plan on upgrading the lights at some point. Should I remove the top and get a light that I could transfer to a larger tank down the road or just go with Steve's led? And does it make a big difference if I get the light now or several months from now?

Any other advice would be greatly appreciated.

1. You probably dont need to add the chemi pure right away. Wait for your tank to cycle.
2. Your heater is a little oversized. 100watts will be fine for a biocube 32.
3. Havent tried that corraline strand stuff. Sure sounds great. Or get some coralline scrapings from a friend for free.
4. Not sure what kind of thermometer you are talking about but i’m sure its probably fine. I like those little colored sticker things that go on the side. Not the most accurate thing, but they give you a pretty good idea when walking by the tank and just checking.
5. People here like to poopoo on api test kits. They are okay, not the worlds most accurate. The ammonia test will eventually go bad on you. It did for me. It expires.
6. I do not have ato but have considered it. There is not much evaporation in a biocube but if you want super duper stable levels it may help. Also is required if you want a skimmer in chamber 2.
7. Yes you need one.

1. Nothing in this hobby is really mandatory, whatever works for you.
2. I use instant ocean reef crystals but there are plenty of good brands.
3. I have a skimmer in a biocube 32 and no skimmer in a 16. It is not necessary. I am trying for a heavy bioload in the 32 so wanted to try a skimmer. I have a build thread with details on my skimmer.
4. The lighting upgrades are a personal preference. I (my wife really) prefers the closed top all in one sleek look so i may upgrade to steve’s in the future once i have the money for the lights and to stock the tank appropriately. The hood also decreases light pollution/spill into whatever room your tank is in. I love biocubes, but the stock lights are not adequate for high PAR species. If you are willing to remove the hood, expect evaporation to increase greatly. Ato will then be mandatory. However your lighting options multiply exponentially.

 

[Shimis]

Thanks again I appreciate the advice. So I do need a protein skimmer on the tank? If so, I've heard bad things about the the coraline. What do you suggest?

 

[lapin]

You dont need a skimmer. Water changes will be fine.
I use Red Sea blue bucket salt.
Your light will be fine for the first few months. Once you decide if you want that bigger tank then make the decision, if you want to go topless and have that fancy light or not.

 

[Act1n1c_L1fe]

I just ordered a biocube 32 and some supplies. This is my first run at a saltwater setup so I'm pretty ignorant about everything. I have been reading and researching for weeks and just decided to go small yesterday. (and hopefully simple-at least initially) I have the following coming:

1. Mechanical foam aquarium filter, polybio filter pad, chemipure elite (all to replace the bioball filtration.

2. 200 watt heater 30-50 gallon

3. ARC reef coraline algae in a bottle. Purple helix strain

4. Digital thermometers

5. API reef test kit and API saltwater master test kit

6. Tunze 3152 ato

7. Salinity refractometer.

Questions:

1. What else is mandatory?

2. What name brand of salt to buy?

3. I some posts about protein skimmers for biocube. Is it necessary and what parameters would make it necessary?

4. I plan on upgrading the lights at some point. Should I remove the top and get a light that I could transfer to a larger tank down the road or just go with Steve's led? And does it make a big difference if I get the light now or several months from now?

Any other advice would be greatly appreciated.

yes, you will need a protein skimmer. i recommend the tunze or aquamaxx skimmers as i have used them both and they are AMAZING. Tunze is better though . i would just go ahead and get better lights now so corals don't get shocked by the lights. i recommend an ai prime for your tank... i use instant ocean salt. ive never used anything else.... you don't need coral line in a bottle. go to lfs and get a few snails to seed coral line. it grows fast under the right conditions...

 

[Act1n1c_L1fe]

get the ato. it is very helpful..

 

[Act1n1c_L1fe]

for test kits:
api- ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and calcium
hanna checker- phosphate, alkalinity
salifert- magnesium
red sea test kits are ****. lol

 

[Shimis]

You dont need a skimmer. Water changes will be fine.
I use Red Sea blue bucket salt.
Your light will be fine for the first few months. Once you decide if you want that bigger tank then make the decision, if you want to go topless and have that fancy light or not.

Thanks for the advice.

 

[sfin52]

@Katrina71 thoughts

I find that Petco has some of the cheapest salt online. My buddy just paid 41 for coralife 150 gallon salt.

 

[Shimis]

@Katrina71 thoughts

I find that Petco has some of the cheapest salt online. My buddy just paid 41 for coralife 150 gallon salt.

I just left Petco about 30 minutes ago. I had no idea they sold saltwater fish and supplies.

