What do I need for a beginner tank

[Devilutionz]

Hi guys
I'm gonna pick up my first saltwater tank this weekend. I've had freshwater tanks before, and it's pretty easy but never had a saltwater tank. I know it's gonna be a lot more complicated, so please help me out.
I need to know what I will need for a complete system.
I'll be picking up (estimating) a 120 gallons curve glass tank. The lightning system comes with 2x15w and 2x25w tubes. That's about it. My brother is giving me his old sump, and skimmer.
What else do I need to complete the system. (I'll be setting up a community tank first, perhaps with some corals later).
Can I reuse his old rocks, which are dried and dead a long time ago?
And can somebody explain to me the water cycle. For instance, water in tank will get to the overflow box, then to the sump, passed the bio-balls .. then ... ???
Is pump / powerhead the same thing and their function is just to pump water from one place to the other?. Beside the sump do I need an extra canister filter?
Sorry, so much questions already Thanks all

 

[BlueBear]

hey hey, i just started my tank a bit over a week now, just wanted to say welcome. from reading everything so far i got pretty confused about salt aquarium, but here are some stuff i think i understood so here goes... about cycling i heard just dump bunch of live rocks or dead then pour over live sands and wait it out until the amnonia and nitrite peak then falls then you are ready to add stuff to the tank, after cycling add clean up crew since tank should be be gross looking and need cleaning. now about lighting, i am running a 30 gallon with a power compact 36 w and dual t5 fixtures 14 w (no bulbs yet). i say get more lighting the more the better. someone correct me if i am wrong, thx. I believe you should use your old buddy's dead rock and sand because after the cycling process i believe they will become alive again due to the amount of good bacteria in your tank. that is all i know for now. =) have fun, and gl

 

[MechaSamurai]

Welcome to the hobby.

Salt is more complicated than fresh and the learning curve is steeper so take everything slow and easy. You can find a lot of information if you search, and anything you can possibly imagine has already been discussed somewhere. If you do your research you are less likely to get frustrated or lose fish.

A fish only (FO) or Fish Only With Live Rock (FOWLR) tank is probably the easiest to keep alive and if the water quality drops a little you are less likely to lose anything.

The lighting you described sounds very week, it may be OK for fish but most corals will not survive.

Cycle the tank and take your time with everything, if you rush you will have problems. This hobby works best with a lot of patience.

 

[Devilutionz]

Thanks guys for your advice
How long does it take for dead rocks to be cured? I got some nice porous rocks from my bro.
Is pump & powerhead the same thing? How many pump do I need for my system. Right now I don't have any pump. Do I need one for the skimmer? One for water return? One for circulation, and anything else??? and do all of them have to have equivalent rate?

 

[silverarrow27]

Skimmers usually require pumps, you may want to ask your brother about the pump it originally came with or just find the make and model so you can look up the pump recommended for the skimmer. If you have an overflow, then yes you must have a return pump.

As for circulation, you'll need powerheads. Depending if you're going fish only or reef tank, that should tell you how many powerheads and at how much gph you'll need to keep your corals happy in the future. Some corals do better with more flow than others, it'll be trial and error.