HOB skimmer/brand new set up ish.

[Tuesday]

Hi all-
Lets start with I'm VERY new to the hobby (salt water, i have plenty of fresh water.. like too much for my own good)

Basically I want to start a salt water tank
lets be clear though-
I am in NO RUSH to get anything living (except substrate) in to that tank. So please keep that in mind when you're responding. Im talking im not going to put anything in there for a LOOOOOONG time. and when I do, i will start with one piece of very easy beginner coral. I don't foresee fish being in the tank for at least a year. So lets begin-

33 gallon tank. Im aware this is small and will be hard to maintain and will require frequent water changes. Let me make this clear as well... I KNOW THIS IS SMALL. That also means I know i will be EXTREMELY limited to what fish/ anything living I can get. Again, this is a starter tank, I am just trying to figure out how salt water works and my 280 gallon is currently (and forever will be) occupied.

next- Canister filter.
I have been running this tank (fresh) on a canister filter, no problems. I know this is not ideal for a salt water tank (or any tank, really) however. There are some bits and pieces to my living situation and because its a starter tank and I'm just trying to learn, its on the floor. I'm using it as a grow out tank right now (that ends tonight) and the floor is and will have to work fine. I do understand that I will have to stay on top of cleaning the canister filter and all that fun stuff. (AGAIN, NOTHING LIVE) Can anybody recommend what type of media they prefer? I'm thinking bio balls and floss to be honest, its what i use everywhere else and it works great for me. but I don't do salt water. So i'm not sure how that's going to go.

Next- the skimmer.
I ended up with a skimmer from a friend who got it from a friend. Luckily its a hang on the back. Heres the issue, i have ZERO idea how skimmers work or what i need for this one. I will insert a picture. If anybody can give me some insight as to what I do and what I need that would be great. I know I need a pump for it, and I have multiple, I might need some tubing though... to be honest I haven't really looked at it and even if I did, I don't understand it.


Finally- I do have all the things I need for water changes, to make water safe, hydrometer, salt, all that great stuff. (again, nothing live.) I basically have everything I need to get this tank running. while some of it may not be ideal, it will work (i'm also on a budget. Law school ain't cheap, y'all. ) so Im trying to do a "work with what you got" thing. Might make it hard on me in the beginning, but thats how I learned freshwater (guess who fried all their fish once?) and I know a lot more now because of it.
Also when making your own salt water, what's the formula you use? salt to water ratio? do you use a formula or do you just test as you go? Also- when adding Sachem Prime, I assume the order of operations here is water, then prime, then salt? Also- I will be mixing this in buckets and then adding to the tank.


If you've made it this far, I commend you, and I'm sorry.

*Please don't yell at me, I'm new here and lets be honest, not that bright, so some of these could be stupid questions*

 

[Retro Reefer]

Everything sounds good.. make sure your make up water is pure (0 tds) you will need to buy it or install a RO/DI system this is a must for reef tanks.. whatever salt mix you buy it should have the mixing ratio’s/formula on the bag. You really need a few fish in your system to add nutrients, feed your bacteria and corals, I would but them after your cycle has completed and tank has stabilized a bit.

 

[Tuesday]

I have an RODI unit but it’s large, it needs a new membrane, and I live in a small apartment. So I’m not even sure how hook up would work. At this point it’s easier to get premade water from my local fish store. Which I have 10 gallons of currently. I planned on making the rest. As far as that skimmer goes, any ideas on how it works? Lol I’m lost with that thing. As far as test kits I have a freshwater test kit and a hydrometer but as of right now, no salt water. The API test kit is what I have for fresh and was recommended for salt so I will probably grab that. As far as fish, it’s small; so I was thinking maybe a goby? Eventually I want a coral croucher. When I know what I’m doing. For now, I need easy. And from what I’ve heard, that’s not coral crouchers. Also do you recommend coral first or fish first? I have dry rock to put in. Also I need to sort out the lighting bit. I have plenty of lighting but none of it has the blue. How necessary is that, or is it just to make the coral color pop?

 

[Tuesday]

Everything sounds good.. make sure your make up water is pure (0 tds) you will need to buy it or install a RO/DI system this is a must for reef tanks.. whatever salt mix you buy it should have the mixing ratio’s/formula on the bag. You really need a few fish in your system to add nutrients, feed your bacteria and corals, I would but them after your cycle has completed and tank has stabilized a bit.

Tonight I’ll be getting two five gallon buckets worth of live sand, from a very established “dude knows what he’s doing” tank. So I hope that helps in cycling. I assume I will need to buy the test kit ASAP to test for tds?