fish-unit Posted December 21, 2006 Report Share Posted December 21, 2006 hey im wanting to setup a marine tank,but not to rich at the mo :lol: i have a tank i wanna use its one of those lightglo aquariums size is 800 by 300 by 400 to be honest i dont know anything bout marine fishes yet,ive had tropicals for a few years and just started looking into marine. What lighting,skimmer,filter etc etc do i use? ive seen those hang on skimmer/filter in one things are those good? it has a marine tube in the light at the moment but im guessing ones not enough? Thanks Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skippy Posted December 21, 2006 Report Share Posted December 21, 2006 Hi Fish-unit Welcome to marine world Without being rude, if you are a bit tight on the $$ you may want to hold off on the marines. However you go with a marine tank it is going to cost some to set up right and you will have significant ongoing costs (power, lighting bulbs, upgrades (cause you will want to soon enough) ) If you have some money to spend, I suggest that you buy some books and do some reading and research before you get a tank. That will probably save you money from the get go. There is also a wealth of information to be gained from the people and links on this site. Don't be worried about all the techno-speak that you will read here - you can get away with a relatively simple system to start with - but if you have a good understanding as to what you are doing before you start you'll be better of than when many of us started. You have asked what lighting skimmer etc you will need. You will get as many different answers as you get replies. It really depends on what you plan to do. No corals and you wont need metal halides. Corals and you will. As I suggested earlier read and research it before you spend your $$ Putting you off yet? Lastly - ask plenty of questions on this forum. There is some seriously knowledgable marine folks on here that will be able to tell you at least 4 different ways to do everything - comes down to preference. Good luck - it is a great hobby Cheers Skippy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Posted December 21, 2006 Report Share Posted December 21, 2006 And welcome to the FNZAS fishy forum Alan 104 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish-unit Posted December 21, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2006 nope not putting me off when saying im not to rich i mean i dont want to start of with the best of the best stuff,just your basic setup with 3 or 4 fish and some nice coral rock i can sorta see what i need im just mainly confussed about the lighting and yes thankyou ive been browsing this forum for a while but i had to wait to get my new email address before I could sign up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted December 22, 2006 Report Share Posted December 22, 2006 there are 2 items you cannot buy cheap, if you do you will buy twice. skimmer and lighting, both of these need to be very good quality, no way around this, they WILL cost heaps for what seems to be a big lump of plastic or metal, but they do make a differance and are the back bone of every good system. be prepared to spend around $1000 on each one of these (more or less), compared to the cost of livestock this is not unreasionable, (i.e. 10 fish or coral @ $100 = $1000) when i started i went through 3 cheap skimmers before i brought a decent one, the cheap skimmers are rubbish, they might look like they work but they are not powerfull enough to get anywhere near a well designed quality unit. just my 2 cents, but i wish somone had told me this before i started. all in all its money well spent for a fasinating hobbie. good luck and welcome, hope to see you around here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RnB Posted December 22, 2006 Report Share Posted December 22, 2006 take a look at http://www.marinedepot.com you can compare prices on a lot of kit there and they will ship nz 240V motored units. $1000 goes a long way there. also read http://www.reefcentral.com lots of good info there as well...... also do an expired listing search on trademe for "deltec" you can get 2nd hand kit if you are patient. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted December 22, 2006 Report Share Posted December 22, 2006 If you don't want corals(Which you didn't say you wanted) You can save massive amounts on the lights. You also won't need as good a skimmer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish-unit Posted December 22, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 22, 2006 so with the lighting what is my best option,i was looking at this for a protien skimmer but im guessing as its so cheap you guys wouldnt recomend it? i mean my tanks only about 90 litres says this can do up to 300l http://www.deepblueaquarium.co.nz/skimmers.htm 2nd one down,via aqua multi skimmer the hang on one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted December 22, 2006 Report Share Posted December 22, 2006 Small metal halide off trademe would probably be best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted December 22, 2006 Report Share Posted December 22, 2006 Be careful how much you trust the ratings on skimmers, 1 of the cheap skimmers i had was that via aqua, they require consitant adjustment, and they leak at the motor seal (had mine replaced twice and all 3 leaked, gave up in the end) i am still using this skimmer on a little 2ft tank i play around with, this tank would hold about 45ltrs, and the skimmer is still rubbish, its more the time spent keeping it skimming that is the issue, i adjust it every day! it pulls out a reasoniable amount of crap givn for most of the time this tank has no fish. i guess i should retract from my last post a bit and say A skimmer is better than NO skimmer, it really comes down to what you want to keep in the tank and how much money you can spare will possiable make this decision for you. my mum has a biostar skimmer on her 90ltr tank, this skimmer uses a kneedle wheel pump and is a great hang on skimmer, her tank is excellent, and her anemone and clowns are very happy. i got the skimmer for about $300? as a present for her, it was second hand and in good nick, i still would like to see her tank skimmed more, but she is happy with the corals she has and dosnt see the point in spending more money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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