oldie but newbie, pls update me!!!

Hello, I'm new here and was shocked at the number of post on this site, WOW!! (I heard of Reef Fanatics and Reefs.org, but stumbled on this one)

Anyway, not "exactly" a newbie:
1st salt tank 1975
1st "reef tanks" 1986 thru 1999
...last tank had CPR backpack II, Icecap 660 and I dripped in Kalkwasser, marine "snow" was "in" and Marine Depot was "newish"

...now I'm back but I am totally out of it:

• T5 HO's!!! wow
• Nitrate & phosate reactors with "bio-pellets"? ...wow!
• Controllers with internet access? WOW
• aquacultured critters all over the joint!!! wuppie!!!!

Anyway could you kind folk bring this out of date hobbyist up to speed on several things and help me build my 90G

1. DSB or Bare? this was debated when I left, whats the consensus now?
2. Algae scubbers finally dead or can the principal be applied to "Refugiums"?
3. has the 20K & 15K thing been laid to rest or did the "techies" win and 10K and below bulbs are now passe' ... also has any proof been laid down on the actinic thing or are they still being widley used? can I get a good 6 bulb mix for a T5HO ...I'm not interested in looks, just growth for LPS & softies
4. I'm thinking going with T5 HO's just because the fixtures are dirt cheap, is there a way to "overclock" them and can I adapt a commercial 6 bulb fixture to a "furniture" type canopy?
5. I'm not going to afford a Reef Octopus or $500 skimmer, that said is the Coral Life needle skimmer decent for under 250 or do I go with thte Turbofloater II or similars,,,, any recommendations for a mid-line skimmer?
6. Any ifno on the Biopellet thing..if thats "real" and works does anybody got links or direct experience?

Pardon the long winded intrusion, but thought I'd shoot my load all in one blast...
Best Regards...and hello

 

Welcome to 3reef, just got back myself late last year after 6 1/2 years off.

1. DSB or Bare? this was debated when I left, whats the consensus now? Pretty much just regular sandbed now, a lot of bare going around right now. DSB usually reserved for refugiums.
2. Algae scubbers finally dead or can the principal be applied to "Refugiums"? Some people are doing algae scrubbers (thought that was new myself but I was never into the tech side LOL).
3. has the 20K & 15K thing been laid to rest or did the "techies" win and 10K and below bulbs are now passe' ... also has any proof been laid down on the actinic thing or are they still being widley used? can I get a good 6 bulb mix for a T5HO ...I'm not interested in looks, just growth for LPS & softies Don't think anything has changed there, except now people are going to LEDs. Pretty sure you can get a good 6-bulb mix. People still love their actinics...half of them only take pics with those on so you can't tell what color anything is heheheh.
4. I'm thinking going with T5 HO's just because the fixtures are dirt cheap, is there a way to "overclock" them and can I adapt a commercial 6 bulb fixture to a "furniture" type canopy? Yes to the canopy, dunno about the other.
5. I'm not going to afford a Reef Octopus or $500 skimmer, that said is the Coral Life needle skimmer decent for under 250 or do I go with thte Turbofloater II or similars,,,, any recommendations for a mid-line skimmer? Sorry, no help there either.
6. Any ifno on the Biopellet thing..if thats "real" and works does anybody got links or direct experience? Should be lots of links out there. No direct experience here. I still try to stay pretty low-tech, but my boyfriend tries not to...it's a struggle!

 

DSB are debatable still. Bare bottom is making a comeback, a 2-3 inch sand bed is huge!
Algae Scrubbers are on their way back in, there a lot of folks swaring by it these days. I can actually say I am looking into it.
T5's are great, but LED's are AMAZING! Still high dollar, but if you are a DIY guy they can actually be affordable.
I have a Coralife Skimmer, and it's okay, it does it's job, but it's like having a non-motivated employee. I won't skim on the cheaper one next time. (pun intended)
Bio-pellets are working for a lot of folks. I am using Ecobak from Warner Marine. There is an official thread here for it. I couldnt be happier with them. ZERO nitrates and phosphates after 4 weeks of running them.

Welcome back!

 

God I hate that. As bad as that is (and it's terrible), worse are the ones who are trying to sell stuff and only use a crappy camera phone with just the actinics. Talk about a useless pic.

 

Welcome to 3reef, sounds like have done the research. I can not comment on the skimmer type or T5 fixture as I do not have enough experience with that skimmer, but I have some friends that have them and love them. The T5 I am not current on either.

 

Welcome to 3reef and back to the hobby.

You can do a 4 bulb T5HO for your desired corals and may still need to be careful on placement, some may need to be shaded. A good combo is 2 ATI Blue Plus, 1 ATI Purple Plus and 1 ATI Aquablue Special. The Aquablue is a 12000K bulb, the Blue Plus is a 20000k to 22000K bulb and the Purple Plus is a Blue Plus with red spectra added. All bulbs have lots of actinic spectrum in them.

 

+1 on that bulb selection! I'm running blues and purples in my MH and love the look. It's not super washed out in blue blue BLUE!!!!!! As far as the skimmer I wouldn't recommend the coral life skimmer, they are medeocre at best. IMO you can get away with some gadgets on the low end ($ wise) but I have the Tunze 1915 or something like that and I love it! Totally self contained! As far as bare bottom I really think it's all personal preference. I love the look of my sand substrate only because it makes me feel like I truly have a piece of the reef in my living room! Anywase!!! Welcome to 3Reef! You will find all you need nestled in this cumpfy, cozy home!

 

Appreciate the specifics...
thing is: even with all the normal "shakeouts" for hobby type discretionary spending companies, the plethora of choices of "where to buy" vexes me...

is it considered "Taboo" here to ask about prices/CS/Experiences for vendor recommendations? (all "shills" aside of course)

 

OK, got me...yeah you should see my drawer of failed products....perhaps along with an "Island of misfit Toys" they should have an Island of Misfit Aquarium junk...
I hate to admit you got me to remember my purchase of the infamous "Skilter", and perhaps I shudda learned from that....

But doggonit, I ain't the only one to sell the idea of a $400 skimmer to, "she" may not understand the purchase...Now ya'll don't laugh at me, but have the Reef Octopusses and like so totally blown away the older "RedSea Berlin" skimmers, et that I'm looking at spending $400 on just a skimmer (lest the algae wars begin?)