Advice for a 50g

andrewr2488

Thank you, I'm glad that others out there are getting help along with me! I will post some pictures soon, right now its raining and pretty bad so I cant finish cleaning my tank and what not. Trying to sell my old FW filter and some other odds and ends to help pay for my SW equipment. I am browsing a few different lightings atm and haven't exactly decided which route to go. I'm looking into a AquaticLife Lunar Light, It has a built in timer with 2 colors of Flourescent bulbs and also LED blue moon lighting. Has a timer also so you can set the time you'd like each light to turn on and off. Ill update my list tonight.

DisneyCoralReef

If you need to order some stuff online, let me know. I was given this store online and ordered half my equipment from those guys. They have been INCREDIBLE with my orders and keeping me posted as to where the stuff is, how long its going to take for shipping etc etc. PM me if it's something you need to do.

andrewr2488

Alright Thanks! I'm ordering my stuff from Foster and Smith. So far I have a mock up supply list made.

Lighting will be the AquaticLife Lunar Compact Fluorescent setup. I'd like to buy the Ecoxotic Panorama LED Setup but that's a bit pricey!

Filtration will include my LS and LR, and also a CoralLife Super Skimmer with the Needle Wheel (Either the 125Gallon or 220Gallon, Haven't decided) I'm not sure how much LS and LR I need to fill my 50g tank. Probably 75# of LS and 20-30# of LR?

I already have my Stand, Aquarium, and 2 Marineland Stealth 200 Watt heaters, And I'm gonna use a 20 Long as a sump. I have a spare 29g but I don't think It will fit under my stand.

My stocking list is about where it has been for the past few days or so. 1 Tank Bred Ocelleris Clown, 1 Purple Dotty back, 1 Flame Angel, 2 Blue Green Reef Chromis, 1 Three Stripe Damsel, and 1-2 Yellow Tail Damsel. I'd like to get a Scooter Dragonet eventually. 1 Striped Skunk Cleaner Shrimp. These are in no certain order either.

bearwithfish

ok as for the substrate "Live sand" has beneficial bacteria and various critters in it to assist in the filtration of the system... opinions on substrate vary widely and i will let those who know more jump inhere but personally i would spend the money on all live sand as it will help seed your rock if you get a mostly base (dry) drock to start off with (which is quite a bit cheaper)

as for Damsels i will agree they get territorial and most peole will stay clear of them .. i personally think each fish has a distinct personality and you may be able to find a group that works (i have 4 in mine and they are doing well) the only down side i see is i hesitate to add any other fish to the tank as i have read many times that they will kill off new additions.. so either add them last or intend for them to be the only fish in the tank...

andrewr2488

Ok, Next friday I'm ordering my Lighting, Then the following week Ill order my Skimmer. Also planning to order about 50 pounds of dryrock from Marco Rocks and a few pieces of live rubble rock from a LFS to seed the dryrock. I don't know how much sand I need to create a 4" bed of sand in my 50g tank.

bearwithfish

if you type in "sand bed calculator" for a search in Google a number of them will come up and these will give you an estimate amount of sand needed

andrewr2488

I know you said sand bed depth can be either 1" or 4-6" and I calculated that 1" equivilates to 23# of sand. Would the 2 extra lbs of sand to make it 25# make a diifference?

bearwithfish

IMHO ... no .. i would just get the 25# and have a few spots that are thicker than others (perhaps to raise a rock up?) but i personally would not worry about it

andrewr2488

I am having second thoughts about the flame angel and damsels. I am seeing that the flame angels nip coral, and damsels are quite nippy with tank mates. Anyone had problems with these fish or is it a uncommon occurrence?

andrewr2488

I've been looking more into skimmers and return pumps and found an AquaC EV-240 with a mag12 for uder 500 dollars. Still comparing reviews so I'm not sure just yet. I'm learning as I go but would hate to buy based simply off impulse.