Setting up my 190gal (still a newbie)

[MikeP]

I've only been into marine for a few months so I still have a lot to learn. Recently my Dad gave me his old tank and I figure if your gonna have a 190 gallon tank it had better be salt water (I will likely have FOWLR and maybe some soft corals). I would like any help or tips from start to finish on getting this thing going (leave nothing out even the smallest details help). I don't have any real specific questions right now so just start throwing posts up. I have my 55gal I can use for a sump/fuge but have no idea what equiptment I need or even how a sump works. I also need to know about lighting. I'm sure I will think of many questions once I get going. One thing that does come to mind is that I am worried about the age of the tank, it's over 10 years and has not had water in it for a long time. I will check the silicone and test fill it if I can but is there anything else I should think about when starting up an older tank? The reason my dad took it down was because the center piece of glass (the brace?) came loose and he found it at the bottom of the tank one day. He was concerened about the integrity of the tank without the brace and didn't want it to break itself open one day. I will take some pics and post them ASAP.

Thanks for any help
Mike

[christyf5]

moved to reef forum (you'll get more views that way )

[Quagmire]

Silicone can be trusted for about 5 yrs,after that its gets riskier every year.You may want to resilicone before going any farther.Also check the referance library near the top of the reef forum.Some realy good info.

[MikeP]

Originally Posted by christyf5

moved to reef forum (you'll get more views that way )

Thanks

[Molino]

I don't know much about sumps, but there is a lot of great information about them at www.melevsreef.com

[TheReefGeek]

You should at least get the center brace installed again, and possibly get the tank re-siliconed if it hasn't ever been done on this tank.

Is the tank drilled with an overflow? If not you will need an external overflow in order to use the sump.

For lighting, it depends on the corals you want to grow, if any. If you are thinking fowlr, just go with NO lighting, that is just normal fluorescents in lighting strips available cheap. Use a coupld actinic/blue tubes along with white ones for a nicer color. You could upgrade it later if you want to grow corals.

The best advice I can give is don't buy anything, not one piece of equipment until you have your entire setup planned out after doing tons and tons of research. Post lots of questions, read as much as you can find, then research and plan some more.

You can find good deals on used stuff here too, once you know what you need/want.

[TheReefGeek]

You have a great community of reefers in Calgary, and some excellend stores.

Couple questions for you: Where will the tank be located, does everything have to fit under the stand, how tall is the stand, what are the dimensions of the tank.