Help me get my 30 gallon started

Hello all,

First off, my name is Ryan and I'm from SoCal. I have been keeping reef aquariums for about four years now, until recently my 30 gallon crashed. I then decided to try a temperate reef. This is where I need help.

I would love to keep a large verity of organisms ie: kelp, fish, coral, anemone, inverts, etc., but I need some info to get me started.
1. What equipment is everyone running?
I have a chiller, protein skimmer, basically a great set up for a tropical reef.

2. Can I use most of my equipment I have now and just make the water colder?

3. What is the best way (legal) to get temperate organisms?

4. How about cycling the tank? Do you need to?

I know there is alot more info that I need to know, so if you have any information to share (good or bad) just post up.

I hope to have the tank up and running by the start of January...

First of all check out the resources in the resource exchange thread and the links on the portal. Great sites for beginner information. If you are going to be collecting from tidepools the chiller you have now will suffice. However if you aren't you are going to need a chiller rate fr a larger tank. You will want the tank around 60-70 degrees for a tidepool and 55-62 degrees for anything from the ocean. For legal info i would PM C-Rad as he knows the gist of the legal stuff. All i know is that for basic collecting you need a fishing permit.

Cool, thanks for the info. The chiller I have now will chill down to 50*, so I think I will be ok on that part.

I think you will too! . Where are you going to be collecting from?

ill probably just collect off of man made objects. that way its not really disturbing the environment. How do you get your organisms?

Tidepools. I go to jetties sometimes and get crabs and nudis. Then i stick them in a container with very clean and cold water and get them to the tank asap. They are very sensitive to poor water quality.