newbie... any advice?

[RuGlu6]

Originally Posted by OKreefer

hi guys, im new to this sw stuff. been a fw guy for years. i have always wanted to get into the sw hobby..... so i drained my fresh water, built me a sump.... and now im on my way. i find my biggest obstacle to be finding supplies. i live in the shuswap/okanagan and it took me a month to find a simple return pump. LR is around 10$/lbs (and that means driving an hour to the lps). and nobody really even knows what their talking about. any ways, i have a 33gal main and a 15ish gal sump. everything just sitting here with salt water circulating. can the system just run like that with nothing in it but dead rock/coral? i figure another good month before i can afford LR at 10$lb. also does anyone know the best place for supplies and advice between kamloops and kelowna. anything else anyone would like to add that might be helpful to a newbie would b greatly appreciated thanx.

Get the largest skimmer (for example this one. it is 220V so you will need a voltage converter, $10-$15, but its very afordable) you can afford and that will fit in your sump/budget.
The key for skimmers is amount of air they mix with water. Do not waste your money on anything that does not say how much air it actually pulls and or if it less then 300 L/hour of air.
Don't waste money on live rock get dry rock. it will become live after the cycle. $3/lb And no hitch hickers !!!
If you consider SPS get DE MH lighting.
or this one is 36" If you will only go with LPS T5 or PC is good enough
For 33 Gal get one part Liquid Calcium Reactor, this will cover calcium magnesium and strontium needs
If you planning on keeping SPS look for used Calcium reactor package