Totally new in marine , need help for my 2ft setup

[xiaofeng90]

Hi guys ,

I have been keep fresh water since i was young , i'm quite into marine just have don't confidence to move forward until today i finally take the first step since my wife quite keen with marine fishes too . I hope i can get some help in my 2ft setup .

Currently the equipment i have on hand from my fw are ,

2ft x 1ft x 1ft tank

Mr Aqua OHF or HOF or eheim 2213 ?

2ft aquazonic t5 24watt x 2 12000k (white) can i use this but change 1 tube to blue ?

biohome plus (red)

mr aqua cr ( can i reuse my fw media ?)

I'm planning to use the above equipment to kick start my first marine journey,

wish to start a simple setup with the above without sump tank . So what equipment i still

need ? Not into high end setup just a budget and simple setup for my starting journey .

Bare or Sand better ?

My planning fauna will be,

2 clown fish

2 sea horse

2 pipe fish

2 lobster

1 blue tang

and a few of these $5 soft flower coral , what are they call ?

Thanks everyone for taking your time and effort to read and reply .

[Evolutionz]

Welcome to SRC bro! welcome to the marine world too.. i came from Freshwater too and marine is a totally different level!

I'll try to help here.. still new in reefing hopefully i can help you out.

Hi guys ,

I have been keep fresh water since i was young , i'm quite into marine just have don't confidence to move forward until today i finally take the first step since my wife quite keen with marine fishes too . I hope i can get some help in my 2ft setup .

Currently the equipment i have on hand from my fw are ,

2ft x 1ft x 1ft tank Whats your tank thickness? generally FW tank are made from thinner glass, which may be a risk if used for SW.

Mr Aqua OHF or HOF or eheim 2213 ? Hang on filter is the best among this 3 choice. Easy to clean. Canister filter must be clean monthly (best twice a month) to prevent any nitrate build up.

2ft aquazonic t5 24watt x 2 12000k (white) can i use this but change 1 tube to blue ? I would say 2 tube T5 will be enough for some mushroom corals and probably zoas. You can look into LEDs which are more expensive but there's no need for changing of tubes or worrying the heat coming out from your t5.

biohome plus (red) Can put some in your filter.

mr aqua cr ( can i reuse my fw media ?) IMO not needed, your LRs will take care of your filtration.

I'm planning to use the above equipment to kick start my first marine journey,

wish to start a simple setup with the above without sump tank . So what equipment i still

need ? Not into high end setup just a budget and simple setup for my starting journey .

Some other equipments will be :

1) Skimmer - Very Very important. Espcially if you plan to stock your tank to be on the heavier load side. for a 2ft with no sump, can go for Bubble magus E3 hang on skimmer.

2) Chiller/Fan - Chiller will be good since you do have plans on corals.. Fan will be good enough for mushroom and zoas but you'll have to top off with RO/DI water everyday. Which in the long run becomes very troublesome.

3) RO/DI unit. Using tapwater introduces both phosphate and nitrate into your system which is what algae needs to grow. Get a 3-stage DI unit fill it up with 1 carbon block and 2 resin cartridge and they can last you a pretty long time. Check out Madpetz regarding this.

4) Wavemakers - Very important as well in creating sufficient flow in your tank. Sunsun will be a suitable brand if you looking into cheap wavemakers.

5) Refractometer - I doubt those arm swing hydrometer are of any good in reading salinity. Buy a good refractometer and they can last you a long time.

6) Test kits. - Generally; Ammonia, Nitrite, pH, Nitrate and Phosphate. You will need Calcium, Alkalinity and magnesium test kits when you venture into coral keeping. API is a okay brand to start but i suggest you buy Salifert test kit or Hanna checker straight.

Bare or Sand better ?

Bare is easier to maintain, but i personally prefer a thin layer of sand. Bare just don't look good at all to me.

