Newbie

Jenn1985 · Feb 24, 2014

Hello,
My name is Kali (kay-lee) and i am brand new to the saltwater thing. My mom has a beautiful tank and dives for a living so she got me into wanting one. Well i finally got a 50 gallon from a friend of mine that was letting it go down the drain. I am an animal lover so i couldnt bare to see them suffer. Anywho- I have NO idea what i am doing so any help or advice would be great. It is a 50 gallon tank with some live rock, live sand and a sailfin tang and a dori (i know i know i do know the actual name of the fish)I have attached a picture of my tank here.

Thanks for any advice you can give me

Kali

mike007 · Feb 24, 2014

welcome to r2r!!!

bluedevils38 · Feb 24, 2014

The dori fish is a blue tang! But make sure you keepup with weekly water changes and if I were you I would research sumps and get a sump below your tank for better filtration and get a protein skimmer

Jenn1985 · Feb 24, 2014

I just got the tank yesterday so i was going to take a water sample up to my local saltwater store to see how its doing. Ok and i am pulling a newbi question what is a sump, we want to do all the flitration under the tank. Any suggestions on where i should start?

Jenn1985 · Feb 24, 2014

I got addicted to my moms reef, its really really pretty. I am really exctired to start learning about everything about having a reef tank. :bigsmile:

bluedevils38 · Feb 24, 2014

Well a sump is where you get water from the back of the tank to the bottom to a seperate tank! Usually 3 collumns in it 1st is protein skimmer 2nd is rubble rock and chaeto algae and 3rd is where your return to get the water from the bottom back to your tank

Jenn1985 · Feb 24, 2014

Oh ok i think that is what we are going for, do they sell kits or do i need to buy everything seperate? I am sure my fish store would have the set up correct?

bluedevils38 · Feb 24, 2014

Yeah if you just go to the store and tell them you want to set up a sump and need everything they will hook you up

Jenn1985 · Feb 24, 2014

Thank you so much for the information :bounce:

bluedevils38 · Feb 24, 2014

Your welcome! Youll get the hang of everything as I'm only 17 and had to take the dive into everything to!

Jenn1985 · Feb 24, 2014

When i do see my mom i ask a million questions...still dont quite understand but i will get the hand of it.

bluedevils38 · Feb 24, 2014

Yeah luckily I have. Friend that has a 500 full reef that I can text and ask questions

tidus10 · Feb 25, 2014

There is a lot to it, over time you'll understand enough to get you by. I've only been keeping reef tanks for a couple years, it's the most stressful stress reliever ever!

nitro'sreef · Feb 25, 2014

Welcome to r2r. The sailfin tang looks healthy in the picture.

Reefing Madness · Feb 25, 2014

revhtree · Feb 25, 2014

Welcome to REEF2REEF! We're very glad you joined and hope that you will enjoy the forums, enter contest, start a tank thread, and just be a part of our family friendly community!

Start a new tank thread here: Member Tanks

Enter a FREE contest here: R2R Giveaway and Contest Forum

Thanks for joining and please make sure and post often!

Eric B · Feb 25, 2014

Kali,
First welcome to Reef 2 Reef and I am just over in Acworth, GA and there are a ton of us right around here that keep everything from fish only set ups to full blown large reef systems. If you have any questions feel free to ask away or you can also pm me through here and will be glad to steer you in the right direction or help with any problems that you run into. The main thing to remember in any saltwater tank is to take it really slow and make sure to keep up with water changes/checks.

Eric

Jenn1985 · Feb 25, 2014

Can i ask a question i tried giving the blue tang as well as the sailfin tang some green alage last night and they didnt want it. What other food sources can i give them, the guy who had the tank before me was feeding them reg saltwater fish food?? (i am guessing that is ok) Also my blue tang hides inside the live rock most of the day, is that normal or should i be worried? Thanks in advance

Jenn1985 · Feb 25, 2014

Eric- thank you so much! Its nice to know that there is someone right down the street from me.... my mom told me yesterday to take it really slow so i am working on the patience... lol! i actually set an alarm on my phone that is reoccuring to check/change the water.

And i will take any advice that you can give me!