New to the Hobby-- all advice welcome!

[Reef4home]

Greetings to All: I'm so grateful that this forum exists! I'm just getting started and quickly decided that I'll do best by taking it slowly and doing it right. I figure it's better to spend more now to avoid trouble than risk costly and upsetting failures down the road, only to spend more then. Still, it's daunting. I haven't even bought my rocks for my aquascape, put in my sand (I've decided to go with sand rather than bare bottom), and poured in my RO water, and yet I've spent a fortune. There's just so much to learn, and many ways to set up a tank that fail to anticipate even the near future, let alone the long term. So, I'm reading lots and watching lots of videos. At this point, here's what I've bought:
1. Red Sea Reefer XL 300
2. 2 XR15 lights
3. 1 Sicce Syncra 4.0
4. 1 Vortech MP40
5. 1 Pentair Smart UV Sterilizer 12-65W 227VAC
6. 1 Apex System with flow monitor, etc.
7. 1 Trident & DOS system
8. 1 Echotech Battery Backup
9. 1 Inverter for System Battery Backup
Once I have everything hooked up and working, I plan to buy Caribsea Liferock and work on my aquascape. Then I'll place it in the tank, pour my sand, fill it up with RO, and learn how to cycle the tank. Then I'll start in on a hardy pair of fish: thinking about a pair of Royal Gramma Basslets to start, maybe a hermit crab, and an LPS or two once my Apex and Trident tell me the water is stabilized and ready. Spending my time now looking at aquascapes for the 300, but I'm really not sure what I'll end up stocking the tank with, so it's difficult to know exactly what shapes and constructions to shoot for. I'm thinking a few SPS up high (so I can have faster flow for them without a sand problem) and LPS down lower. I also want spaces for fish to hide and maneuver around, but not quite sure how best to achieve this mix in a rock construction for my mixed tank. Hoping to end up with a mix of LPS, SPS, a dozen or so fish and assorted sand dwellers. Any and all advice, reactions, comments welcome! Many thanks.

 

[WIReefer]

Welcome to R2R!!!

 

[Billldg]

Welcome to R2R!!! If you plan on going with some SPS then I would recommend a 2nd Mp40 or even a MP10. They like turbulent currents in the tank.

 

[Jeffcb]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!!

 

[Pistondog]

Greetings to All: I'm so grateful that this forum exists! I'm just getting started and quickly decided that I'll do best by taking it slowly and doing it right. I figure it's better to spend more now to avoid trouble than risk costly and upsetting failures down the road, only to spend more then. Still, it's daunting. I haven't even bought my rocks for my aquascape, put in my sand (I've decided to go with sand rather than bare bottom), and poured in my RO water, and yet I've spent a fortune. There's just so much to learn, and many ways to set up a tank that fail to anticipate even the near future, let alone the long term. So, I'm reading lots and watching lots of videos. At this point, here's what I've bought:
1. Red Sea Reefer XL 300
2. 2 XR15 lights
3. 1 Sicce Syncra 4.0
4. 1 Vortech MP40
5. 1 Pentair Smart UV Sterilizer 12-65W 227VAC
6. 1 Apex System with flow monitor, etc.
7. 1 Trident & DOS system
8. 1 Echotech Battery Backup
9. 1 Inverter for System Battery Backup
Once I have everything hooked up and working, I plan to buy Caribsea Liferock and work on my aquascape. Then I'll place it in the tank, pour my sand, fill it up with RO, and learn how to cycle the tank. Then I'll start in on a hardy pair of fish: thinking about a pair of Royal Gramma Basslets to start, maybe a hermit crab, and an LPS or two once my Apex and Trident tell me the water is stabilized and ready. Spending my time now looking at aquascapes for the 300, but I'm really not sure what I'll end up stocking the tank with, so it's difficult to know exactly what shapes and constructions to shoot for. I'm thinking a few SPS up high (so I can have faster flow for them without a sand problem) and LPS down lower. I also want spaces for fish to hide and maneuver around, but not quite sure how best to achieve this mix in a rock construction for my mixed tank. Hoping to end up with a mix of LPS, SPS, a dozen or so fish and assorted sand dwellers. Any and all advice, reactions, comments welcome! Many thanks.

