need some suggestions on a couple things..

me and my husband have a 75 gallon tank that came with a stand [made of particle board:-/ ] and a 20 long for a sump. we also just recently were given a 55 gallon without a stand. we have no lights yet or a skimmer for either. we want to be able to make the 55 a more calm tank [2 clownfish, some shrimp, and be able to keep corals in it] and the 75 a more aggressive tank [so really good lighting isnt needed in this one to support coral b/c we will put a puffer in there that will probably nibble on stuff]. i'm pretty sure my husband has picked out a skimmer for the 75.
ok here are my questions:

is the particle board stand a bad idea??

should we build a hood for both and the lighting systems, as opposed to just buying one light setup all in one neat little package for each tank without a hood?

what would be an ideal lighting system for the 55 to be able to keep corals in there that would need a lot of light to survive, would we need metal halides AND t5's [not sure what corals we want specifically but we want to be able to have enough light for anything before we plan to go out and get corals]??

what type of lighting would be sufficient for the 75 since we wont be trying to keep coral in there, obviously not MH's but would we need t5 ho's or something else?

what size tank would be good to have for the 55 gallon's sump? [15?]


none of this has to be setup asap or anything, trust me we are taking our sweet time with all of this lol, probably going for a record of taking it slow but in this hobby thats a good thing

 

i would get away from particle board fast.

i am new to 3reef as i am going into my first salt tank, but i have had fresh tanks for better than 10years.

i had a 125 gallon on a sealed particle board (not plywood)stand for about three years, came with the tank from a friend. looked to be in good shape and i hade no experience with particle board b-4. when i emptied the tank to move and lifted it off the stand the stand litterally FELL apart. the moisture had soaked into the wood along the metal staples holding it together and rusted the staples and rotted the wood around them. VERY SCARY as i have a three year old tank stand hanging onto device, also known as a child.

a very simple stand could be made of 2x4 and ply for very cheap and i have seen some realatively inexpensive metal ones at local shops, 70 ish dollars.

metal shelving kits are available at home stores for even cheaper if looks are not an isssue, just beware the ones that come with particle board tops, grab a 2x what ever while there and call it good

 

Nothing wrong with that. Good luck with your journey and keep us posted............with pics of course.

[SCROLL]Luna[/SCROLL]

 

I had the same problem with that type of stand. I literally had to make one for my 125 in a day. The glue had given way and it seemed every staple was rusted.

 

haven't you ever herd that song from lover boy "partical board and water just don't splice" All joking aside get a better stand and also do some research on lighting and what coral you want to keep with that lighting.

 

take it from a custom cabinet & aquarium builder........if you like dry floors stay away from partical board!!!!!!!!!!!!!.........1gal= @ 6 or 7 pounds....if you do the math you ar holding up a lot of weight. i would use solid hard wood. IMO

 

i am posting this tid bit i clipped out of an article to add to reefwisperers post about weight of salt water

the old saying "a pints a pound the world around" 8 pints to a gallon so roughly 8 pounds

more specifically
To get an exact answer, you must know the percent composition of the salt water, or the ratio of salt to water. Roughly, salt water weighs 64 lbs/cu. ft., as opposed to fresh water, which is about 62.2 lbs/cu. ft. There are 7.4805 gallons in a cubic foot. So a gallon of salt water weighs 8.556 lbs

75 x 8.556 = 641 pounds

take into consideration that anything you add will displace some water but since it sinks it has to weigh more than the water displaced (Arch's principle)

 

Thank you all so much for the quick answers I will definitely keep you posted when we start everything up, much appreciated!