On to the equipment side...

[Pixburgh]

Multi question thread to get it all out of the way in one place. Forgive me for picking your brains, I keep second guessing myself and what I've been researching for some reason! If you have any links to past threads that are helpful, post away. I did a search and found a few so far.

First, lighting. I need suggestions on what fixture I should be buying. I bought a 40 gallon breeder tank that came with a marineland LED lighting system but will probably be selling that, I know it won't be even close to what I need for my reef tank. I've read some threads that suggest T5 lights, I just need to know what type of bulbs (colors) and fixture will be best for my set up. Below are the corals i'll be adding to my tank.

• Bubble Coral
• Feather Duster
• Yellow Leather Soft Coral
• Green star poly (potentially, if space allows)

Second, flow. With the list above, what should I have as far as power heads go? I have two Aqueon circulation pumps (950 gph) left over from a freshwater tank, would those work and be sufficient or would they even be too much for the corals i'm going to keep?

Third, protein skimmer. I picked up a skimmer that does 100 gallons after reading that they usually only do half of what they advertise. Do I need to go bigger or will that one be enough? Is there such thing as too big of a protein skimmer?

Fourth & final, is there anything equipment wise that i'm missing? I'm planning out a sump for the near future but for now just working with HOB items so that I can tackle one thing at a time. I have heaters (one for each end) but i know i'll have to play with adjusting those to see what keeps my tank at an acceptable stable temperature.

 

[Pete polyp]

I have recently built a 40. I used.a 6 bulb t5 with 3xati blue +, 1xati coral +, 1xati actinic, 1x12k and I couldn't be happier with the color it produces. 2x950gph should be more than sufficient to keep those corals, you will just have to tinker with it to get the flow to where you want it. Can you give us what model skimmer you have? I went with a bubble magus curve 5 and out has proven to be one beast of a skimmer.

 

[Pixburgh]

Forgot to add this.

Tank Dimensions: 36"L x 18"W x 16"H

 

[Pixburgh]

yeah it's a reef octopus bh1000

 

[Longnose Hawkfish]

If you want to get LEDs I would look into the reef breeders photons. Contact them and they will help you choose the right one.

 

[Longnose Hawkfish]

The reef octopus should work just fine.

 

[Reefing Madness]

Flow with those powerheads would be great!
Skimmer choice is also excellent.
Lighting T5:
https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/eq...reef-lighting-t5-lighting-options-corals.html
https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/reef-aquarium-discussion/140006-t-5-bulbs-better-replace.html


LED Fixtures:
Value LED Fixture | Reef Breeders LEDs
OR-U120 LED Aquarium Light_Aquarium LED_OCEANREVIVE LED
Dimmable LED Aquarium Light 165W with Lens 55X3WATT Bridgelux Coral Reef Fixture | eBay
120W LED Aquarium Light Dimmable Full Spectrum Reef Marine Coral LPS SPS Lamp | eBay
Arctic-S026 LED Aquarium Light_Aquarium LED_OCEANREVIVE LED

Only thing I see missing is Sand and Rock being used. Looks good!!

 

[Pixburgh]

I read somewhere on here to use argonite sand, correct? About 1-2 inches deep for beginners?

How much rock do you suggest for this tank? 40lbs minimum?

 

[Pixburgh]

Also was looking at those LED links you put up and they all seem to be 16" long. Is that sufficient or will I be needing to buy 2 of those? I use LED for my freshwater tanks and have always have them run the length of the tank, given that it's more for looks than actual growth with them anyway

 

[Pete polyp]

I read somewhere on here to use argonite sand, correct? About 1-2 inches deep for beginners?

How much rock do you suggest for this tank? 40lbs minimum?

If you only have 1-2" of sand it will be for cosmetic reasons only, so its personal preference at that point. If you put 4" it will become a deep sand bed which will aid in the denitrification process. I actually have a tank with no other form of nutrient removal other than live rock and a deep sand bed. With live rock once again you will just put in what you like. Depending on the density of the rock the amount per pound will be different. I'm not saying you will get away with only putting 3 pounds of rock in the tank. 40 will be a good number to shoot for, but depending on the density you may want more than that to create a nice looking aquascape. I have around 40 pounds in a 29 gallon and a 40 gallon with around 40 pounds.

 

[Pixburgh]

Do you think my goby's and shrimp will be "happier" with a deeo sand bed? Is it ok to use argonite sand for the entire thing or do i need to have this mixed with some other type too?

 

[Pete polyp]

I prefer to use all aragonite. The last time I bought sand I bought 20lbs aragalive and 40lbs ocean direct. that was enough for a 4" sand bed in a 29.

This is the 29, 60lbs aragonite, about 40lbs tukani/Fiji mix live rock, 6 bulb t5, 3x blue +, 1x coral +, 1x purple +, 1x12k. Hob filter, heater, jeabao wp25, seio superflow 620.... That's all I have with this setup

 

[Pete polyp]

This is my 40, 6 bulb t5, the only difference is actinic in place of purple+. Its barebottom with about 28lbs rock in the display and another 12lbs in the fuge. As far as equipment, there's to much to list....

A picture speaks a thousand words

 

[Pixburgh]

Thanks for that, those pictures were awesome!

- LED lighting question: What am i looking for spec wise to make absolutely sure i'm getting an appropriate light for my coral?