Hello total newbie here and will need guidance

[Sidewaze]

Hello,

Scott here I'm 44 and located in Chatham. I'm a licensed electrician/automation specialist with another passion expensive hobby racing radio controlled cars. I had a 35g fresh water tank years ago but got bored. I've wanted a saltwater setup for years but never had the space until recently. I'm picking up a used 90g freshwater setup tomorrow and going saltwater. So Im going to have a lot of questions soon but I have been reading a lot too. I plan on running a sump and going to purchase a CPR cs90 soon for my overflow. My biggest questions are the aquascaping and where and how to start. I will be using the egg crate with sand and a mix of base/dry and wet rock. Glad to see a place so close to home.

 

[teebone110]

Welcome!

If you want to do things right, I would suggest drilling your tank and looking into a bean animal overflow. Take your time, don't rush things and you will be happy in the long run!

 

[msteane]

Bean animal overflows need thicker glass, due to the fact that you are drilling 3 holes into one side.  My first salwater tank wasn't drilled, and it was a successful tank.  That being said, having my drilled tank now adds some piece of mind as that's one less part for a potential point of failure.  Going slow is the best advice though, or if you don't think you'll have the patience, you can use some of Dr.Tim's nitrifying bacteria which will reduce your initial cycle time signficantly.  Aquariums by Design in Waterloo caries it.  I used it when I  set up my current 75 gallon tank and was cycled and ready to go in a week.

 

[spyd]

Welcome to the forum! Salt water is a challenging but very rewarding hobby. Here's a list of questions and comments to get started:

1) Are you planning on keeping corals or just fish only? That will help decide what type of lighting, powerheads and rock layout you will need.
2) Are you going with a Shallow sand bed (Less than 2") or Deep sand bed (4 - 6")? If you are going shallow, use thicker grain sized sand such as Reefflor Special Grade argonite. This way you can siphon any waste build-up if need be. For a Deep Sand Bed, go with a finer grain such as sugar sized or oolite. With a deep sand bed, you leave it alone and let the natural bacteria take care of the waste. I think you should stay away from eggcrate in your sand bed though. Snails, etc. tend to get stuck in it, die off and then can cause nitrate issues.
3) A combo of dry rock and live rock is a good idea. Rule of thumb is 1.5 lbs / gallon. If you decide to run biopellets, you can rduce that significantly. Also, you can all ways put live rock in your sump instead of all in your display so it is not so crowded. The only thing is you would want a powerhead in the sump with the live rock to prevent excess waste building up on it as it will cause nitrate issues. When you setup the rock, make sure the base pieces are right on the bottom pane to prevent any cave ins. If you are keeping corals, then you will want several flat areas to allow coral placements. Some low spots, mid level and higher level pieces so that you can get the right amount of light for different types of corals. I STRONGLY suggest keeping the rock away from the back pane of the tank by 3" or so. This will allow you to clean the glass behind the tank and allow a good flow all around to prevent waste build-up. Check out the "Members Tanks" threads to see everyone's rock work to get some ideas. Try your best to not epoxy pieces down in case you want to move them around here and there. The pieces should be snug though and not be able to fall down if bumped by a fish. Ensure you get PEST FREE rock. You are safe with dry rock. When getting live rock though, ensure there is no aiptasia, hydroids, mojanos, etc. as they can become BIG problems down the road.
4) Powerheads. If you are looking at corals then get some that will give you 50 times the gallons in your tank. So for your 90G, you would be looking at producing 4,500 GPH for flow. Powerheads range from $50 to $500. All depends on what you can afford.
5) Skimmer. Get one that is rated for slightly higher than your tank volume. So for a 90G tank, go for one that is good for no less than 120G or something along those lines.

If you have any questions then ask away. Lots of knowledgable people on this site with some incredible tanks!!! These are just some of the basics I have learned over time.

 

[unibob]

Welcome.

+1 to what he said ^^

 

[TORX]

Hope you enjoy the site. There are a few local members to you, myself included. Good luck with your build. Slow and steady. I know everyone says it...but it IS the #1 thing that most of us have found out the hard way.

 

[Poseidon]

Hope you enjoy the site. There are a few local members to you, myself included. Good luck with your build. Slow and steady. I know everyone says it...but it IS the #1 thing that most of us have found out the hard way.

more than once i might ad as well  :?

lol, welcome and good luck with your new build.... a 90g is a really nice tank to work with, lots of space and can fit most species of fish...

 

[Royal Aquariums]

Welcome to the site, I too would suggest drilling your new aquarium for your sump setup. If you aren't comfortable doing it yourself, glass shops will usually do it for $40 or so. Just have to make sure that it is not tempered. As stated before, ask as many questions and do as much research as you can. Good luck on the build!