My own newbie thread

iidylii

iidylii

Active Member
Seeing as how I think I'm gonna have questions here and there I figure this might be easier then creating hundreds of threads...

So today I will be starting with a question about my qt tank...seeing as how copper is bad for the display tank my question is...if I am treating a fish with copper...how would I transfer the fish to the display without getting copper transferred?
 
iidylii

iidylii

Active Member
But won't it have remnants of copper on it?

I just didn't know how critical one needs to be considering ppl say not to even use the same net, heater, power head etc?
 
jay0705

jay0705

Well-Known Member
If ur talking a 10gal tank yes. U could have an issue. But a little residual in a larger tank will be fine. I treated a coral beauty for ich and while in qt added a naso tang. Never showed any signs but I was already treating the angel. 6 wks in qt then added to my display w shrimp, crabs, anemones, snails. No issues at all
 
iidylii

iidylii

Active Member
Sounds good jay thanks...do u recommend automatically using copper in the qt even if there's no signs of anything wrong?
 
iidylii

iidylii

Active Member
I'm sorry I have so many questions but I'm just new to this whole sump thing I guess...

My next question is...as I have stated in other threads, I have a 93 gal cube with about 60lbs of sand and 115 lbs of live rock and a 120gal sump...the guy I bought the setup says he recommends running no sand in the sump but rather just my skimmer and the 2 phosban reactors...should I also have some sort of macro algae in the sump as well?
 
lmforbis

lmforbis

Well-Known Member
I have no sand and keep a few chunks of live rock and chaeto in the refugium section of the sump. I use a 23W flourescent bulb from Home Depot to light it. I have a skimmer in it and that is it. I have a GFO and carbon reactor on order that I will add but they will be next to not in my sump.
 
iidylii

iidylii

Active Member
I have just become a sump guy jay lol because there was no passing up the deal I got...hence all the noon questions...as soon as I get past the sump questions I'm familiar with the rest for the most part :~}

Another issue I just realized...like I said when I bought this I had no idea of what I was doing for the most part...my sump is just an open floor plan...no chambers and what not...is this an issue or will it do fine? Just wondering how I will keep chateo in there without the sump sucking it through
 
pegasus

pegasus

Well-Known Member
iidylii said:
I have just become a sump guy jay lol because there was no passing up the deal I got...hence all the noon questions...as soon as I get past the sump questions I'm familiar with the rest for the most part :~}

Another issue I just realized...like I said when I bought this I had no idea of what I was doing for the most part...my sump is just an open floor plan...no chambers and what not...is this an issue or will it do fine? Just wondering how I will keep chateo in there without the sump sucking it through
Click to expand...
Without baffles, it's just a reservoir. It can be used as a sump for the skimmer as is, but if you want to use macro algae for nutrient export, you'll need to be able to keep it separate from the skimmer and return pump. That's where baffles come into play. You can buy glass or Plexiglas panels and install your own baffles. There are lots of diagrams on the net to show how it's done. The easiest way is to stand the tank on one end, and use pieces of wood to hold the panels in place until the silicon cures.
 
iidylii

iidylii

Active Member
pegasus said:
Without baffles, it's just a reservoir. It can be used as a sump for the skimmer as is, but if you want to use macro algae for nutrient export, you'll need to be able to keep it separate from the skimmer and return pump. That's where baffles come into play. You can buy glass or Plexiglas panels and install your own baffles. There are lots of diagrams on the net to show how it's done. The easiest way is to stand the tank on one end, and use pieces of wood to hold the panels in place until the silicon cures.
Click to expand...
right I think the previous owner just used it as a reservoir for his skimmer and reactors...that's what I thought basically I just wanna keep the algae from getting sucked out by the pump and or by the skimmer...I guess im glad im learning this before I get to far into it...wish I would have asked this before it was all filled with water :mad: lol
 
iidylii

iidylii

Active Member
jay0705 said:
Lol no no I was being a smartass. Idk if u can do it w water.
Click to expand...
well either way im in the curing process right now anyways so in a few weeks I will be doing 100% water change and then let it cycle for another 2 weeks or so and then start adding livestock...while its empty I can at that point put some chambers in the sump :)
 
iidylii

iidylii

Active Member
jay0705 said:
Why the total water change?
Click to expand...
well when I bought the tank setup all of the rock that he was using in the tank had been sitting out drying for quite some time...and I watched some bulk reef supply videos about curing your rock...now they say to make sure your rock is cured before you add it to your tank...since I will be curing my rock inside the actual tank I will be eventually using...I thought I should probably throw out all the water that will be used in the curing process to remove any harmful things that may have come from curing the rock? idk maybe that makes no sense lol....but anyways I was told after I cure the rock for 3-4 weeks...I should then empty the tank and refill the tank at which point the tank will take approximately 1-2 more weeks to cycle and will then be ready to add livestock? this is the impression I got when I talk to the BRS guys who I actually called on the phone after watching the video...but anyways if I am not doing this properly any advice would be helpful as always :D
 
iidylii

iidylii

Active Member
I guess another question I have is....do I actually even need to use any algae in my sump? I only ask because I have a phosban reactor 150 and a 550 and from what ive been reading this seems like overkill lol...so like I said will these 2 reactors do the job and allow me to just use my sump as a reservoir without algae or...what would any of you guys thoughts about this be?

any questions about how I have things set up so far are welcome...
 
jay0705

jay0705

Well-Known Member
Honestly, you had base rock at that point. If your concerned w "bad" water just test it. Any ammonia means u did and still have Dead matter on the rock. Otherwise add a piece or two of fully cured live rock more life on it the better. This will help seed your other rock. You can take out all the water if you want to help w your sump. If u do tho keep that rock wet and aerated while its out of the tank
 
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