I am a Beginner would like some coral ideas

[saltyfilmfolks]

Go 20 or 30. You'll be happier so will the fish. Why skimp.

 

[Frop]

Honestly try to look into this...

20g tank from petco as it is the $1 a gallon sale now then use this for an overflow...
http://www.glass-holes.com/Super-Nano-Overflow-Box-Complete-Kit-ghsnanokit.htm

get another 20g to use as a sump.

an aquamaxx in sump skimmer will do you wonders... two little fishies sells a reactor for $40 on amazon... a decent heater is $30-40

get a nice pump for $60

one jabeo power head will go a long way in ur tank theyre about $60 on amazon with controller...

go with 40lbs of base rock from amazon as its from a dead reef most of the time. youll just need to wash it off real good

substrate dont go with sand use something else

you can build a DIY net lid for about $15-20

the rest is pretty much the light... personally you dont need to go crazy and buy a kessil to grow a leather or lps frags haha

Ya for my second tank I've been buying used stuff. Paid $230 for tank/stand/sump/skimmer/ 1-10 hp chiller/50lb liverock. I estimate a new value of over $1480 which doesn't include the lighting or lid he gave me (price if new, Tank $210, stand $460, skimmer $80, pump/plumbing/sump idk? at least $80 i'd imagine, $400 chiller, $250 live rock). So I'm doing the new tank right lol.

 

[Jisko]

Go 20 or 30. You'll be happier so will the fish. Why skimp.

agreed

if space is an issue you can find a very nice 25g lagoon style tank like this

http://www.marinedepot.com/Innovati...anks-Innovative_Marine-0I05253-FIAQNC-vi.html

 

[Jisko]

Ya for my second tank I've been buying used stuff. Paid $230 for tank/stand/sump/skimmer/ 1-10 hp chiller/50lb liverock. I estimate a new value of over $1480 which doesn't include the lighting or lid he gave me (price if new, Tank $210, stand $460, skimmer $80, pump/plumbing/sump idk? at least $80 i'd imagine, $400 chiller, $250 live rock). So I'm doing the new tank right lol.

I'm paranoid and hate buying used stuff haha... way I see it is if I'm gonna do it and spend the money I should just buy the best I possibly can and have a little less worry that my tank seal will hit the dust in a few months haha

 

[Datnerd14]

No joke total price currently is in the 1400 twenty gallon all in one the light stands and tank are 700 dollars all together I got a 67 gallon running freshwater for $250 and this is just a twenty

 

[Jisko]

No joke total price currently is in the 1400 twenty gallon all in one the light stands and tank are 700 dollars all together I got a 67 gallon running freshwater for $250 and this is just a twenty

what all have you picked out that is totaling you at $1400?

 

[Surfandturf]

Ok so you don't need a chiller lol. You will need:
A good test kit. *Red Sea
Refractometer
Auto top-off (must in 10 gal)
Heater
Good light (Ai prime) ~ $225

*if going 10 gal, get a fluval all-in-one for $99. Comes with a good pump.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

No joke total price currently is in the 1400 twenty gallon all in one the light stands and tank are 700 dollars all together I got a 67 gallon running freshwater for $250 and this is just a twenty

avoid the aio. You've done fish, youll get bored and it'll get dirty. Pers Id rather a sumpless, aquaclear or hob skimmer over an aio.

 

[Jisko]

Ok so you don't need a chiller lol. You will need:
A good test kit. *Red Sea
Refractometer
Auto top-off (must in 10 gal)
Heater
Good light (Ai prime) ~ $225

*if going 10 gal, get a fluval all-in-one for $99. Comes with a good pump.

yeah things like a controller, $500 lights, and a chiller are not needed in a 10g tank haha

honestly my 10g tank ran with a cheap power head, HOB aquaclear, a heater, some crappy rock, sand, orbit usa light, glass lid, 2 clownfish, 2 anenomes and a shrimp.... they lived in it for a year before I upgraded haha

I'll also add.... I have a $30 LED light on my 29g right now and I have a lps dominate tank... $200-300 lights are not a must when starting off :\

 

[Frop]

Ok so you don't need a chiller lol. You will need:
A good test kit. *Red Sea
Refractometer
Auto top-off (must in 10 gal)
Heater
Good light (Ai prime) ~ $225

*if going 10 gal, get a fluval all-in-one for $99. Comes with a good pump.

