Want to go from FO to full reef..help

[Johnic]

I currently have a FO tank with alot of expensive fake reef rocks (that I would like to keep) lining the whole rear wall of my 150 gal tank (60"wx30"tallx18"deep). I would like to go full reef seeing I have all the equipment already in place knowing I would eventually do this.

My equip is as follows: 50 gal sump with Bio balls, Euroreef Rc180 skimmer, Iwaki 70 pump running the whole system, 1/3hp chiller keeping the temp at 77, Phosban reactor, Tunze 6060 with single controller for some circulation, lighting is going to be (2) 250w MH HQI and (1) 96w 50/50 blue PC, Neptune III controller with PH probe, 300wTitanium Heater, 18w UV light., RO/DI with 50Gal Holding tank.

What else do I need to do, buy and what should I start with as far as Coral etc.....Do I need to get rid of some existing fish such as the angles and grouper ????

Any advise would help, and please keep in mind I would like to keep my fake reef rock and not go with real rock due to weight and I also feel it looks very real as is and would liek to just cover it with corals.

 

[DEEPWATER]

Hi John

welcome to MR !!

1st i would get rid of the bio balls ,no need for them (just a nitrate trap) if you can just have a sump or refuge

how much live rock you have in your tank (if any) Im not too sure how the fake stuff works with corals ,but i dont think its benifical to a reef tank .JMO

Other wise you have everything you need to start your reef tank

one more thing ,what are your water parameters ?

hope i didnt forget anything

 

[DonCisco]

with the introduction of live corals, you will overload your system with ammonia and nitrites, in a reef the LR houses nitrifying bacteria, as well as assorted hitchikers, worms, etc. Most of which are beneficial to the whole Live Sand, Live Rock (LS and LR) eco-system. You should post a few pics of your tank. Install the lighting, let your system get used to the extra light, then start adding coral slowly. Make sure you have a good set of tests, in a reef you need to test for more things than in a FO tank. Go into the beginner's forums, and seach some of the threads, that way you will learn like a lot of us newbies. Either way, welcome to the MR community.

 

[Johnic]

I don't have any real rock in the tank, just the plastic fake ones. Water param. are Sg is 1.017 ( I need to raise to 1.024). Temp is 77deg. and I haven't tested the nitrates or phosp. lately

Just added some photos in my Gallery

 

[nyumpa]

you have some nice stuff. the old cliche in the reef tank is nothing good
happen fast in a reef tank. get rid everthing inside but some premium
rock use the old some of the old water and skimmer to cycle it. you can cut some of the cost by buying 50%live 50% base(reeferrock.com) great base rock. after the rock is cycled add the sand, too many people make the mistake of putting all that rock on top of the sand

 

[scarf_ace1981]

john- you are half way there.

as stated previosly get rid of the bio balls and the fake rocks.
buy base rock and get a couple of LR pieces to seed the others.

you may want to list all the fish you have and we can help you further. some may feed on the corals and others on the shrimps and hermits(if you decided to get any)

good luck
jon-

 

[Johnic]

I have a grouper, red and white snapper, squirrel fish, faser angel, yellow tang, powder brown tang, and 2 other larger angles. If I get rid of my bio balls, what will get rid of the amonia..should I wait until I get the live rock ??

 

[marrone]

You're going to have to get rid of some of the fish, specially the two groupers(Louti & Panter) and the Snapper. Not only are these fish aggressive but they get very large and will produce a lot of waste. This will put a strain on your system, resulting in high nitrates which isn't a problem in a FO or Fowlr tank but is a problem in a reef tank. The Squirrel fish wouldn't bother your corals but will possible eat you inverts, snails, crabs and shrimp. As for the Angels (Asfer, Emperor and the Buttercup) you could probably keep them but there is a good chance that they may pick on some of the corals. So if you can live with that they they should be fine. The Tangs should be fine as you tank has plenty of room for them.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

Welcome to MR.

Listen to Marrone about fish selection he know alot on that subject.
Get rid of the Bio balls slowly and add some rock slowly to the tank and you should be ok.

 

[Johnic]

Ok....so I guess I should look into getting how much live rock for 150 gal tank...and should I leave the sump empty without bioballs ?

 

[scarf_ace1981]

it's suggested you get 1-1.5lb of LR per gallon. if you don't want all that LR in your display you can put some in place of the bioballs.

 

[reefman]

lb/gal ratio is just a rule of thumb. use to be 2lb/gal, now it seems to be less. it really depends on the specs of ur system n the projected bio load.

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

Please provide dimensions of your sump especially, the center compart area where you can put sand or algae or ... in.

 

[Johnic]

Roughly 36"longx12"deepx24"high. In looking at the situation..It looks like I need approx. 150 lbs of rock totaling $800.00 + for the display tank alone...WOW.

 

[DonCisco]

Someone suggested that you do half LR and half base rock. That should cut your costs down considerably, since base rock is less expensive. Also, look into the aquatic creations thread. It is a business owned by one of our members, and he is going out of business, so you can pick some nice seasoned LR at a decent price, and you would be helping a fellow member. (You only have until sunday for that) Best of luck, and if there is one thing I know about this lot, is that all you have to say is beer, and you will have a few experts at your place helping you out.

 

[masterswimmer]

Hi John and welcome to our part of the reef. The suggestions made above are all very insightful and will help you out starting the conversion to a reef. Good luck and ask questions before making purchases. There are plenty of ways to save money by coattailing on the experiences of the rest of our mistakes

swimmer

 

[Johnic]

Def. correct and I'm glad I have this resource to tap into before making a purchase.

 

[tosiek]

bioballs are nitrate/ammonia traps, don't think anyone mentioned that =0)

 

[jhale]

John welcome to Manhattan Reefs, glad you found us

Before you take your tank apart I'll mention another option.
Setting up another tank It could be a smaller tank just to get you feet
wet with the reefing thing. Many people here like the 65 gallon tank for it's shape. I don't know if it's possible space wise for you, but the cost will be about the same as converting the 150 you have. And this way you get to keep your fish