Starting my first reef and getting some conflicting info

[afalanga2010]

Hey everyone,

So I am starting to plan my first reef tank. Its a 40 breeder and that's all that I have so far. I have gotten a lot of conflicting advice. Some people have said to go ahead and get my a good sump and get the tank drilled while other people are telling me to just put in my live rock/sand and get a good hang on the back skimmer and ill be all set that way. Any help on what I should use/do including what hardware some of you may recommend? Again, all I have is the tank so I will take it all into consideration.

Thanks everyone!

[Tankster]

if all that you have so far is the tank I would look around for a complete used setup. The tank is one of least expensive components once you are all said and done. You can save quite a bit buying used and still end up with a very nice setup.

[afalanga2010]

I wouldn't mind buying a used setup but I think ide like to start out buying everything separate so that I can actually get the mechanics of everything and learn as much as I can watch step of the way. Plus I need to buy it one piece at a time as I had a great talk with the wife about saving money for a house and then showed up at home the next day with the tank lol. This lead to the agreement of building the setup over a little bit of time. This also gives me more time to learn though!

[Bluwinghawk]

my one regret is when i got my new tank is i made the overflow to deep i had it drilled 2 holes one for intake and 1 for out works great esp. during power outages my over the top overflow would always flood house when power came on and i could have gotten pump for that but that would be something else to fix and maintain but if you do drill and go with overflow in DT I suggest dont make the box so deep use to bulk heads 1 from bottom of tank to bottom of shallow overflow just a thought

[ReefTech]

i would with out a doubt get that tank drilled and run a sump. i ran my old 90 gal with out a sump for years cause i couldnt get it drilled. hang on skimmers can be a real pain to run and maintain, especially when they decided to freak out and overflow with water which then leaks all over your floor. plus with your tank being a 40 gal regardless of what kind of coral and fish you plan on keeping a tank that small is going to get dirty very quickly once you start feeding everything. and unless you plan on setting up your own water making station at your house then your going to be making alot of trips to your lfs store for freshly mixed saltwater. having a sump opens up so many doors for you as far as what kind of equipment you are going to run. it also increases your total water volume which helps keep water parameters stable longer. you can hide most of your equipment in the sump as well, heater, protein skimmer, and you can always add equipment down the road if it becomes necessary. a good rule of thumb is to plan out what kind of equipment your going to run in it. that way you know before hand how big everything will be like the type of protein skimmer. theres really small to 6' high ones. that way you know how big of a tank youll need for your sump. i could go on forever on this subject but the bottom line is that getting it drilled and running a sump will make your life so much easier once the tank is up and running. just plan everything out, research the fish/coral your interested in keeping and keep in mind that your protein skimmer and lighting are more than likely going to be more on the expensive side of all the equipment youll need to get. keep an eye on the forums for used items on sale. and by all means dont be afraid to ask questions. good luck

[afalanga2010]

Thanks everyone. Lots of great information here. With it all being said, it looks like I will be getting the tank drilled. As far as what I want in the tank, I am thinking some LPS, softies, leathers as far as coral. I like seeing lots of movement from everything and seeing it all go together. As far as fish, I'm thinking something like a Flame Angel, Blue Sapphire Damselfish, a pair of clowns, some kind of Mandarin Goby and that's really all I have in mind so far as they seem to be good beginner fish.

I was looking at the Aqueon ProFlex Model 1 sump. Does anyone have any + or - comments about that one?

Thanks.

[ReefTech]

be careful with a flame angel, they have been known to EAT coral. they may not do it when there just introduced into the tank. so always keep an eye on it. i had mine for over a year in my 120 and just last month he started eating my chalices and zoos and palys and even nipping at my acros. your system is going to have to be up and running for a long period of time before i would recommend getting a mandarin goby. you want to make sure your pod population is very high and continually reproducing to keep up with the appetite of the goby. as for the sump, ive never used one that was pre made so i cant help you on that one. i just use normal aquariums themselves that way i can plan out exactly how i want it to work and where exactly the equipment is going to go. and when its all put together it is so much cheaper than buying a prebuilt model.