Want to start a new reef tank

TJellybean · May 31, 2019

Hi everyone I've stalked this forum and others for about a month now and have been looking to start a saltwater tank for about 2 years now. I haven't done so because well money and time restraints prohibited me and have spent that time casually researching and planning for a tank. The end goal and I am talking 8 or 10 years down the line is a very large stingray tank but for now I would like to start with a smaller reef tank then upgrade to a mid sized one. I love how corals look with bubble corals catching my eye above anything else I have met some experienced reefers and have spoken with my local fish store on what to start with.

So far the general motion is moving towards a 20 long that I could end up using as a quarantine tank or for growing frags for my larger tank down the line. I do not want to kill anything but i do understand accidents happen so my intention for the tank is to get my feet wet with the husbandry and looking over a small population of corals and an even smaller population of fish. I am aware that a smaller tank can be a lot more difficult to start with if I were to start with a 60g tank, but i would like the challenge to be better prepared. After explaining this to my local fish store they said i could get what I was looking for, for about $500 money isn't as a big of a concern but i do want to take my time i have no issue in having a tank with just rocks and sand for 6 months or even a year. for the coral i also want to grow frags i just really want it to be my own.

Now for the reason I am posting on here is I would like a lot of varying opinions on what to explicitly get I have already looked over all the basics that i need for a tank but i would like personal recommendations for certain products as well as recommendations for coral and fish. I would like a range from easy to medium difficulty on both just to see what i can take care of. I plan on having a GSP frag on an isolated rock for the easiest piece i also plan on starting with a clown fish as my easiest fish since i know they are hardy. The only two thing i would really want for this reef tank is a bubble coral and cowfish, they both are very interesting to me.

I would love any and all recommendations, pro tips, or general conversation. I am a very careful and precise person and i know when it comes to wild life they are anything but. I want to go in with a solid foundation and really look forward to were ill be in 10 year in this hobby.

James M · May 31, 2019

Welcome to reef2reef !!!
What are you getting for $500 ? You can definitely find steals on Craigslist and Offerup.

Auquanut · May 31, 2019

Welcome to the family! You came to the right place to get questions answered. The fact that you are already doing research and going slow is a really great start. I started with a biocube 29, and learned a lot before jumping into the 125 (figuratively). Best advice I could give right now is to start a build thread in the Member Tanks section and ask specific questions as you go.

TJellybean · May 31, 2019

James M said:
Welcome to reef2reef !!!
What are you getting for $500 ? You can definitely find steals on Craigslist and Offerup.

It was a very rough estimate including the tank, hydrometer, live rock the fish and coral, etc. it what i was expecting to pay by the end of the tank but i have no issue with it being less or more and i actually did not think to look there thank you for the suggestion!

eggplantparrot · May 31, 2019

TJellybean said:
Hi everyone I've stalked this forum and others for about a month now and have been looking to start a saltwater tank for about 2 years now. I haven't done so because well money and time restraints prohibited me and have spent that time casually researching and planning for a tank. The end goal and I am talking 8 or 10 years down the line is a very large stingray tank but for now I would like to start with a smaller reef tank then upgrade to a mid sized one. I love how corals look with bubble corals catching my eye above anything else I have met some experienced reefers and have spoken with my local fish store on what to start with.

So far the general motion is moving towards a 20 long that I could end up using as a quarantine tank or for growing frags for my larger tank down the line. I do not want to kill anything but i do understand accidents happen so my intention for the tank is to get my feet wet with the husbandry and looking over a small population of corals and an even smaller population of fish. I am aware that a smaller tank can be a lot more difficult to start with if I were to start with a 60g tank, but i would like the challenge to be better prepared. After explaining this to my local fish store they said i could get what I was looking for, for about $500 money isn't as a big of a concern but i do want to take my time i have no issue in having a tank with just rocks and sand for 6 months or even a year. for the coral i also want to grow frags i just really want it to be my own.

Now for the reason I am posting on here is I would like a lot of varying opinions on what to explicitly get I have already looked over all the basics that i need for a tank but i would like personal recommendations for certain products as well as recommendations for coral and fish. I would like a range from easy to medium difficulty on both just to see what i can take care of. I plan on having a GSP frag on an isolated rock for the easiest piece i also plan on starting with a clown fish as my easiest fish since i know they are hardy. The only two thing i would really want for this reef tank is a bubble coral and cowfish, they both are very interesting to me.

I would love any and all recommendations, pro tips, or general conversation. I am a very careful and precise person and i know when it comes to wild life they are anything but. I want to go in with a solid foundation and really look forward to were ill be in 10 year in this hobby.

quickly save yourself! before it's too late and you get addicted to corals and end up spending everything you have! run away, far far away!! i heard reading is a nice hobby

TJellybean · May 31, 2019

Auquanut said:
Welcome to the family! You came to the right place to get questions answered. The fact that you are already doing research and going slow is a really great start. I started with a biocube 29, and learned a lot before jumping into the 125 (figuratively). Best advice I could give right now is to start a build thread in the Member Tanks section and ask specific questions as you go.

Thank you for the warm welcome and yeah i plan on asking every step of the way. This was intended to be more vague for any recommendation so i could compile a list as well as an introduction to the community.

Jon Fishman · May 31, 2019

WELCOME!

You won't be able to do a Cow-Fish in that size tank. Need about 200 gallons for the smallest species of them, and 300+ for the rest.

I know people say "slow" but 6mo-year for some sand and rock is extremely unnecessary! You should be off to a pretty good start in a couple of months.

TJellybean · May 31, 2019

eggplantparrot said:
quickly save yourself! before it's too late and you get addicted to corals and end up spending everything you have! run away, far far away!! i heard reading is a nice hobby

Haha i will take that into consideration don't worry though i will be careful and besides i have never been big on reading.

Mjrenz · May 31, 2019

Welcome to the forum! I started with a 32 gallon biocube and have been addicted ever since. The best advice I can think to offer is to start off with a strict quarantine procedure to keep diseases out of your tank. Happy reefing!

School Reef · May 31, 2019

Go sloooooowly! Mistakes are easier to prevent than cure, lots cheaper too! Invest in quality. A good pump, skimmer and quality lights are keys to success. You're going to look at this tank every day, so make sure it is exactly what you want the first time or else you're going to spend more money down the road. Welcome to the hobby.

TJellybean · May 31, 2019

Jon Fishman said:
WELCOME!

You won't be able to do a Cow-Fish in that size tank. Need about 200 gallons for the smallest species of them, and 300+ for the rest.

I know people say "slow" but 6mo-year for some sand and rock is extremely unnecessary! You should be off to a pretty good start in a couple of months.

It was an exaggeration just to show how patient i am willing to be and thank you i am aware that the small tank will have some limiting affects.

Auquanut · May 31, 2019

School Reef said:
Go sloooooowly! Mistakes are easier to prevent than cure, lots cheaper too! Invest in quality. A good pump, skimmer and quality lights are keys to success. You're going to look at this tank every day, so make sure it is exactly what you want the first time or else you're going to spend more money down the road. Welcome to the hobby.

^^^ Yeah!