Upgrading tank equipment

[Chaotic]

Hi fellow reefers! I have a 35 gallon reef setup and am looking upgrade my current equipment on it. It has been running for almost a year and a half, and I am proud to say I have had no issues with keeping my fish and coral. I do not have ANY sps in my tank, only LPS and mushrooms. I have 5 fish, a clown, pearly jaw, green dragonet, dragonface pipefish, and purple firefish.

Ok, background done. Now for the actual questions, there are SOOOO many choices with good equipment out there and I dont even know where to start. I do know what I am looking for however, I need a better skimmer, a new lighting system, and a better powerhead. And maybe some extra piece of filtration to help keep water cleaner. Biggest one I am concerned with replacing is the light. LED lights are EXPENSIVE or at least the ones I have seen. Does anybody have any recommendations? Spending limit is like 200 for light MAX. I am not cheap, I just dont have a large budget. And if there are any other equipment you have in mind for a smaller tank, let me know!

 

[Chaotic]

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+10704+35450&pcatid=35450&s=hl

here is the light i had in mind but i wasnt sure if it was good enough, or too much. tank dimensions are height: 18.5 inch, Length: 19 inch, and Width: 11 inch.

 

[ATI North America]

I am happy to help with any ATI questions if you have any. Our lighting appears to be out of your budget range, but I would recommend the AI Prime over the Kessil if I was looking for something in that price range.

 

[Chaotic]

Ok, so after more research, I think a kessil A160 tuna blue would be more suited to my tank dimensions, but if anyone has recommendations for anything else, let me know! or if you have any experience with this light fixture

 

[Chaotic]

I also would like some sort of extra filtration equipment to help with water quality. my pipefish and dragonet are hungry buggers and so I am not sure what extra piece of equipment would help with that. I need a better skimmer and I also have chaeto algae to help, as well as clean up crew growing in the chaeto. any advise? preferably non expensive

 

[Chaotic]

Here is a list of the equipment i am looking into, if anyone has advise on to get these or not, please let me know!

https://www.amazon.com/Aquarium-Mak...507134686&sr=8-12&keywords=magnetic+powerhead

https://www.amazon.com/Kessil-A160W...F8&qid=1507134836&sr=8-1&keywords=kessil+a160

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0028BPRMA/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

 

[Reef Monkie]

I also would like some sort of extra filtration equipment to help with water quality. my pipefish and dragonet are hungry buggers and so I am not sure what extra piece of equipment would help with that. I need a better skimmer and I also have chaeto algae to help, as well as clean up crew growing in the chaeto. any advise? preferably non expensive

Do water tests say you need a better skimmer? The best non-expensive advice is only buy equipment that really adds something to your experience or the health of your pets.

 

[Chaotic]

My water tests are good.... but the skimmer i have is kinda meh.... it doesnt do its job good enough is how i would put it. that and it was used when i got it from a friend. and my coral and fish are fine, its just some pieces of coral i have bought recently isnt growing well, and i know its because of lighting and only decent water conditions.

p.s. yes i do water changes, a 20% change once every other week

 

[Reef Monkie]

My water tests are good.... but the skimmer i have is kinda meh.... it doesnt do its job good enough is how i would put it. that and it was used when i got it from a friend. and my coral and fish are fine, its just some pieces of coral i have bought recently isnt growing well, and i know its because of lighting and only decent water conditions.

p.s. yes i do water changes, a 20% change once every other week

The reason I mention that is because water changes are pretty cheap on a small tank and your choice of powerheads/skimmer were quite low end and you also want lighting so perhaps you are spreading your budget out a bit too much by wanting to do it all at once. If you are sure that your lights need replacing then perhaps do that first and then you can see if that is enough for those new corals. You could also do 15% water changes a week instead of 20% every two weeks but if your water parameters are good then your skimmer seems to be doing its job already? I read about people that have to add nitrates to their tank because their chaeto isn't growing because their skimmer/filtration is working too well so it is possible to overdo things when trying to improve a already ok system.

 

[Chaotic]

The reason I mention that is because water changes are pretty cheap on a small tank and your choice of powerheads/skimmer were quite low end and you also want lighting so perhaps you are spreading your budget out a bit too much by wanting to do it all at once. If you are sure that your lights need replacing then perhaps do that first and then you can see if that is enough for those new corals. You could also do 15% water changes a week instead of 20% every two weeks but if your water parameters are good then your skimmer seems to be doing its job already? I read about people that have to add nitrates to their tank because their chaeto isn't growing because their skimmer/filtration is working too well so it is possible to overdo things when trying to improve a already ok system.

good point..... I do need the new powerheads though, one i have is old, same brand but it isnt working well anymore. Ill look into getting just the light for now, thanks for the advise!