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#1
03-27-2010, 04:56 AM
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You're on the right track.. keep reading and ask as many questions as you need to. lots of extremely helpful people on here.
I run a 6 bulb T5 and if you want some confirmation that it'll be enough for a 65 gallon tank, have a look at Fishytime's tank journal. he also runs 6 bulb T5s. unless you want to keep stuff below more that about 20 inches of water, 6 T5s above it is usually A-OK. I wouldnt worry about the laminate floor or Drywalll, just make sure you have good ventilation in the room you have it in, and try not to spill water. get a skimmer rated for at least 1.5 times your tank volume. and some sort of mechanical filtration (ie. filter sock) is a good idea so long as you can commit to cleaning it regularly. supplements are a whole other question and just searching "calcium"" or "alkalinity" in the forums will get you lots of information. golden rule is: if you dont test for it, dont dose it. 
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#3
03-27-2010, 05:40 AM
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filter sock is pretty much just a sock of some sort (some people use pantyhose)(official ones available at your LFS) that your tank drain will flow through in your sump. catches all the big chunks, fish poop, extra food, etc.
skimmer should be based on total water volume. so if you have a 65 gallon tank, 40 gal sump (25 gallons water) minus 10-15 gallons of space for rock, you'll want a skimmer rated for at least 80 gallons, 100 would be nice.
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#5
03-27-2010, 03:16 PM
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A marine tank doesn't have to be 18" thick... I run a 10 gallon planted reef. The live rock goes into the display tank with the sand, the sump is for things like the heater, protein skimmer etc. You want ~10x turnover or lower through the sump (which for a 65 gallon tank, if that's what you decide you want, is around 650 gph or lower). Someone mentioned a filter sock, it goes over the inlet to the sump (where the water from the overflow enters the sump). You can boost your circulation in the display tank with powerheads, as you mentioned... choose something with a nice wide flow, you'll likely want a couple (or more) of them to get some nice turbulent currents flowing around the rock. Skimmers should be rated for TOTAL tank volume, so for a 65 gallon DT and a 40 gallon sump you would want a skimmer rated for 100 gallons or higher.
Now, as far as lighting, don't go by watts per gallon (it's terribly inaccurate). Well, actually I suppose as long as you have more than 4 T5HO bulbs or over a 250W metal halide, you can certainly use watts per gallon, I take that back. It's still going to have more to do with the depth of the water and the lamps you are using, and total distance from the lamps though... what are you planning on keeping? More depends on your plans as to what sort of livestock you will be keeping... are you going for an SPS dominated theme? FOWLR? Different organisms have different needs and the tank should be set-up accordingly.
__________________
Calvin --- Planning a 29 gallon mixed reef...
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#6
03-27-2010, 03:29 PM
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Quote:
i wanna have a lot of coral so im guessin an sps dominated theme with plenty of fish also. the guy at my lfs said that mushroom corals and zoanths should be able to grow no problem however i would need MH for other corals and clams?
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#7
03-27-2010, 03:34 PM
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Quote:
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#8
03-27-2010, 03:42 PM
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Quote:
http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/sho...40669&page=106 Last edited by Fishward; 03-27-2010 at 03:46 PM.
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