160g SWFO???

David R

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Apr 26, 2005
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All this procrastination in setting up my 150x70x60 tank is getting dangerous, I was at the LFS the other day and while standing at the counter I started watching the koran angelfish and niger trigger. I've always liked the idea of doing a salt water fish only tank with some big fish, but never really seriously considered it as we can't get lionfish or morays here.
So, if I was to go down that route, what would I need and what could I keep?!
Tank is 630L, and has a large sump with over two boxes of bioballs about half above water and half submerged. Haven't bought pumps yet, but was going to aim for at least 6x turn over, probably closer to 8-10x per hour.
I've kept fresh water fish for around 10 years and would consider myself fairly experienced, except in salt water. What I'd like to know is;
What other equipment I'd need; skimmer, lighting, rock etc.
Natural sea water or atrificial (or does it even matter with no invertebrates)?
Stocking? Suggested species, I've got no idea of whats available here and how they get along together, and are there some invertebrates I could keep? I like the colourful shrimps and bristlestars, but not sure if they would live with larger fish.

This is all still just an idea, and I'm still not sure if I'd be able to part with some of my large fw fish. Any help/encouragement for a salt water n00b is appreciated!! :D
 

Reefscape

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David R;1745194; said:
All this procrastination in setting up my 150x70x60 tank is getting dangerous, I was at the LFS the other day and while standing at the counter I started watching the koran angelfish and niger trigger. I've always liked the idea of doing a salt water fish only tank with some big fish, but never really seriously considered it as we can't get lionfish or morays here.
So, if I was to go down that route, what would I need and what could I keep?!
Tank is 630L, and has a large sump with over two boxes of bioballs about half above water and half submerged.

<<Ditch teh bioballs and use live rock rubble instead>>

Haven't bought pumps yet, but was going to aim for at least 6x turn over, probably closer to 8-10x per hour.

<<Yes, i would suggest a minimum of 10 x turn over>>

I've kept fresh water fish for around 10 years and would consider myself fairly experienced, except in salt water. What I'd like to know is;
What other equipment I'd need; skimmer, lighting, rock etc.

<<Live rock is there for decor only, use as much as you like. You will need to provide adequate filtration for 160gallons. Lighting is for your viewing pleasure, so, any standard lighting will suffice. Skimmer, rated for about a 200g tank>>

Natural sea water or atrificial (or does it even matter with no invertebrates)?

<<I much prefer synthetic seawater as i then know exactly what is going into my tank. It does not really matter for invertibrates as long as the standard trace elements like iodine, strontium et cetra are at the correct levels.>>

Stocking? Suggested species, I've got no idea of whats available here and how they get along together, and are there some invertebrates I could keep?

<<Stocking is really governed by what is available to you where you live. All i would suggest is that you research each specific inhabitant to ensure you can cater for its needs and for compatibility. With inverts, it depends on the your choice of fish stock as some types of fish will prey on inverts>>

I like the colourful shrimps and bristlestars, but not sure if they would live with larger fish.

<<Again, it depends on what fish you choose>>

This is all still just an idea, and I'm still not sure if I'd be able to part with some of my large fw fish. Any help/encouragement for a salt water n00b is appreciated!!

<<Believe me, the colour, character of SW fish, you'll soon be joining us on the dark side and ditching all them drab FW tanks and fish ;) >>
Added some comments above, no offence to any FW keepers intended...ha ha ha ha....

:popcorn:
 

BIGgourami

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why is saltwater the dark side if the fish look so much better? ???
 

David R

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Thanks, BTW I quite like my drab FW fish, and will be keeping my school of big clown loaches. ;)

I'd like at least one big angel and a trigger (probably a niger), any other suggestions? I quite like the polkadot groupers, and a tang or two would be cool.
 

BIGgourami

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the polka dot (leopard, panther, w/e) grouper would need a bigger tank than the 160 in the long run, maybe like a 220 or something, they get pretty big..
other groupers would be a good choice, miniatus, polleni, saddle.. or maybe soapfish
could try a puffer or a good hogfish, maybe some butterfly?
 

David R

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BIGgourami;1747938; said:
the polka dot (leopard, panther, w/e) grouper would need a bigger tank than the 160 in the long run, maybe like a 220 or something, they get pretty big.
From what I've read their maximum size is 20" (50cm), and rarely do they get that big in aquariums, so I'd say it should be alright in a 70cm wide tank for a few years at least.

Another [possibly stupid] question, how large and how frequently would this tank need water changes? I'm used to doing 50% per week with my FW tanks, I've always thought bigger is better because I can fill up the tank straight from the tap, however if I have to buy salt then I don't want to be wasting it...
 

David R

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craig;1749418; said:
The Bioballs shouldn't be submerged.
When the LFS made the sump it just had a box holding the bioballs above the water level. I added the piece of glass below it to close in that whole end to fit more media figuring more is better for FW.
So should I replace the submerged bioballs with live rock?
 

BIGgourami

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i usually change 10% a week.. a DSB and adaquate LR will take away the need for frequent large WC's... the only reason i change so often is for mineral replacement...
 
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