new to marine tank?

[sharpheadloti]

hi all reefers!!

im new to marine fish...recently moved in to my new hdb at amk..wanted to have a nice fish tank to deco my empty wall. therefore i got a self-maintained 5 ft tank from atlantis from IMM.( later heard from my friend, atlanis not so gd)..

after seeing my friend 3ft marine tank...i totally change my mind..its so amazing..compare to my dull marine tank with only few rock n fishes.

i totally new to it..so need some reefer advice..

1. how to have the water in the tank to be balance?

2. what r the steps to take? fish 1st or reef 1st?

can so bros here help me on these..thks in advance....

[Qxnviolet]

Erm, think its their equipment and customer service which isnt up to the mark....how your tank looks totally depends on you not the tank maker...erm, i think there are alot of threads in the new to marine aquaria forum you can read up. Or mabybe go buy one of those guide books....you'll learn alot there. Erm, what kind of knowledge do you have now? Oh, no tanks are "Self-Maintained". LOl

[sharpheadloti]

hi oxnviolet,

i totally new to it...i got the 5ft tank base on its outlook. Its those hang on wall type..with very thin width like a wall painting. Will read up more, just change the water in my tank, but its seem hard to get the pH of the water rite.

jst read some of the forum on LR.

how to tell is my LR still alive? i had taken them out n soak them in salt water for a day..n notice dead worms n fungus, r my LR still alive?

any reefers can help? thx

[Qxnviolet]

LRs are not really alive. Its the organisms which are found on it that makes it alive. Soaking it in fresh water for a day won't wipe out everything totally, but at least i think most of the worms are gone. Erm, did they provide you the tank only or they did the whole setup? Post up a pic if possible yeah? Dun think you have eitehr a chiller or a skimmer since your tank is those hang on the wall type. Hrmz, if they did the whole setup for you, feel free to call them and pester them for advice.

[Tanga]

Bro here's a good site for read up, everything you need to know about marine keeping. Once you understand about this hobby then it's easier to ask the relevant question.

http://saltaquarium.about.com/

[Elune]

hi oxnviolet,

i totally new to it...i got the 5ft tank base on its outlook. Its those hang on wall type..with very thin width like a wall painting. Will read up more, just change the water in my tank, but its seem hard to get the pH of the water rite.

jst read some of the forum on LR.

how to tell is my LR still alive? i had taken them out n soak them in salt water for a day..n notice dead worms n fungus, r my LR still alive?

any reefers can help? thx

5 feet hang on type?

pls tell us its dimension in L x B x H. (5feet by ?? by ?? ).

a picture will tell a thousand words too.

Do let us know how many fishes (and the type of) u have in the tank.

Welcome to SRC~ let the fun begin.

[Qxnviolet]

Hrmz, hang on types fishtank are normally very short and narrow....seen something like that in TM. At most 5FT x 1Ft x 1Ft....i guess

[iceman]

His tank is 5' x 2' x 1/2'. viewing area is 4'. Look like a plasma TV

[sharpheadloti]

hey guys,

thanks for the replies...will post the pic of my tank tis weekend.( the only time i can realli c my tank) quite bz these few days..but i had read up many many from those site some of the reefers provide..had realli learned alot..

way to go another forum!!

[Kelmen]

1. how to have the water in the tank to be balance?

2. what r the steps to take? fish 1st or reef 1st?

1. If you refering to chemistry, basically its proper additive dosing, frequent new\fresh salt water replacement.

read up doc\articles for beginner, then tell us what you learnt or in doubt, and we will help fill you in and more.

2. IMO, I would recommend fish 1st, especially for beginner. reason:

- generally, coral need are more sensitive and demanding than fish. as general, coral dont move, so water need to have good\proper quality to sustain them, while fish can hunt for food themself. in term of maint and care, fishs are more feasible.