Welcome reef4home,
Thats an awesome list.

 

[Fred2482]

Welcome!

 

[Arcticfirefighter]

Welcome to R2R! Tons of information here with a lot of great people. Don't really know what I would have done without this forum, it has helped me greatly as I joined the hobby.

 

[P-Dub]

WELCOME!!! Looks like a great start. Some photos of your setup and progression should be shared here

Member Tanks​

 

[Peace River]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!!!

 

[MERKEY]

Hello and welcome to R2R and great list!

 

[KJ]

Welcome to R2R!!!

 

[fishguy242]

hi welcome to the reef going to love it here!!
lots of fun/info/fun/help/fun....

 

[SaltyT]

Welcome to R2R! You’ve joined a great community with lots of friendly folks willing to help when needed. Looking forward to seeing your build thread!

 

[Paulie069]

Welcome Aboard R2R glad to have you here

 

[maceto]

Welcome to R2R!!!

 

[WirelessMike]

Greetings to All: I'm so grateful that this forum exists! I'm just getting started and quickly decided that I'll do best by taking it slowly and doing it right. I figure it's better to spend more now to avoid trouble than risk costly and upsetting failures down the road, only to spend more then. Still, it's daunting. I haven't even bought my rocks for my aquascape, put in my sand (I've decided to go with sand rather than bare bottom), and poured in my RO water, and yet I've spent a fortune. There's just so much to learn, and many ways to set up a tank that fail to anticipate even the near future, let alone the long term. So, I'm reading lots and watching lots of videos. At this point, here's what I've bought:
1. Red Sea Reefer XL 300
2. 2 XR15 lights
3. 1 Sicce Syncra 4.0
4. 1 Vortech MP40
5. 1 Pentair Smart UV Sterilizer 12-65W 227VAC
6. 1 Apex System with flow monitor, etc.
7. 1 Trident & DOS system
8. 1 Echotech Battery Backup
9. 1 Inverter for System Battery Backup
Once I have everything hooked up and working, I plan to buy Caribsea Liferock and work on my aquascape. Then I'll place it in the tank, pour my sand, fill it up with RO, and learn how to cycle the tank. Then I'll start in on a hardy pair of fish: thinking about a pair of Royal Gramma Basslets to start, maybe a hermit crab, and an LPS or two once my Apex and Trident tell me the water is stabilized and ready. Spending my time now looking at aquascapes for the 300, but I'm really not sure what I'll end up stocking the tank with, so it's difficult to know exactly what shapes and constructions to shoot for. I'm thinking a few SPS up high (so I can have faster flow for them without a sand problem) and LPS down lower. I also want spaces for fish to hide and maneuver around, but not quite sure how best to achieve this mix in a rock construction for my mixed tank. Hoping to end up with a mix of LPS, SPS, a dozen or so fish and assorted sand dwellers. Any and all advice, reactions, comments welcome! Many thanks.

Welcome to the reef! This place is amazing for beginners and pros alike. Tons of people willing to share their knowledge and help you out. Been here a year and the info that this brain trust can supply is unmatched! Impressive beginners setup btw! Make sure you post a build thread!

 

[Reef4home]

Welcome to R2R!!! If you plan on going with some SPS then I would recommend a 2nd Mp40 or even a MP10. They like turbulent currents in the tank.

Thanks. I think you’re right. Probably another 40 to get a strong flow up top from side to side, and maybe eventually a 10 down lower. I’ll probably get the other 40 when I get my first SPS.

 

[sp1187]

welcome to the show.

 

[Reef4home]

Welcome to the reef! This place is amazing for beginners and pros alike. Tons of people willing to share their knowledge and help you out. Been here a year and the info that this brain trust can supply is unmatched! Impressive beginners setup btw! Make sure you post a build thread!

Absolutely. I’ve already learned a ton from reading various threads. I plan to post my rock aquascape for feedback before I finalize it and put it in the tank.

 

[G Santana]

Welcome aboard