Aquarium for School

[Apollo8j]

I am a Senior at a high school in New York. I have had my own aquarium for about four years, and the aiptasia anemones I found inside became the research topic for my Authentic Science Research class. My teacher for that class also became interested in marine aquariums, and we have applied and recieved a grant to start one of our very own in our school. We applied for a grant, and we have roughly $600 to spend. My teacher is going to purchase a 55 gallon aquarium to be used. What I need help with is finding out what equipment we should buy in order to get the best setup that we are able to afford with the budget we have. I was wondering what I'd need in the ways of:
Filtration
Lighting
Heat
Chemical additives
Salt mix
Pumps / Powerheads for circulation
and anything else that I missed.
I don't have to worry about what organisms to put into the aquarium, that will be the job of my teacher and I, the grant will not cover it. So, if you could, I would be very happy to see what suggestions you all may have, be them in the ways of websites to purchase equipment at good prices, or the specific models of the items that we should buy.

 

[liquid]

First off I would recommend not getting a 55 gal tank and going instead with either a 50 breeder, 65 gal or 75 gal tank. The dimensions on a 55 gal tank suck for a reef (48"x13"x20" tall). It's hard to get good water motion in a tank that's only 1' wide. I wish I had gone with a 50 breeder instead of my 38 gal tank (36x12x22 tall) as I just can't get the water motion that I'd like to see. Here's the dimensions of the tanks mentioned:

50 Gallon: 36x18x18 tall
65 Gallon: 36x18x24 tall
75 Gallon: 48x18x20 tall

The added 6" front-to-back doesn't seem like much but they make a world of difference when it comes to water movement and aquascaping. If you plan to have a sump on the system, spend the extra $$ to get a reef-ready tank (a tank that is already drilled for overflows). Stay away from hang-on overflows as sooner or later they *will* fail on you.

Heater: I'd go with either a EboJagger or Won Titanium heater, probably somewhere around a 300 watt model for a tank w/ 50-60 gal or so.

Chemical additives: Don't get anything. The only thing I add to my tank is RO/DI water, food, and kalkwasser for calcium/alk maintenance. Contrary to what the LFS says you do NOT need to add supplements like iodine, strontium, trace elements, etc. Water changes alone should perform this function just nicely. If you are going to house stony corals, you will probably need to invest in dripping kalkwasser or running a calcium reactor to maintain your calcium and alkalinity.

Filtration: Get a good skimmer. There's many out there. Just don't get suckered into purchasing a SeaClone or a Skilter for the tank. They are not adequate for skimming IMHO. Do some research on the different venturi and beckett skimmers that are currently available on the market. Our sponsors here at Reefs.org have an extensive catalog of skimmers to suit your needs.

Salt mix: Most everyone uses Instant Ocean salt per our survey that we did a couple years back. It's a good, dependable, and reasonably priced salt mix.

Live rock: There's plenty of good liverock that can be purchased from our sponsors.

Sandbed: Go with an aragonite-based sandbed with oolitic sand particles. People run anywhere from 1"-6" sandbeds with the tendency to go with something around 3"-4" deep.

Powerheads: MaxiJet's are used quite often but there are a plethora of powerhead and water pump suppliers. Again our online sponsors have plenty to choose from.

Now for the tricky part: Lighting. You need to stop and decide what you want to keep in the tank. If all you want is fish then you don't need much light. If you want a reef, then you will have to decide what animals you want to keep BEFORE you buy your lights or you could be looking at a series of light upgrades to get you where you want to be.

I would recommend that you look over our book list found here: http://www.reefs.org/library/reading/ and pick up a beginner book as well as a book on the animals that you want to keep. For corals, I like to recommend Eric Borneman's Aquarium Corals as it covers a lot of ground.

I hope that answers some of your questions. If not, keep asking away!

Shane

 

[ChrisRD]

Apollo,

You've gotten some great advice from Shane.

To help keep costs down, you might consider making some of your own "arragocrete". Then you could just get 20 or 30 pounds of good live rock to seed the system with. Might make a fun class project...

