The Puffer Forum

Ok I have a 2.5" GSP in a brackish tank right now i am not planning on going full marine untill he gets more mature but since cash is always a little tight andthe wife hates when I go splurge on a bunch of stuff for my tank i have decided to start buying equipment for marine here and there. I have been looking at different setups and right now i am so confused on what kind of setup i would need for my 1 gsp. Should i setup a FOWLR or just a FO or something else. Plus what is the big difference between them and what equipment would i need for the right setup. I just wanna get this right and rigt now i feel overwhelmed haha. any advice would be appreciated.

Just converted my BW to salt his weekend for my GSPs. I have FOWLR. I chose to have a sump under the tank (for the extra water volume & to hide the skimmer). I had 2 filters on my BW tank - one large external & one smaller internal - I have removed the large one & will just run the smaller one until I am happy that the live rock is established & going the job.
So, save up for: skimmer, ?sump ?return pump (if you have a sump), live rock, a powerhead or 2 & some pipes & fixings.

ok so i am already looking into skimmers but whats the difference in FOWLR and FO setups because dont they both use live rock?? and also would i still keep my filter system i have now once i get the skimmer??? and what about powerheads is it something i have to have or what?? and the sump is it also something that is a must for a marine tank?? i feel like i need a book "marine tanks for dumbies" there is just so much stuff that i dont understand about marine tanks yet but im trying to do more and more research

and also is lighting changed for a marine tank to keep the growth on the live rocks??

FO: fish only
FOWLR: fish only with live rock
FO; think of PETCO's display tanks.

Depending on what you want to keep.....that is the starting point.

You will need increased lighting, and a skimmer....if you plan on inverts and certain corals, etc.

I just finished converting my BW eel tank to SW recently.

I am basically doing a FOWLR set up....keeping my filters from BW because I do not have room for a sump and I have added 35 lbs of LR.

Right now I just have dual T5 NO 10,000K lights and the polyps and mushrooms I have are doing great. I will be upgrading to T5 HO's in 2 wks. LR itself doesn't need high lighting...just the stuff you want to grow on it.

I don't have a huge bio-load and I won't be adding any delicate corals or inverts so I won't be adding a skimmer yet.

ya i wont be doing any reef since from what ive read gsps and reefs dont mix so then will i still need different lighting?? and if i just keep my brackish water filter and add live rock too it there is no need for a sump correct??

The entire purpose of bringing a GSP from high-end BW to SW is to be able to incorporate SW filtration for your system. This includes protein skimmer, live rock & goo flow. then you can remove your FW filtration & do less water changes.

ok think i can handle that so one last thing no one answered... are powerheads a must??

is this a good protein skimmer a guy that i work with has one for sale for cheap..... Seaclone Protein Skimmer 150

I think PP meant to say good flow instead of goo flow so to answer your question yes you do need powerheads.

haha ok thanks everyone for your input hoping to start getting everything together now

o and one more thing... when selecting live rock should i get dry rock and go through the curing process rather than buying it cured... and if so is it ok to put the dry rock into the aquarium once i get the protein skimmer or do i have to cure it in another tank because the only onther tank i have is a 10 gallon and i dont see 50 lbs of rock fitting in there

Seaclowns are crap.

I know this is old, but I need help too. My gsp's won't be full marine for a while but I want to be prepared. Let's say I don't want a sump...what do I do then? At what salinity can I begin to add LR? Also, I won't be doing corals...the only fish in there will be a gsp. What type of filtration would be needed without a sump...this all confuses me!