I am putting together a 55 gal reef. This is my first tank but I don't want to start too cheap on equipment and have to rebut later to upgrade. I was thinking about a sump with a skimmer and gfo/carbon reactor and live rock as my main filtration. Any advice would be appreciated.
New to saltwater
- Thread starter fire956
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Yes it sound good. If your going to have corals down the track then don't skimp on your lights either ! Have you thought about what flow you going to use ? Try and buy a skimmer as big as you can, chances are you will get a bigger tank later and then wont have to upgrade skimmer as well. A skimmer rated to double your capacity is a good start. Same with flow, get programmable ones and turn them down, saves an upgrade again later. When you add more rock, corals etc you can then turn them up instead of having to buy new again.
Dmmz
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What are the dimensions of the tank if it is 48x12x21 I would first start by getting a different tank my first tank was a 55g and hated the width it is way to narrow if yours is a different dimension it will be fine
Jimbo662
2500 Club Member
+1 on the skimmer and lights. They'll be the biggest purchases. Here's a great review on the different types of lights. I had AI Vega Colors on my first tank but had trouble with some corals. I don't think I got all the different colors dialed in correctly. On my current tank I've got the Kessil A360WEs and everything from SPS to LPS to softies are happy and growing. I think you can hold off on getting the gfo reactor until you determine whether you have an issue with phosphates.
My LED Journey and Experiences - Reef Keeping - Austin Reef Club
My LED Journey and Experiences - Reef Keeping - Austin Reef Club
I'm looking at the ADV-100 or R-100 sump/refugium not sure which is better and I'm running the aquaC urchant pro skimmer. I'm using a mag 5 return pump and just some cobalt 1200s for the rest. Any thoughts on that?
gmastr85
Active Member
My recommendation is get the largest sump you can fit in your stand. The larger the better. It will give you room to put all your equipment in like the skimmer and return pump and have a lot of room for the refugium. If you can fit a 40 gal sump underneath that 55 then that would be ideal!
