Practical minimum equipment dilemma

[ChrisB]

I am at a crossroad and I need some advice/encouragement. :confused:

I am currently building a plywood "front view only" 400 gallon in-wall tank. I had the idea of starting it as a "planted" FW tank, but buying equipment that could also be used to convert to SW at a later date.(when I could afford it). I am pretty sure I won't be completely satisfied until I have a nice reef tank, but I am willing to wait for that.

BUT, after looking at the prices of fluorite for substrate and all the other equipment I would probably want to get for the planted tank, (strong lighting, co2, etc) I am now wondering if I couldn't get away for the same money with a FOWLR as my starting tank and then progress from there to a reef down the road.

My question is: What would be the practical minimum equipment I could get away with for a FOWLR tank. Would I need RO?

Could I get away with one filter system, say wet/dry? or is there something better that would still be useful with the reef tank?

Live sand? UV sterilization?

What would the minimum amount of LR be ?

Lighting? Protein skimmer?


I had a 125 reef tank in the late 80s before the LFS even heard of such a thing. But without the internet or any books to get info and battling many problems, I eventually sold it to the LFS. After waiting all these years, I have a newly built house with a room in the basement specially designated as the "aquarium room". My wife knows I am "on a mission" but within limits. We have a new house to furnish, blah blah blah. I have assured her I will keep the cost as low as is practical.
I am looking for the bare necessities to keep the system safe for the inhabitants. Thank you

[MattG]

i would set it up as fowlr as you were thinking. use as much rock as you feel you can afford ideally 1-2 lbs per gallon. i would purchase a very nice skimmer (dont want to have to upgrade it twice as it will be a big waste of money)

for lighting i would purchase 1 icecap 660 or uri a4 vho ballast. the uri a4 is made by icecap for uri its the same as the 660 just a few less features. dont know how long your tank is but you could probably light your tank just fine with just the one ballast for now.

i think the key is too buyonly things that will work for you later. the vho ballast can be used when you go reef for supplimental actinics.

a ro unit is a key item in my oppinion. nothing worse then haveing to deal with algae problems in your pride and joy.

i would skip the UV and wet/dry they arent needed

[this is me]

No matter what, a 400 gal tank real cost you a lot money.
In this hobby, i learned that if you try to save money now, it will probably cost to more later to upgrade it.

[ChrisB]

thebigmg - So what kind of filtration should I use? Powerheads? for water movement?

Should I add the live sand also?

What kind of substrate would be best for a future reef?

How many bulbs will a 660 ballast carry? Can they be in two different fixtures? say two 48" fixtures?

BTW the dimensions are 96x36x26, this is not set in stone as I am just finishing the stand and preparing to make the tank. I may opt to make it a little smaller, less gallons. The stand is 12'x4' for plenty of shelf room, etc.
Thank you very much for your input. Sorry for all the ?

this is me - Believe me I know no tank containing 400 gallons will be "cheap", I just don't want to fork out $10k on the outset. My wife would castrate me in my sleep. :) I want to buy with upgrading in mind so I don't have to scrap anything.

[MadTownMax]

get some southdown sand, super cheap, and seed it with live sand from a couple different lfs's or check out some e-tailers with small amounts, to get alot of biodiversity (with all the money you save not buying aquarium specific sand you should have plenty left over for a couple different "seeding" packages. One thing you probably already considered is drilling the bottom for plumbing, this will make your life easier no matter what route you take, and using a large rubbermaid tub for a sump will save you some $$ too. Check out the For sale/for trade forum to save on all your equipment, just make sure you know what you're looking for.

-my .02

[ChrisB]

Thanks Max, I read (part) of the huge thread on Southdown, apparently its not available in my area(Alabama). I may not have read far enough, is it more readily available now? Do the HDs still stock it in the NE? thanks again.

[MadTownMax]

I'm not sure, but I guess If I was a really nice guy I could check... it was said to be here in Newark, DE. Starting a tank (especially since you're not just moving a smaller tank into a larger one) is really something that takes time, so it might not take that large of a chunk out of your wallet as you think. Starting off with the basic equipment (as people have posted above, GOOD skimmer, a return pump (doesn't have to move 4000 gal/hour, just enough for filtration, a couple heaters- redundancy), a little live rock and some vho lighting won't be too expensive. Some people leave their tanks set up with nothing in them for months and months and get really great results from all the smaller critters that get a chance to grow without being eaten.

[MattG]

with adequate live rock it will provide all the biological filtration your tank needs. as far as the substrate goes there are many different oppinions on that. i would suggest reading up all you can and decide for yourself.

in my 90 gallon i run a 1" sand bed. i just recently upgraded my sump and decided since i have the room to add a dsb to it. we will see how that goes.

for circulation i would look into the tunze streams. they are expensive but move massive amounts of water which you will need in a tank your size. they are also very hard to find right now since they are in short supply. if i was you i would order one for now and add more at a later time when needed

a icecap 660 ballast will run 1-4 bulbs as long as they dont total to more then 440 watts combined.

you might also check out moyes reef to get different ideas. its my favorite large tank (500 gallons - 96" long)
http://www.moyesreef.com/tank/tank.html


you are very lucky to be setting up a 400 gallon tank