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Best Reefer Forum on the Net?

Hi guys,

on top of my Nepenthes addiction I've now caught the reef tank bug. I've never had an aquarium in my life, so I'm doing a LOT of homework before I even think about buying anything.

Doing homework includes reading books, talking to other reefers (luckily there's a whole street full of aquarium shops here in Taipei where proprietors and customers alike are quite willing to answer dumb questions) and checking websites and forums.

Now, I've found there are tons of reef forums out there, and I'd like to ask everyone here:

Which one do you like best, and why? Reef Frontiers? Reef Central? Reef Sanctuary? Reef Visions? 3Reef? Reefs.org? Any other?

Thanks much in advance!!

Hans
 
Oh Hans it's an AWESOME hobby to have, and awesomely expensive. Back when I did it in the... 7th grade I think I frequented reefaquariumguide.com , and reefcentral.com is good too but I prefer the former.

If there's any advice I can give, is to not skimp on the lights and protein skimmer, and go with the largest tank you can get. Get a nice sump and don't bother with hang-on equipment. No wet/dry filter! Nano-reefs are popular these days and there's something about a reef in what's basically a goldfish bowl that makes me uncomfortable.
 
You had a reef in 7th grade?!? My dad could barely keep his alive and he was in his thirties.
 
Yep. It got too expensive for me on a 7th graders allowance, and really my parents paid for most of it lmao. It was 75 gallons, VHO lighting (really cool at the time, when PC was just taking off) and a turbofloater 1000. I had mostly LPS corals and shrimp and stuff. It was BEAUTIFUL but for a 7th grader it was too expensive and then I sold it all and now it's my CP terrarium.

It's really easy as long as you have a good protein skimmer and enough live rock. I couldn't pull off aquatic plants, though. You'd think a freshwater aquarium with real plants would be easier than salt with coral and anemones but not so for this aquarist :(

Needless to say I've aced every bio test on marine invertebrates since then :)
 
http://www.nano-reef.com

Everyone's photos on that site are fantastic. Great info there on taking photos of an aquarium.

Specifically, read every word of steelhealr's thread " 24G Nano Cube DX Startup, Setup, Manual for newbies, in the works " This should be a bible for ANYONE looking to start a reef tank, esp. a nano or pico. Best of luck to you!
 
Hi everyone

thanks for y'all's input!

I'm not planning a nano reef, as I also see it as a mere goldfish bowl in which the motile gang might feel uncomfortable. Instead, I'm getting a 60 gallon tank with a first-class skimmer, lots of pre-cured live rock and live sand, a decent sump, and a HQL/bluelight combo.

If there's one thing I've learned from keeping CPs in tanks, it's DON'T SKIMP ON THE BASICS. Which I won't, so already I'm looking at US$1300-1500 just for the habitat - not counting any critters. Fortunately, tropical ocean creatures are really cheap here in Taiwan (hey, we EAT them round here :) ), so maybe my family will get me a few for Christmas...
 
Even if you're going for a larger tank, that forum (and especially that thread) will be invaluable. It's all about algae blooms, what's this thing wandering around my newly cured live rock, etc. etc. While you'll be dodging a lot of the problems associated with very small saltwater tanks, you'll still gain a lot by learning from their mistakes. Better to learn from someone else's $700 mistake than your own. Again best of luck. Maybe put a photojournal together for us, so that we can enjoy the growth and discovery with you =)
 
Thanks again, jrod! Could you link directly to steelhealr's thread? I can't find it :-(

DumbTon
PS: The more I read, see and hear about reefs, the more amazed I am about the huge, colorful, amazing, stunningly magical world that's waiting for me....guess I've found my way to deal with the midlife crisis. The usual cure - buying a red Lamborghini - might have been cheaper, but this is so much more interesting :)
 
If you've never had one before, expect algae blooms as the tank ages and matures for the first few months. Just part of it. I had a nightmare with deep sand beds so I can't recommend that.