My planning fauna will be,

2 clown fish

2 sea horse - I've not kept seahorse before but i believe they only do well in a species tank. They are hard to feed and your fishes are going to finish all the food before they get the chance to eat.

2 pipe fish

2 lobster

1 blue tang - Honestly any Tang is too small for a 2x1x1. not even a small yellow tang. Blue tang grows to a large 1 foot size and they need huge space to swim. Small tank will stress them out very easily. i suggest you skip this.

Look into Goby and blenny, they are more suitable for your tank size.

and a few of these $5 soft flower coral , what are they call ? Should be mushroom corals.

Thanks everyone for taking your time and effort to read and reply .

I hope the above can help you out. suggest you read more and buy the correct/suitable equipments.. Sometimes you may end up spending more.

Good luck and hope you enjoy reefing!

[domvonn]

The amt of livestocks that u planned will overcrowd ur tank . Suggest u cut down a little .

[xiaofeng90]

Welcome to SRC bro! welcome to the marine world too.. i came from Freshwater too and marine is a totally different level!

I'll try to help here.. still new in reefing hopefully i can help you out.

I hope the above can help you out. suggest you read more and buy the correct/suitable equipments.. Sometimes you may end up spending more.

Good luck and hope you enjoy reefing!

Thanks bro Evolutionz for the advise and suggest

Is there any photo of the Bubble magus E3 skimmer ? As i don't know anything regarding marine skimmer what us the price range for this Bubble magus E3 ?

For wavemaker for my tank size , 3000L is it overkill or i need what size of wavemaker for my tank ?

[Evolutionz]

Google search Bubble magus E3 you'll find lots of info and pics of it.. As for the price range.. can check with Delightings Aka Drevil. He's in SRC too. Price of BM skimmers are actually very worth it for the skimmate it produces.

[reef garden]

Sea horse and pipefish can go together but they can't go with all others because they are slow and specialized feeders that need a tank of their own. For a newbie, my advice is not to go for sea horse and pipefish. They are just not for beginners. Try them only when you are more experienced. Read the threads on sea horse and pipefish and you will understand why.

Have fun.

[blondmyth]

Sea horse and pipefish can go together but they can't go with all others because they are slow and specialized feeders that need a tank of their own. For a newbie, my advice is not to go for sea horse and pipefish. They are just not for beginners. Try them only when you are more experienced. Read the threads on sea horse and pipefish and you will understand why.

Have fun.

agree, they do better in a species tank, and only when you have more experience

[troyjbon]

Im also new here. Moved to 2ft salt setup from my planted tank. Im using eheim 2213 which is linked to my hailea chiller 28a. Using ehem external pump 1250 to assist in the water flow to the chiller. So far my eheim 2213 is doing great. Im also using reefoctopus bh1000 as skimmer

[Stanley Ng]

I also have very similar setup. I m using 2 canister filter. Constant struggle with algea.

[angmoh]

For a 2ft tank and to start off with, the best is to have plenty of live rocks with a couple of clown fish and probably 1-2 gobies/blennies and/or other nano fish of not more than 3-5 pieces in total. This is if you dont intend to invest in a decent skimmer due to space constraints. With regular water changes and proper feeding regime, it shall do fine.

You dont need sophisticated LED lightings. Just probably a blue and white T8/T5 tubes should suffice. You dont need a chiller which is not worth investing for a 2ft tank.

Simple enough for you?

Seahorse, pipefish are meant for experts.

[ramonc]

Hi guys... I'm using led light in my 2 ft tank. Anybody can help me how is the timing done.. For Blu only and bright one(Blu and white, together) tnx guys....

[Melwood1978]

Try not to keep seahorse with fishes as all the fishes will eat up the frozen food before the seahorse has no chance to eat as I kept one for 3 months and the poor thing needs to rely on stuff on live rock to survive and after 3 months of getting thinner and thinner, it passed away and I don't think I will keep again unless is only purely seahorse tank only...