• Looking to buy a cephalopod? Check out Tomh's Cephs Forum, and this post in particular shares important info about our policies as it relates to responsible ceph-keeping.

Just a beginner's checklist

http://www.melevsreef.com/what_sump.html That IMO best explains evrything you need to know about a sump, how it works, and making your own. in short it diverts water from the main big tank(AKA display tank) to a lower area through piping that you put together and is run by valves and pumps and what have you. keeping Live rock the sump would be kinda pointless because it should be in your main tank where everyone can see it.
 
oh btw i'm planning a ceph care tank as well. you should check out TONMO Cephalopod Community (or you can click the word articles at the top of the page). It's helped me alot. good luck with your planning. First one to kill their ceph loses! ......... i'm just kidding ceph death is a really tragic thing.
 
I Like Pie;113873 said:
Ok so I got the idea. Im gonna make a Skimmer-Refugium-Return sump. Also what should I put in the refugium?

Are you going to be setting up a drilled tank (reef-ready) or a standard tank with no pre-drilled holes? This will make some difference in how easy it is for you to set up a sump as a novice marine aquarist. Internal is much easier to deal with, and octo-proof.

I would go with a reasonably deep sand bed in the refugium area, chaetomorpha macro algae and a few pounds of live rock pieces. Caulerpa is a big pain in the butt, so you should probably avoid it. It is the easiest macro to grow, but it grows VERY fast and out of control and at some point will die off and turn your tank into green soup.

You can rig a shop lamp with a 75 watt flood light bulb for pretty cheap. Use that over the refugium on a timer set to come on when your tank lights go off. This will help keep your pH stable and the macro algae will grow better. Just a suggestion though. Any decent light source will work.

I wouldn't worry about what brand of sea salt to use. Instant Ocean and Red Sea both have good products IMO. Since I don't have an RO unit I buy my saltwater pre-mixed, from a variety of stores and I'm pretty sure none of them use the same brand.
 
I Like Pie;113403 said:
Also will my LFS let me take a picture of the octopus(es) they have before I buy one? Because I want to have a bimac (because their easiest). Thanks.

The store shouldn't have a problem with you taking pictures if you explain why you are taking them. They might be just as curious to find out what kind they get. A bimac won't really be any easier to care for. Their husbandry needs are well documented and they have proven to be a popular species based on their disposition. However I don't believe any particular common species in the trade is proven to be more hardy than another. As hard as it is to search out and find a specific species at a LFS I would just aim to find one of the more common species, and if you happen upon a bimac then cool.
 
Oh ok thanks a lot Animal Mother. I am still looking for the tanks and all. When I find them than I'll tell you. So I should try a internal sump? Ok I will google internal sump. Thanks again.
 

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