If you haven't bought the live rock yet, I really suggest buying uncured. I've bought precured and it's practically dead live rock compared to uncured, which is encrusted with life and since you need to cycle your tank anyway, might as well cure the uncured live rock in the tank and get all of the extra life like macro algaes (I had this flourescent orange one once!) , stony polyps, amphipods, copepods bristleworms etc. I promise it might get stinky and is extra work with water changes, but you WONT regret curing your own uncured live rock.
 
  • #10
Thanks for the tip. Now I consider myself a lucky son of a b*tch, because the proprietor of the marine fish shop I like most here has a PhD in marine biology and is also chair of the Taiwan Reef Research Association; in short - a reef nut with an eco-agenda. This guy won't sell you stuff just for the sake of selling you stuff. He also won't sell you stuff if he thinks it's not good for your setup - he'll rather refer you to the shop next door than have your dead fish on his conscience.

The downside is he believes DSB is the catfish's meow :) I'll have to talk to him about this and the cured/uncured thing. I'll have to wait after summer with the curing, though - at 90+ degrees daily and tropical humidity, the stink will take on epic proportions, I'm afraid.
 
  • #11
Oh they ARE really good if you have a buttload, and I mean a BUTTLOAD of microfauna to keep the sand constantly turning, and if you can find oolitic sand. My DSB just grew anaerobic pockets.
 
  • #13
Your best bet for rock is to buy "dry" or "base" rock. Its much cheaper the live rock and once its in the tank with a few pieces of live rock it will get colonized with bacteria and in a few months you wont know the difference
 
  • #14
You buy LR for the coraline algae, amphi and copepods, bristle worms, macroalgae, and polyps, not just for bacteria.

For those in America, the BEST live rock I've ever had was Gulf View. It's aquacultured in the gulf of Mexico so it's sustainable.
http://www.gulf-view.com/
 
  • #15
I know you want that stuff but you can get all that stuff on a few small pieces and let it colonize the rest. I have over 200lbs of what was once dry rock and under 100lbs that was purchased live and you couldn't possibly tell the difference at this point. Coraline spreads like wild with proper calcium and lighting. Pods of all types reproduce like wild if nothing is feeding on them. Even then they still reproduce faster then most fish will eat them. As for macro algae your probably better off with out it as many species can take over a reef pretty fast. You also may end up with stuff on your live rock you dont want such as aptasia or majano anenomes, mantis shrimp or any number of coral eating crabs,nudibranchs and flatworms.
 
  • #16
Hans,

how are you coming w/ your new obsession?

The two forums i visit are:

www.reefcentral.com
www.maast.org <-- my local reefing club

you are living in an incredible place and will have access to so much awesome reef life... I am somewhat envious.
 
  • #17
Thanks for asking and for the links, RP! Uh, not good :) Summer's here, and that means PLANT SEASON! The 250 Nepenthes in the greenhouse are rockin' out like there's no tomorrow. There's cuttings (and photos!) to be taken, trades to be made, meetings to be attended, forums to be read and moderated.....

However, I've bought and (almost) read a few good books on the topic, so once winter comes around, I'll be ready for the reef tank!

cheers

Hans
PS: The "awesome reef life" in this area sure is much, much cheaper than in the West, but I'm afraid 90% is caught by non-ecofriendly methods.
 
  • #18
Hans,

if your looking for a good book, I have one on invertebrate life that you will love. it's the first in a series.

Marine Invertebrates: Anthony Calfo & Bob Fenner

it's written by the guys that run www.wetwebmedia.com which is a fantastic resource.

I actually met bob fenner a couple of years ago at a local aquarium society meeting, he's pretty cool.
 
  • #19
Thanks for the link and the book tip - I'll make sure to digest all of it!!
 
  • #20
This is mine. An nano reef. Only 15 gallons.
nano_now.jpg
 
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