 

[Gonebad395]

Welcome to R2R fellow biocube owner here I would take the lid off and go with like a ai hd that’s what I have over mine and I recommend a intank media rack to hold your filter floss

 

[Katrina71]

@Katrina71 thoughts

I find that Petco has some of the cheapest salt online. My buddy just paid 41 for coralife 150 gallon salt.

Petco is competitive. I would check with your LFS to see what they carry if you needed salt in an emergency. I would probably go with that brand of salt.

 

[absowry]

Same setup here. Some will say skimmer is mandatory, some will say it isn't. If you want a low nutrient tank, it's pretty mandatory to run one. Aquatic life 115 skimmer WILL fit into chamber one. You'll have to cut a hole in the hood to make it work. Otherwise you can put it in chamber 2 without issue.

My setup is as follows:
25-30 lbs of live rock in display area + 20lbs of live sand.
100 watt heater in chamber 1.
Intank media basket running floss on top, chemipure elite and purigen in 1/2 of chamber 2. Other half is the Al 115 skimmer I mentioned earlier. I'm modding my hood tomorrow to put skimmer in chamber 1 so I can run macroalgae in chamber 2.
Upgraded mj1200 return pump in chamber 3.
Extra small powerhead in display with a hydor flow for random water flow.
Seachem matrix pretty much wherever I can keep it. This will give more area for beneficial bacteria growth.

I'm keeping softies, Duncan's, and galaxea under stock led lighting. Steve's lighting can upgrade your hood to keep the most demanding corals and inverts for like $350. But don't worry about it just starting out.

I like redsea Coral pro salt mix. Has all the added trace elements for keeping corals in it.

As another poster said, water changes will be main import/export of nutrients our tanks need.

A couple of mistakes I made along the way:
Not quarantining my first fish. Check out Humblefish's post on here as well as hotrocks and several others in the disease category. A whole lot of good, free information. I now have a qt procedure in place.

Also, need to be patient. Let your tank cycle. Don't plan for anything but the hardiest fish and corals for at least the first year. It takes time for the tanks to mature.

Also, don't be afraid to ask seemingly dumb questions. The people on here really have a passion for this hobby and they want to see you and your new critters thrive.

Anything else, just ask!

Good luck!

 

[Shimis]

Same setup here. Some will say skimmer is mandatory, some will say it isn't. If you want a low nutrient tank, it's pretty mandatory to run one. Aquatic life 115 skimmer WILL fit into chamber one. You'll have to cut a hole in the hood to make it work. Otherwise you can put it in chamber 2 without issue.

My setup is as follows:
25-30 lbs of live rock in display area + 20lbs of live sand.
100 watt heater in chamber 1.
Intank media basket running floss on top, chemipure elite and purigen in 1/2 of chamber 2. Other half is the Al 115 skimmer I mentioned earlier. I'm modding my hood tomorrow to put skimmer in chamber 1 so I can run macroalgae in chamber 2.
Upgraded mj1200 return pump in chamber 3.
Extra small powerhead in display with a hydor flow for random water flow.
Seachem matrix pretty much wherever I can keep it. This will give more area for beneficial bacteria growth.

I'm keeping softies, Duncan's, and galaxea under stock led lighting. Steve's lighting can upgrade your hood to keep the most demanding corals and inverts for like $350. But don't worry about it just starting out.

I like redsea Coral pro salt mix. Has all the added trace elements for keeping corals in it.

As another poster said, water changes will be main import/export of nutrients our tanks need.

A couple of mistakes I made along the way:
Not quarantining my first fish. Check out Humblefish's post on here as well as hotrocks and several others in the disease category. A whole lot of good, free information. I now have a qt procedure in place.

Also, need to be patient. Let your tank cycle. Don't plan for anything but the hardiest fish and corals for at least the first year. It takes time for the tanks to mature.

Also, don't be afraid to ask seemingly dumb questions. The people on here really have a passion for this hobby and they want to see you and your new critters thrive.

Anything else, just ask!

Good luck!

Awesome advice. I really appreciate the feedback.

 

[Biocube32]

A skimmer is not mandatory in a tank that size.

 

[Shimis]

A skimmer is not mandatory in a tank that size.

Thanks for the reply.

 

[mandarinn]

This is my Biocube 32 it has a 29 hood with a black box led retrofitted inside. I also changed out some of the led chips. I’m running a hydor slim skim in chamber 1. The intank media rack with floss and poly filter and chemipure blue and refugium in chamber 2. And a jebao dc2000 and heater in chamber 3. And I also do a 4g water change once a week I hope that helps

 

[Shimis]

That's gorgeous. I hope mine ends up half that nice. Thanks for the advice. Why did you go with a skimmer?