New to Saltwater, 70g build

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SaltyDwarfAngel

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#1
#1
Hello all! New to the saltwater realm but have had freshwater for a while. Excited for this new adventure!
Finally got my tank cycled and added the first fish. This is my new eshoppes 70g with sump. Thanks to @Stithe for some great setup items! Looking forward to adding more in a few weeks. Planning on a mixed reef. I will eventually need some lights if you have any recos. Thanks!

 
SynDen

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Welcome to the real addiction! Looks like you got a great start there. Look forward to seeing it all grow in!
 
rajah

rajah

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Nice start! Are you thinking about keeping SPS and acros? That might determine what lighting you go for, as will the dimensions of your tank, and your budget. I've had good luck with cheap black box LEDs for most coral, but recently have been using T5s and Reefbreeders LEDs. Lots of options for sure.
 
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SaltyDwarfAngel

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Just started looking into corals to start with. I came up with these:
Zoanthids
Sinularia leather
Toadstool
Xenia
Duncan
Candy cane
Bubble
List can certainly change depending upon lighting needs and budget :) the tank is 36 x 21 x 21
Thanks for all the comments!
 
rajah

rajah

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You won't need crazy high light for those corals. You have plenty of options but I might look at something like this LED which you can manually control the blue vs white combination, and can turn the output up or down as high or low as you want. It would need to be mounted fairly high above the tank to have decent spread. You could also do 36" T5s but that might be overkill depending on the number of bulbs. You can also go far more spendy of course with the LED options and get a light with an app and lots of features. Just depends what you want to spend and if you're into the techy stuff. Two 36" LED bars could also be pretty good (Quanta or Reefbrite, for instance).

I started with fairly cheap LEDs and don't regret it... I've since upgraded to nicer lighting but the cheap LEDs grew everything including acros. My two cents is that health of the corals is more about water chemistry, flow and stability, especially when you are just starting out. Light probably won't be a limiting factor until you get into demanding SPS.
 
TheRealChrisBrown

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I really liked the reefbreeders lights, I think they were on bulk reef supply last time I checked. They are sleek and not bulky looking and can future proof yourself a little bit since they can grow everything. If budget is a concern you can pick up metal halide/t5 combos cheap, and again will grow anything.

Your setup looks nice so far. I always like minimalist rock, but height is important too. Maybe see if you can find a couple pieces of Tonga branch rock and expanding everything up a bit?
 
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SaltyDwarfAngel

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Hi all! Update on my tank build. Decide on the Noo-Psyche lights and received them last Tuesday. Thanks for the reco they look great. Also got a gift card for aquatic arts for Christmas and took a trip this weekend. My water parameters were testing well there so they recommended a few corals now that the lights are up. So I now have a Xenia, GSP, Zoa, and Hairy Mushroom. They all seem to be doing well and already expanding into their space. Just the last couple days I have been getting algae that is coming in quite fast. Going to water change and scrub rock tomorrow. Any other recos? Thanks!
 

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N1tew0lf1212

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I have noops on my tank that can grow anything. On my 55 i have 2 140w and 1 60w mini. I get great coloration. Congrats on the tank set up lioks good. Let me know when you are ready for next round of corals. I have some freebies for ya if you would like.

20250101_195253.jpg
 
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SaltyDwarfAngel

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Awesome! Would love some more corals. I’m going to hold off adding anything till February cause I will be out of town the last week in January and I want things to be stable. I’ll let you know when it is ready for more. Thanks!
 
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Let me know if you have any schedule questions. Did you go wifi set up or AP? Here is some par values lights are 14in about tank. Tank is 21" tall.

20240901_153601.jpg
 
rajah

rajah

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Ditto what they said. I have lots of easy SPS if you want any of those when you're ready (pocillopora, stylophora, seriatopora, montis, etc)

Do you have some algae eating inverts to help keep the algae in check? I like astrea snails, trochus snails, and turbo snails. Nassarius are good for the sand bed. Once things are more established, I also like to add a small tuxedo urchin to each tank.
 
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SaltyDwarfAngel

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N1tew0lf1212 said:
Let me know if you have any schedule questions. Did you go wifi set up or AP? Here is some par values lights are 14in about tank. Tank is 21" tall.

View attachment 1889
Click to expand...
N1tew0lf1212 said:
Let me know if you have any schedule questions. Did you go wifi set up or AP? Here is some par values lights are 14in about tank. Tank is 21" tall.

View attachment 1889
Click to expand...
I am set up on AP right now for some reason I could not get the WiFi to work. AP is working well. I did only go only 40% on the highest as it seemed very bright. Here is what my schedule is
 

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SaltyDwarfAngel

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rajah said:
Ditto what they said. I have lots of easy SPS if you want any of those when you're ready (pocillopora, stylophora, seriatopora, montis, etc)

Do you have some algae eating inverts to help keep the algae in check? I like astrea snails, trochus snails, and turbo snails. Nassarius are good for the sand bed. Once things are more established, I also like to add a small tuxedo urchin to each tank.
Click to expand...
Thanks! I would love more easy SPS! I did pick up 6 Blue legged hermits and one turbo at Elite Reef, they happened to be open New Year’s Eve. I should have gone with their recommended 12 hermits but was afraid of bio load. These guys are awesome cleaners. Did half the tank the first day!
I think I will go to aquatic tomorrow to get a few more and a turbo for my refugium I have some green algae starting there
 
N1tew0lf1212

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SaltyDwarfAngel said:
I am set up on AP right now for some reason I could not get the WiFi to work. AP is working well. I did only go only 40% on the highest as it seemed very bright. Here is what my schedule is
Click to expand...
If you want some help linking through wifi let me know i have helped all kinds of people on r2r out with theirs. Schedule looks good what size is the tank and what height do you have mounted?
 
N1tew0lf1212

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SaltyDwarfAngel said:
I am set up on AP right now for some reason I could not get the WiFi to work. AP is working well. I did only go only 40% on the highest as it seemed very bright. Here is what my schedule is
Click to expand...
If you want some help linking through wifi let me know i have helped all kinds of people on r2r out with theirs. Schedule looks good what size is the tank and what height do you have mounted?
 
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