New 50 Gallon, so confused!

I have recently received a new 50 gallon glass tank for Christmas.
Merry Christmas to me. I have kept smaller sal****er tanks for several
years (3-12 gallon Eclipses) and have had great success. However, I am
lost with this newest endeavor. I have read volumes of information now
in attempt to find the best choice for a filtration system for the new
tank. I am so confused! Any help that could be offered would be greatly
apprectiated.

I plan on keeping 20-30 lbs of live rock, assorted inverts (shrimp,
urchins, crabs, snails, etc...), and likely seahorses. The seahorses
are the big decision, I currently have several seahorse tanks and they
limit the choice of other creatures in the tank. I have not yet decided
whether or not to do them, but regardless I still need filtration. No
matter what I put in the tank, it will not consist of large amounts of
fish, but instead will be heavier on invertebrates.

I had originally thought a sump system would be the best, but I now
have no idea! Another important factor is my limited budget. As a
college student working as a part-time chemistry tutor I am not exactly
loaded. The LFS's have been little help in helping me find effective
yet inexpensive solutions (go figure). I am totally open to any
suggestions from those of you who are more experienced in the aquatic
arts then myself.

Here is what I am planning on so far:
Crushed Argonite (2 inches) or Sugar Sand Bed (1.5 inches)
20-30 lbs live rock (transferred from other tanks and newly purchased)
Ultra Compact Lighting

Please Help.

I would bump up the amount of live rock and allow the LR to handle all your
bio filtration needs. Add a decent protein skimmer into the mix and you're
good to go. Canisters and Power Filters are way not needed anymore. Sump
system is a good idea also. If you choose not to go with the sump system the
Aqua C Remora Pro is the best HOT skimmer on the market.

I have a 72gal bowfront with 100lbs of LR and the Remora Pro. The tank had
no overflow and my budget didn't allow me to get the HOT overflow and sump
thing. My tank has been running 18 months with very very few issues.


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I have recently received a new 50 gallon glass tank for Christmas.
Merry Christmas to me. I have kept smaller sal****er tanks for several
years (3-12 gallon Eclipses) and have had great success. However, I am
lost with this newest endeavor. I have read volumes of information now
in attempt to find the best choice for a filtration system for the new
tank. I am so confused! Any help that could be offered would be greatly
apprectiated.

I plan on keeping 20-30 lbs of live rock, assorted inverts (shrimp,
urchins, crabs, snails, etc...), and likely seahorses. The seahorses
are the big decision, I currently have several seahorse tanks and they
limit the choice of other creatures in the tank. I have not yet decided
whether or not to do them, but regardless I still need filtration. No
matter what I put in the tank, it will not consist of large amounts of
fish, but instead will be heavier on invertebrates.

I had originally thought a sump system would be the best, but I now
have no idea! Another important factor is my limited budget. As a
college student working as a part-time chemistry tutor I am not exactly
loaded. The LFS's have been little help in helping me find effective
yet inexpensive solutions (go figure). I am totally open to any
suggestions from those of you who are more experienced in the aquatic
arts then myself.

Here is what I am planning on so far:
Crushed Argonite (2 inches) or Sugar Sand Bed (1.5 inches)
20-30 lbs live rock (transferred from other tanks and newly purchased)
Ultra Compact Lighting

Please Help.