Some Advice needed

[soulFish]

Ok, I finally purchased a few used items from a guy in SF. I picked up a 20, unfortunatly it has a leak. So I dried it out and re-applied Silcone Sealer. I just applied this on the inside of the tank, using my fingers. Do you think this will owrk? Should I have used something else?

I did pick up a 90 Gallon tank, this one does not leak, and appears to hold water. I filled it all the way and let it sit outside for a few hours. No wet spots appeared! Yippie! This tank only came with a shell of a sump 29 Gallon. The sump had Bio-balls, but thats it. No lid, not good lights, but atleast I have a decent 90 Gallon.

I started thinking Salt, but I'm a newb, so I'm a bit intemidated by this now. So if I try out a tropical tank, with a few species that grow to medium size, I'm not sure yet but no sowrdies, mollys or foofy stuff. a "Man" fish What setup should I get? Should I get all the parts for sump and get it up and running? Or should I just get a good Canister filter? or both? I don't want to get a borderline canister if I get one. If I get one I'm thinking one that would be good for up to 160 Gallons. If I should not get a filter on the beefy size what should I get? I'm open to you guys opinions. I just don't want a tank I have to scrub down and drain weekly. Every two weeks or longer would be great. Money is an object, but I could spend up to $400 for the can/sump and powerheads, etc.

any help would be great.

Thanks in advance, sorry for the rambeling question. Just a newb trying to learn without making too many costly $$$ mistakes

 

[Bderick67]

regarding the leaking 20 gal. Did you use aquarium safe silicone? Look at the tube most will say if it is not aquarium safe. Silicone will not bond to old silicone, best way to do it is remove all the old sealer and then apply new.

Are the dimensions of you 90g 48"x18"x24" if so then tops and stands for the common 75gal will work for your tank. You could go with a rena xp3 canister filter you can get though Petsolutions.com for 100 bucks check out this link http://www.petsolutions.com/Rena+FilStar+xP3+Canister+Filter-I-17100722-I-C-19-C-.aspx

As for what type fish, well all the larger cichlids are fun and relatively easy to care for so check them out; Oscars, Red Devils, Green Terrors, Jack Dempseys just to name a few.

Last but not least Welcome to MFK.

 

[gomezladdams]

I agree if you didnt scrape out the old silicone it will leak again
Read,alot before you get any fish
do a search on cycling a new tank
If you have some mechanical and plumbing skills fix the sump,otherwise a few hob filters will be fine.

 

[soulFish]

Yup, the measurements are 48 x 18 x 23.5 (I guess 24"). It's an "All Glass" tank with wood color trim. So you'd say I should be able to get by with just a canister then? No Sump? Are Sumps mainly Saltwater setups then?

That Rena Can looks pretty nice. I've been reading though that alot og guys prefer Eheim, does the Rena have about the same quality? Just curious, and I'm not questioning your advice, just would like to know why you'd choose to go with the Rena?

I didn't scrap out the silicon on the 20. Guess I should do that then. As far as aquarium safe, not sure. I had alot of clear marine grade Silicon laying around that I use on my boat. Is made by "BoatLife" and it's called Life Seal, Clear Silicon. It's marine grade, not sure if that makes a difference.

Thanks for the welcome BTW.

 

[soulFish]

So the Rena Can is the best low maintenace can? And I should or should not run a Sump for a tropical freshwater?

 

[islander671]

So the Rena Can is the best low maintenace can? And I should or should not run a Sump for a tropical freshwater?

i would run the sump if it is within your means to get it up and running. some of the benefits include increased room for biomedia, more water surface area, and a place to hide your heaters and what not.

 

[importracer]

i would run the sump if it is within your means to get it up and running. some of the benefits include increased room for biomedia, more water surface area, and a place to hide your heaters and what not.

Agree....Nothing comes close to wet/dry filters, nothing......

It does not hurt to own an extra 1,2,3,or even 4 canisters and HOB filters....Later on, these can be used to jump cycle future aquariums.....Right now, I stick to Rena xP3's(chemical) and AquaClear 110's(mechanical)....