Also, being in NY, you could probably get Southdown Playsand (at Home Depot) for substrate instead of one of the more expensive aquarium brandname sands. That should save a few bucks as well.

Just trying to think of a few ways you could stretch that budget...

 

[reefNewbie]

Im confused about salt. I was told that Instant ocean salt is for FO aquariums. Is this not so?

 

[ChrisRD]

I was told that Instant ocean salt is for FO aquariums.

Not true - IO salt is fine for a reef.

 

[Anonymous]

where in NY are you? I will gladly donate a mushroom rock and/or a toadstool leather when you get up and running.

I am glad to hear you are doing research before you buy. You will go a long way in this hobby! Just keep asking questions, everyone here will gladly answer them!

Brett

 

[Mac1]

Ditto what everyone else has said - great advice. I would go w/a couple of bags of SouthDown sand in lieu of live sand (save some bread), and get a bug-kit from a local hobbiest or quality live rock to seed/start the tank.

Lighting will also be an expensive issue for that budget... perhaps the shop class could build a hood for the tank to save on some dough? Got an electrician at the school - he could prolly get you a MH Ballast for 40-bucks.

Where'bouts in NY... I'm up in Rochester, and could easily arrange to help fill your tank once setup if you were w/in driving distance.

- Mac

 

[danmhippo]

Is the tank going to be dedicated to aiptasia, the focus of your study? If it is, and the tank will be inverts only without any fish, then you could even possibly get away with no skimmer and PC/VHO lighting.

If the tank is going to be used for research purpose, you may want to go with shallow tanks such as breeder's tanks for the ease of maintenance.

 

[Anonymous]

I would also contact a local LFS. They may be willing to cut you some deals on some stuff in exchange for some publicity (i.e. a local newspaper runs a story about the tank or giving out flyers to kids in the school or something). We did this for a local elemetary school that's setting up a 180.

Glenn

 

[ReefMon]

You should also see if there are any local saltwater clubs in your area, as members are great about donating & helping out in projects like this!

Good luck!
Glenn R

 

[Apollo8j]

My school is in North Salem, about an hour from New York City. I am 100% positive that I don't want any aiptasia in the tank. Of that, I am sure. After what they did to my tank, I'd not wish that on anyone. (Down to one mushroom).

The tank is going to have some inverts, for sure, I have to see what my teacher wants as well.

As far as arragocrete, I saw some dead rock in a fish store in NYC. Do you think it would be a good idea to put that stuff in as a base, and then get some live rock to put on top to seed it?

The main problem for this aquarium is going to be the summer. Once summer rolls along, my teacher and I won't be able to drive back and forth to the school every day to feed the fish and take care of everything. (Plus, I'm going to college [hopefully... heh] next year). My teacher is going to set up an aquarium at his house for the summer, and wants to catch the fish and transfer them over there during the vacation. We would be able to come back for water changes and the like, but not every single day to feed them. I know that catching the fish is going to be a problem as well. Are there any suggestions as to how we could get this to work? Or other ways to ensure that the animals would be taken care of for the summer?

Thanks again for all of your help, it's great to see so many people offering advice. (Especially when I need it so much...)

 

[MandarinFish]

Congrats on the reef tank and grant.

I don't have much to add - the others have given you solid basics.

I am a teacher in California setting up a reef tank in my classroom also.

Can I ask what grant you applied for? I'd like to do the same...

PS to keep tans low-maintenance over summer, which I also need to do, consider a coral tank or filter-feeder system where you have photosynthetic and filtering creatures, so you don't have to be there feeding twice a day.

Perhaps a smaller tank with better lighting, then get some really hardy corals like mushrooms that need mostly light and maybe a weekly dose of phytoplankton or something.

 

[Anonymous]

I am a teacher in California setting up a reef tank in my classroom also.
.

What part of Calif. are you in? I lived for two years in the Bay Area; taught in the Concord/Walnut Creek area.

 

[ChrisRD]

As far as arragocrete, I saw some dead rock in a fish store in NYC. Do you think it would be a good idea to put that stuff in as a base, and then get some live rock to put on top to seed it?

