How Can i have corals in my tank

[ReefDream]

Just new to hobby and very much confused to have reef tank, because every single day i get different views,

Tank Details:
55Gl fish only
30 pound of live rock
60 pounds of live sand
light: 48" two light blubs 1. T5 54W Ab Actinic blue 2. T5 54W D100 10000K
Wet dry system
proteen Skimmer installed in sump (have no idea what is speed and capacity of it, sorry)
temp: 76-78

i have learnt how to maintain ph, amonia, my nitrate is about 10 may be its 20, someone told me i cant have corals if i can not maintain nitrate to 0, which seems impossible to me.

plz help me

thanks

[fishtank1980]

Hello ReefDream,

Almost every person I know that has a reef tank has nitrates most of the time.
It all depends on what kind of corals you choose to keep in your tank, LPS, SPS, Softies, or mixed..
First thing which is very important is you need to get a RO/DI system and makesure you substitute all the other needed chemicals... Calcium, Buffer, Mag, Trace Elements, Strontium... I always us Reef Crystals when it comes to adding salt, it has most of the chemicals needed in the mix and I do a 20% water change once a week.
Since my tank is over crowded I need to add more chemicals even with that salt mix. Test kits are very much needed to makesure your water is perfect or as close as possible.


Thanks, Eddie