please help!!!

so i resently purchased a 75 gallon tank with the intent of setting up a freshwater aquarium...after going to the local petstore aquarium i was convinced to do a saltwater reef setup. after a litle reaserch when i got home i learned i was suckered into buying a bunch of stuff i dont need. ie. a magnum charcoal canister filter etc....about the only thing i needed that they sold me was the salt, sand, and the saltmeter thing. needless to say im takeing most the crap back. so wich me to my delema, i would really like to do a reef setup. i have glass tank with no pre drilled holes or anything for a sump, and i have a canopy deal that completely encloses the tank (it dose have a couple access holes). o dont like the clutter of a bunch of hoses and crap hanging in the tank, so i want to do things a efficeintly as possible, and do it right. so what i need to know is there any setup for a reef tank that meets what i need? thank for any input.

 

you should read the "mistakes i made as a newbie" thread in the new to hobby section.
SW tanks require alot of care, patience, and of coarse money. You might want the canister filter down the road, what did you have in mind for filtration if you don't want a sump and are returning the canister??

I would reccomend doing alot or research before committing to anything. Lots of money gets wasted in this hobby because people rush into things. It's best to go slow and read as much as you can so you don't make mistakes others did!

 

I would scour these forums for a month before I even thought about starting up a reef tank if you don't have any experience with salt water tanks. Look around, come up with a livestock list you would like to keep and then tailor your tank to the needs of the inhabitants...and be prepared to shell out some cash.

 

It's good that you came here for advise before going any further.Most will advise using a sump setup if you can,but if you are dead set against it can offer alteritives.A couple of questions,was the tank and canopy bought as a combo? Does your stand have enough room for a sump? Have any of the items you have bought been used and are they returnable?

 

yea the tank and canopy came together, i have about 20" of hight clearence under the stand, it is 36" total width, and 18" deep but it has two cabords with drawers in the middle, the cabords ar 12" wide. i hope there retturnable i reasently got them in the past week and still have the reciept.

 

on a side note i have done a fair amount of reaserch, in fact my head hurts. but like the mistakes post i dont have any mentor or knolegdeable people around to help me out and and iv learned the aquarium store is just lookn to make money. so any who here i am. i not agenst haveing a sump i just dont want alot of hoses and crap clustering up the tank, i hate clutter.

 

Its not all that bad. they make hang on refugiums. Hang on the back of the aquarium.If your tank is not drilled then you are going to have atleaset 2 hoses/pipes going from the tank to the sump and back. I recomend a refugium for better filtration and to keep the nitrates down low. You can build your own for cheap.

 

to be accurate a sump should simplify things as you can have your skimmer, heater, mechanical filter, all under your tank. it makes the DT alot less cluttered. I thought the same thing when i started but i need a fuge/sump now! it also makes it easy for adding water and suppliments cause you don't need to disturb your fish. with a sump you can have a refugium built in and with macro algae be able to control phosphates and nitrates more easily and will also provide a more stable pH for your tank over night where most peoples pH drops that dont have fuge/sumps.

 

You've got a lot of good advise from everyone in this thread. You really should research setting up a little more before you jump. I know you're feeling anxious to get going and you want that reef yesterday but this hobby has to be taken slowly, you can't force anything and cutting corners is going to hit your wallet extremely hard.

 

im not too anxious... i understand it takes time, just want to get the ball rolling on the setup. like i said i want to do it efficiently and most of all right.