Sure, that's an option to keep the initial setup costs down. In fact when I setup my next reef I think I'm going to make some interesting shapes, or drill/assemble some base rock into nice shapes and then seed the system with the contents of my current reef.

 

[cudunn]

I would also suggest that to save money you consider a DIY skimmer. There are plans on this site and if you and your teacher do not feel up to the job you might be able to con the shop teacher into offering it as a project.

It also sounds like you and your teacher need to seriously consider the maintenance routine that will be needed after you depart. It sounds like you need to find some more committed people to share the job. You won't be around when college starts and your teacher may not be able maintain the tank after a year or two, circumstances change. Is your school willing to support an aquarium club?

good luck
John

 

[danmhippo]

Besides, catching fish and transfer them is not likely a feasible option. Anyone owning a reef tank should know how difficult it is to catch a fish among the rocks. It's nearly impossible without breaking down the rock works.

 

[CraigLampe]

I think with your budget SIMPLER IS BETTER...

This means to me, sand, rock, some powerheads, heater, and some cheaper lighting (VHO Actinic? Multiple BRIGHTSTICKS from WalMart?) Basically look closely at the wattage you are gonna get for the dollar... I have a 125 tank with sump and once I bought a coupld of peices of equipment for it and a couple of animals/corals/fish I probably have put about $4000 into this tank -- it is VERY EASY to spend alot on a "simple" tank...

I would attempt a skimmer-less system which has a deep sand bed (3" or so) and NO SUMP...

Oh, by the way I use Instant Ocean Salt, I think it is WONDERFUL!

The trick is to be patient and to add a little "live rock" from other tanks (like your home tank) and some "live sand" from other tanks and then you can use some class funds to replenish your tank rock/sand with dry stuff...

PATIENCE IS THE KEY, many tanks even with thousands of dollars worth of equipment still have to cycle and still take a while to settle to the point of tolerating and supporting life... good luck, we are anxious to hear good results!! (Though most of us do not attempt this hobby "on a budget!")

 

[Bubafat]

Some great advice has been given here and I'll try to add to it.

Tank: I would actually go with a 40B if I were you, it is short and a lot of depth.

Lighting: If you could find someone to build you a hood, you can get a MV ballast, socket, and 250w Iwasaki bulb for around $100.

Sandbed: Southdown all the way. Seed it with other hobbiests tanks. I know people would love to help you...some may even ship you some if you'd ask.

Rock: I would go with tampabay or gulfview rock here...you'll get some great rock that already has a lot of life on it.

Skimmer: Prism skimmer is cheaper, but remora by AquaC is better. If you are really pressed for money...this can be one thing that can be put off.

Water movement: Don't put this off...water movement is key for inverts. Go with a couple of maxijets.

Like shane said, don't waste your money on additives...the only one that I'd recommend would be kalkwasser.

See what you can get donated first. People will help if they know it's going to a good cause.

Buba

 

[gooch]

I would get a 40 breeder around $75. Get one 250 or 175 watt halide ballast PFO 175 watt ballast and pendant $160. One hello lights 10000 k bulb on sale for $50. The southdown sand $10. An Aqua-C Remora skimmer$ 140. Use rubble rock 30 pounds at $1.00 a pound. Aquarium heater $15. Add a couple of powerheads $30. Salt $30.Geting some of this used would help to. This should get you to about $525.

Now some of these prices are right around wholesale. If you explain to the lfs what you are doing and that they can put a sticker on the tank or sign next to it for advertising if they sell the equipment you need for cost. You should not have too many problems. They are not losing money. And the publicity and advertising could be priceless.

If they refuse to help you get back to me. I run an aquarium maintenance service and could help you out on a few things. But I would prefer you try to get it locally first. It would just look real bad if a company in Wisconsin would have to get your equipment. Plus it would cost more because of shipping.

gooch

 

[squeezix]

I would suggest you contact a few equipment manufacturers as well. Many have donated, or greatly reduced prices for educational reefs. Donations to schools are tax-deductable, so long as the proper paperwork is done.