I drive past the Banksy "mild mild west" one at least once a week. It's near where the in-laws live.

Good luck

(I use a sump return pump for mine - quite low profile in the water)

How close to the water line is it?

I've not seen any numbers, but I'd imagine its probably Goldies or Guppies in terms of volume sold. Maybe you could ask a couple of LFS near you what they sell most of? Or you could email someone like Maidenhead Aquatics Customer Services? They might give you some stats if you ask nicely

That's quite a lot of water movement.

If you are using the filter, that will give you some movement - what is the flow rate given? I'd probable go for 2 powerheads and aim for a flow rate of 10 to 20 times your tank volume.

The skimmer pump will really only give you bubbles for your "collection cup" and not add much flow (in my experience).

Lets see if we can help then

Doing lots of upfront research if definitely the right way to start

To start - lighting. yes, you can get Marine T5 tubes that fit a normal fitting. For example, you can get one in the same range as your tank - Jewel Rio T5 Marine (other shops are available) this particular one is designed to fit your tank, but if you are looking to start from scratch, you should be able to find a large range available. If you are planning on a new light unit and want to go for T5, you might want to consider getting 4 tubes if you have the room. It will give you a much better selection of corals to pick from. The normally suggested mix is 1 blue to 3 marine white - but this mat be dependant on how much DIY you want to do to your tank. LEDs are also a good way to go, but still tend to be more expensive in the short term on anything bigger than a nano tank. If you go with the 2 tube option, you should be able to get a good range of soft corals.

That's the easy bit done

Skimming - that really depends. If you are planning to stock lightly, then you can probably get away without using a skimmer. This leads on to using a filter as well. A lot of marine keepers keep away from external filters - or if they do use them, use them as a mechanical filter only, and remove ceramics. Live rock has a much greater use as a filter as it also deals with Nitrates - which can be toxic to corals in even small levels. Filters can be really good at processing Ammonia and Nitrites, but end up giving off a lot of Nitrates in turn. If you do skim (and I personally do) then you could get something like this (again, Juwel make one for converting their tanks) - it sits in the tank and is held in place by a large magnet. I believe this particular model includes the pump inside it (I have a Tunze and it is included in mine).

I have personally gone down the "tweaking" route and drilled my tank (not for the faint hearted) and had a sump built for it. In the sump, I've got a skimmer that is rated as about double the tank volume I have. I've heard that given as a rule of thumb many times.

Live rock - as Live Rock is the main filtration method, I have found it is best to add it all in one go. Cycling in a marine tank is the process of the "dead" spots in the live rock feeding the bacteria to make it safe for livestock. Every time you add more live rock, you start this cycle off again.

With my tank, I added the RO water to the tank, got it up to 25c then added the salt to get to the correct salinity. Next, I took out approximately 25% of the water (to allow for displacement), then added the live rock - topping the water back up with the 25% I took out to get it back to the correct level. Once you are all cycled (be prepared to be patient here ) I would suggest clean up crew next. I've got a mix of hermit crabs, snails and shrimp.

Corals - soft corals should be fine and normally come attached to small pieces of live rock. You can either just put them in to the tank on other live rock, or you can get putty that holds the rocks together - which can cure under water.

Anemones - please leave these alone for the first year after setting up your tank. They are very fragile and when they die, will most likely take the contents of your tank with them. The tank needs to be very mature and stable before considering these. Clowns will quite happily live without them, so don't feel you need to get one to keep them happy.

Fish - with this size tank, you've got a good selection. I'd personally go for some gobies and something like a royal gramma. Just don't be tempted to over stock or go too fast in one go. I'd probably add the gobies first. Clowns can be territorial, so I'd add them last. I think it pays to do a lot of research here - and some local fish shops are very good at telling you what they think and if it will work. I'm very lucky where I live, and there is a very good LFS that specialise in Marines.

I also find a mix of books, forums and shops will help you find the right mix of stocking - but just beware - I've seen people go with what they want to hear rather than what the majority suggest. If website 1, 2 & 3 say no, the book says no, but LFS says "that'll be okay" I'd be a bit cautious

Anyway, sorry about the length of that

I'll also add, this is just my opinion based on setting up my own tank - it's been a very steep learning curve and again, I can stress the biggest thing is patience. I set my current nano up before Christmas, and I think that I might actually be ready to put some corals in this weekend. It can take that long

If I missed anything, let me know

Hi Rach,

I've been on holiday, but was wondering if you are still looking for advice?

Si

How many T5 tubes is the new tank coming with? Do you know what the spectrum of the T5s you will be getting? It does really depend on a coral by coral basis. I've seen tanks that run 4 * T5 and have achieved good results with hard corals.

I've got T5s on my nano, which are rated to 10,000K - but my plans are for only softies, so not an issue for me.

Quote:

They are not called Thumb Splitters for nothing

I loved that too - and was on Holiday in Devon last week, and was in the Plymouth Aquarium the day after it was shown

Cathie, by the sounds of what they were saying about temp variation in the summer (due to sun on a very small water volume) it does sound like the temps would not be that much of an issue but a chiller would probably be a good idea. Most house holds like it a bit warmer in Winter

I saw Simon Garratt do something similar on Tidal Coral pools at the AL last year where he actually created a tidal tank that simulated low and high tides. He had corals out of water twice daily and it was really fascinating seeing how certain corals can cope with that.