Looking for expert opinions

[TheReefGeek]

-Light (not sure of the brand name, but it meets the requirement for corals)

Need more details on your light. This is crucial to success. Different corals have different requirements.

Need to know what type of bulb(s) it is, the watts, and the color termperature

[Sarina]

Here's what my light says:

JEBO R24 (610mm) 55Wx2 AC120 V 60 HZ

Hopefully you can understand what that means. Is that a good light? I paid $100.00 for it.

What corals would you recommend for beginners?

[mark]

I also totally believe in reading and researching as much as you can first before adding water.

Along with Canreef and the other forums, found this site useful as well; http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/index.htm . It belongs to Fenner of the book "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist".

[vanreefer]

http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/for...&daysprune=365

There's a huge reference library now just scroll down on the index page

If it says there are no posts.. simply change the display options. Change "last 2 weeks" to "begining"

P.S. Maybe the mods could adjust the display options in the reference library

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

I think it's on another thread, but get a good book like "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist" by Bob Fenner to learn some of the things to do & why you should do them. This would give you a good foundation of knowledge that you can then add to by asking specific questions to specific problems or areas of interest.

BTW, I think the denitrification the original poster was talking about is the one performed by anaerobic nitrate-consuming bacteria, as opposed to the ones that consume ammonia/nitrite. It's the premise behind deep sand-beds. Personally, I'm not a big fan of deep sand beds, but I still like the look of a shallow layer of sand on the bottom.

Anthony

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Sarina,

Like mentioned above, take all these "expert" opinions with a grain of salt because you'll find if you go on tank tours that there are many different ways to set up & run a reef tank and many of the methods are polar opposites. When we did our first one here on the coast, we saw tanks that were KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) to full-blown high tech with auto-top-offs, plumbing behind false walls & huge skimmers & sumps. What we learned is that there is NO one way to do it. Personally, I have gone from total KISS to having overflow boxes plumbed to large sumps with powerful skimmers & UV sterilizers, and lit with MH & PC actinics & LED moonlights. A lot will depend on your budget & time & willingness to learn or do the work necessary to keep up with your reef tank.

Enjoy this time and be an info-sponge. Good luck.

Anthony

[TheReefGeek]

take all these "expert" opinions with a grain of salt

I must say, this is a bit insulting!
I would say take the opinions for what they are, OPINIONS. To me its all about sharing opinions and experiences.

Definition of opinion:

a personal belief or judgment that is not founded on proof or certainty

I say take in as many opinions as you can, and give them the consideration they are due, because people are spending the time to write them, they must believe them and have some experience or knowledge that have lead them to believe it, so they must have something to offer. But remember that there are many ways to successfully setup a reef.