- of course, chk with experienced reefers here b4 buying any fishs. certain fishs need special and proper care, and make taking care as hard as coral too.

hth

[sharpheadloti]

hi reefers,

this is the 5ft tank i got it from atlantis...as can see its a very simple tank. would like to learn more from the senior reefers here. As now my Ph of water is stable, will be going down to farmway today to get some cleaner group ( prawns, hermi crab). But i had a problem..my tank cannot fit in a skimmer, its too small..do u reefers had any suggestion?...

[sharpheadloti]

sori reefers forgot to shrink the size of my pic....hope its didnt affect much..

[d88p]

its sure does look like a LCD screen

[hondaker]

hmmm

is there any way to fit in equipments?

think it will be a major task to fit in the neccesary equips without spoiling the overall asthetic look of the tank

[Qxnviolet]

Agree with hondaker...its just like a jbj nanocube, hard to add all the extra equipment w/o spoiling the look somewhat. But yours is even more of a challange. Maybe you could ask alantis for advice since they made your tank? Or you could go to this shop at the basement of TM, they have this kind of hang on the wall tanks too. Maybe they'll be able to advice you better. Think you are the 1st person to have such a tank here. Looks kind of cool....

[Qxnviolet]

Btw, pretty curious how much this tank cost you? Im pretty interested in getting one like that, but for freshwater, prob with a bunch of neon tetras.... Hrmz, the 5ft is inclusive of the black trimming?

[sharpheadloti]

hi reefers,

i got this tank at 900 inclusive of fishes, LR, everythings. But i had measure the actual lenght of my tank is actually 3ft plus x 40cm x 14cm....only inclusive of the frame its 5ft in lenght..

during the weekend, i had bought 1 shrimp and an algrea eater to start my cleaner grp. But once the shrimp got into the tank, its freeze!! next moment its death ?? did i do anything wrong? but lucky my algrea eater still fighting fit now...

my next tgt is to get a skimmer, will get atlanis for advice..might go to the TM shop to seeseelooklook aso...

---P plate reefer

[Qxnviolet]

Hrmz, you need to properly acclamatise inverts before putting them in the tank. They are much more sensitive to different temperatures and salinity than fishes...

[jervismun]

Wow! A wall mounted. Do make sure the mounting can support all the extras u will be adding on along the way. I think your tank is a bit bare, just wondering how come Atlantis only supply you with so little rocks. Mind showing us the filter/back-of-house? Very curious, yeah I think you r the first

[jervismun]

You can try Tunze DOC Skimmer - 9002

You can find it at www.reefdepot.com.sg

I think it might be able to fit into your tank (if your top is open). Perhaps put the skimmer on the left side, divert the water outlet more to the right to avoid the skimmer... but it will compromise on the aesthetics for sure

Just like my JBJ Nano Cube... click my signature link to see my ugly looking modified Nano Cube!

[Qxnviolet]

Erm, i do not think his tank as any back compartments....won't be suprised if there arent any decent filters as well....maybe just a little one hidden by the frame...

[jervismun]

Too bad then, but don't be sad

Protein skimmer is a good to have but not a "must-have". Just rely on your life rocks and life sand for biological and be very selective when it comes to keeping corals lo. And try not to overstock, 5 - 6 fishes max will do, IMO.

Note: I am a newbie (tank still cycling), so whatever I say, listen 50% only lah!

[Qxnviolet]

Erm, i think a skimmer is the most important piece of equipment in a tank....but then, with frequent water changes, not overstocking and not overfeeding, im sure it'll work out as well...

[jervismun]

Sharphead, mind show us some pix of the filter compartments... curious how Atlantis able to pull it through with such a beautiful tank. I wanna see the "ugly" side of it, lol. Life rocks are good as biological filter, so do add in more if the tank can support the weight. How's the water flow in there? Is it strong? I must drop by an Atlantis showroom to see it in detail.

[jErEmYsIa]

Hi Bro,

Just wanna let you know that I bought the same wall-mount tank as you 2 years back. There are of cuz limitations due to the physical layout so to make the best out of it I am keeping a FOWLR setup with the addition of invertebrates. Do PM me if you need any advice