I don't have an ATO in mine. I have one of those red throwaway party style cups and I just add 1 glass of water or two every day with that. I think it's been working fine almost 9 months of doing that so far.

yeah things like a controller, $500 lights, and a chiller are not needed in a 10g tank haha

honestly my 10g tank ran with a cheap power head, HOB aquaclear, a heater, some crappy rock, sand, orbit usa light, glass lid, 2 clownfish, 2 anenomes and a shrimp.... they lived in it for a year before I upgraded haha

If the chiller was referring to my post it was for the 58. It's because my house temp is at 80 when we're at work and I fear the AC refusing to cool the house on random summer days. I just used a small fan on my tank. I don't think that helped much anyways lol. Better to just freeze RODI water i guess.

For the 10 gallon I have the most expensive piece was my Hydra ($350). I only bought that specific light because I knew the 10 gallon was temporary and I wanted a light I could use on my next tank. (In this case i'll probably buy a second one).

 

[Jisko]

I don't have an ATO in mine. I have one of those red throwaway party style cups and I just add 1 glass of water or two every day with that. I think it's been working fine almost 9 months of doing that so far.



If the chiller was referring to my post it was for the 58. It's because my house temp is at 80 when we're at work and I fear the AC refusing to cool the house on random summer days. I just used a small fan on my tank. I don't think that helped much anyways lol. Better to just freeze RODI water i guess.

For the 10 gallon I have the most expensive piece was my Hydra ($350). I only bought that specific light because I knew the 10 gallon was temporary and I wanted a light I could use on my next tank. (In this case i'll probably buy a second one).

i was only going by his post for the chiller

thats another thing! a 6 stage RODI unit is an amazing piece of equipment you won't regret buying...

 

[Surfandturf]

For a 10gal, I would assume that a chiller would be needed in a high temp house vs a 58 gal. The water volume is much larger and takes more time to heat up. I used to refill my tank by hand, but if you are going for stability, then your salt level will constantly fluctuate. The tunz auto top-off made a vast improvement for the stability of my tank.

 

[Datnerd14]

I'm buying 250 dollar lighting 200 dollar tank 250 stand $80 skimmer 40 heater 40 refractometer 40 salt
60 power head I don't need a chiller my tank never has heat spikes in my 67 so I doubt that I need a chiller the tank also has a built in sump those are just some of the expenses for my tank

 

[Surfandturf]

The other thing that I will tell you is that the palys you have your heart set on, may look completely different under your lighting. Some sites have an option to choose what lighting you want to see the coral under. I think tidal gardens is one.

 

[Datnerd14]

The lighting I'm getting I can change the things to get the best coloration

 

[Datnerd14]

The lighting is where I can get the best spectrum

 

[Frop]

The lighting is where I can get the best spectrum

The Prime?

 

[Brandon3152134]

2 clowns in a ten gal no way unless you plan to upgrade also that's gonna be a huge bioload on such a small tank

 

[Surfandturf]

2 clowns in a ten gal no way unless you plan to upgrade also that's gonna be a huge bioload on such a small tank

You can absolutely have 2 clowns in a 10g!

 

[infinityends]

Hammer, Frogspawn and Torch are all pretty forgiving corals. Provides movement to watch too which many people first getting into corals tend to be attracted to over the fuzy sticks everyone eventually becomes obsessed with.

You mentioned Palys in your original post. I feel like I'm becoming "that guy" on this subject but I'm always surprised that no one mentions this to people new to reefkeeping. You need to be aware that zoanthids and palythoas can contain palytoxin. There is no way to know which do and don't without being a professional biologist specializing in these corals. Therefor you must assume they are all toxic.

Not trying to freak you out, but if you google or search on R2R you will see some scary threads about exposure to Palytoxin. Just a heads up to be careful with them, wear gloves, wash hands well after handling, safety goggles for the appropriate situations....