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From Tropicals to Marine and now planted

Kitbag

Member
Joined
20 Mar 2018
Messages
37
Location
Coulsdon, Surrey
Hi,

I’ve been keeping tropical fish for approximately 15 years. At one stage I had a fish room with 12 tanks and another 5 display tanks dotted around the house.

I had a go at breeding cichlids, catfish and live bearers.

Since having kids I have reduced the tropical tanks to 1 x 200L, but now also have a 100L marine tank and a 440L marine tank with lots of corals.

In all this time I’ve only had success with Crypts, Java fern, Anubias and the like. I now put this down to not having a clue about the plants requirements.

I’m not sure how I stumbled upon planted tanks, but I did so about a month ago and haven’t stopped reading since. I’ve lots to learn, but looking forward to finding out more and having a go at a decent planted tank in the near future.
 
Welcome, I’m in a similar boat. Been keeping American and South American cichlids for a long time now but never had a”proper “ planted tank. Love the challenge the journey and learning.
 
Haha, nice video. I must admit to being tempted by the reefing scene again. I've almost got a scape formulated in my mind, with a bit of an overhang, plenty of macro algae and soft corals. I've pretty much chosen the fish as well ;)
 
Hi Tim, if you do move into marine, you’ll find that the ability to run a system without water changes is pretty different from this side of the hobby. Of course the money spent on achieving this is quite ridiculous. Count me as ridiculous! It involves a lot of testing though.

I’m growing some macro algae in my sump and if the dragons breath takes hold down there I’ll be looking to move some into the display.
 
Yes, I've been doing some research and I was getting that impression. I was thinking of going down the separates type route putting it all together myself. Although, I like look of this Red Sea nano.
https://www.redseafish.com/aquarium-systems/max-aquarium-systems/max-nano/

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P.S. any advice would be appreciated.
 
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Hi Tim, I have a 100L tank and I use water changes on that one instead of automated dosing.

Red Sea are an excellent brand and their aquariums are very good. The light with that is the smaller version of what I have on my bigger tank and I can recommend them. Skimmers in back filtration tanks can be hit or miss. I have taken mine out completely, but Red Sea are likely to be better quality than I have on my small tank.

If I was looking to upgrade my 100L (that might be when) I would be looking at the Red Sea Reefer Nano or 170. I would then look to get a second hand AI Prime or 26 (the HD part isn’t essential). With these tanks you can put a skimmer in the sump (I like Reef Octopus as a brand of skimmers). Also a grow light in the sump and some macro algae to out compete the light in the display (on when the display off and vice versa to reduce ph swings and minimise Nitrate and Phosphate). Of course this all adds cost, so will depend on budget.

The budget gets scrapped completely when corals start be purchased!
 
Thanks, some good advice. I've had several reef tanks in the past, but that was about 30 years ago. Prices seem to be similar, so in reality have probably come down. Back then I think I could set up a tank with a bit of Heath Robinson DIY and knowhow for not much more than a couple of hundred quid.
Reverse flow UG filtration (interlocking plates) through coral sand - attached to a monster Fluval external, an in-tank protein skimmer, and an old HOB converted in to a trickle filter, a couple of powerheads, wooden diffusers and a monster Whisper air pump, and 4 x T12 lights. It worked really well - fish, inverts, corals all very healthy and growing - although it involved a lot of water changes and testing too.

Then I went diving on the fringe reef in Eilat, Israel, before it became commercialised. There was no comparison between an aquarium and natural reef. I struggled with the whole ethical thing after that.
I might be remembering this wrong but back then I think a lot of the fish in the trade were wild caught using cyanide, and reefs were being plundered and ultimately destroyed to feed the growing aquarium trade; I chucked it in almost immediately afterwards.
I guess it's different these days with commercially bred stock, but I'm not that up to date, I need to do a lot more research before I take the plunge again. Not just in terms of what fits with my environmental ethics, but also to sort the wheat from the chaff in terms of what kit etc is actually needed and what is BS - there seems to be a lot of that in both reefing and planted.
 
Separates is still a good way to go and much easier than people think. The main difference is that the kits look very slick now.

The basics are still the same; good light, good flow, nutrient export and keep certain water parameters in a particular range.

Corals are mostly fragged and grown on, aquacultured or maricultured. Some fish are bred commercially, but not that many. Marine breeding hasn’t been as successful as tropical. Sustainability is taken seriously though.
 
Not exactly a creative aquascape. This is mostly set up for the catfish and was set up before I started to get interested in planted tanks and aquascaping.

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Anyway, this is my only current tropical tank.
 
My reef tank has had no water changes since it was setup, about 3 months ago. And my Triton ICP test results showed my water params are pretty much optimal! :)

I bought most of the stuff 2nd hand, and with some DIY reduced the costs of the system by about 60%... I have a top notch nano system worth £4000 and it cost me about £1500

Is that a Juwel RIO 240? A 200L tank is a bit too small for an adult clown loach though. (if my ID skills are any good today)
 
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Hi Kadoxu, the tank is a Fluval Roma 200. You’ll be pleased to know that the Clown Loach is a very healthy 14 year old. He has lots of good hiding places and is the boss of the tank.

I’m also running the Triton method, but have had some automated dosing issues that have impacted my SPS. I’m looking to fix that before getting my first ICP report.
 
I have also recently switched from the salty side. And if I’m honest I’m enjoying my little planted tank much more. Half the effort and a fraction of the cost!
 
I have a second hand TMC 60Lx45x30H arriving this week, so looking forward to seeing it in the flesh so I can come up with some ideas.

I love my marines and will continue with them, but coral growth is very slow. Planted tanks are much more dynamic.
 
Totally gutted. The tank has arrived smashed way beyond repair
 

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