Am I ready to start the cycle?

[speedracered]

I just wanted to know what else I need to start my 50 Gal FOWLR and later on have corals. Can I begin my cycling process?
I have,
50 Gallon tank,
CSL smartlite PC, i believe 2 x 65 watts. not sure.
250 watt Ebo Jager,
2 Aquaclear powerheads at 225-275 GPH
30 LB dead Rock,
will get 30-40lb LR
and will get 40-50lb LS.
Is this all I need? I dont have anything else.
But I do plan on getting a CPR BakPak within 3 months or so.
Let me know what else I need

 

[speedracered]

Originally posted by Speedracered
I just wanted to know what else I need to start my 50 Gal FOWLR and later on have corals. Can I begin my cycling process?
I have,
50 Gallon tank,
CSL smartlite PC, i believe 2 x 65 watts. not sure.
250 watt Ebo Jager,
2 Aquaclear powerheads at 225-275 GPH
30 LB dead Rock,
will get 30-40lb LR
and will get 40-50lb LS.
Is this all I need? I dont have anything else.
But I do plan on getting a CPR BakPak within 3 months or so.
Let me know what else I need

I also have a big bucket or corallife salt mix, and I will probably use Culligan water for first 50 gallons.

 

[neah84]

since I started with just a tank, salt water, sand, rock, and a filter, I'd say that you can start anytme you are ready to.
Justin

 

[daredevil]

I went to Pet*o and I asked a man there how many fish you could put in a 29 gallon. He said about 6-7 small fish. Is he right because I want to find a LFS that I can trust.

 

[nudibranch]

DareDevil - Not if you want corals. IMO I would add 2-3 small ones (ie fire fish) max if you wanted to do corals.
Also IMO I would look for a reputable "mom and pop shop" for your LFS. Typically they will have knowledgeable people working there who are actually hobbyists as well. A SW only store would be awesome but not a necessity. Look for an LFS that is not "just looking to make a quick $" but one that actually wants to help develop new well informed hobbyists. Test them, ask them a question you know to be bogus (nothing too obvious) and see what they say. Can't say I've never done it.

LOL Then again I've never had the bad experiances w/ stores that I've heard people talk about.
I'm not saying that the above "mentioned" store, that shall continue to remain nameless, is bad they just don't tend to attract hobbyists w/ a lot of experiance as employees. To add a little irony, I used to work there (in AZ, I'm no expert but I've been around a while), and I was certainly one of the most knowledgeable people in the Metropolitan area. No it's not my ego that's what the GM told me.
Anyway this is nothing more than an opinion. Consider it and make your own choices. Either way, if you have a question come here and ask it if you have any doubts. This place is an awesome resource.

 

[nudibranch]

Speedracered - As soon as you add LR your tank will begin to cycle. At that point I would leave it alone and let it take it's course. You may have to do water changes durring the cycleing process if you don't get cured LR, but that shouldbe about it. Then you'll be ready for coral/fish. I would try to stay away from the classic "cycle w/ damsels" approach only because of the disasters I've heard of w/ this approach.
Daredevil - I would recommend getting about 150-200+ watts of light over you tank if you want coral. There are a number of ways you could do this, but a 250W Metal Halide light w/ 2X Actinics that run ~ the length of your tank (30"???) would allow you to keep almost anything.

 

[daredevil]

Thanks nudibranch. I just found a trustworthy LFS. The person that helped me has a 29 gallon tank and I bought a tank kit. Thanks again

 

[nudibranch]

what is your set up?

 

[speedracered]

Thanks for the excellent replies so far guys.. Very much helpful.
Do I need any type of filteration? or the LR will take the course of that?

 

[nudibranch]

If you have the skimmer you'll be all set. UV sterilizer is an added bonus for a tank ESP FO/FOWLR tanks.
BTW that light recommeddation was for Daredevil not you. I was re-reading it and saw where there might be confusion. Just wanted to clear that up.

 

[daredevil]

Nudibranch, for now I am bare bottom( tuesday my LFS is getting a shipment of live sand) but I will get LR. For now I have the stand w/cabinet, hood with light, Emperor 280 filter with carbon, a 301 Powerhead, Rena 150w heater and that's it until tuesday.

 

[nudibranch]

What kind of light? If you want coral you want to make sure you have the right light. Like I said before something in the 150W-200W would be nice.
IMO I would strip the emporer filter of all the filter media and put some LR pieces in there instead. The LR should be all the bio filtration you need. I would certainly add a protien skimmer too.
You may want to add another powerhead. In a coral reef, water flow is very important.
HTH

 

[greatfullreefer]

Originally posted by Speedracered
.
250 watt Ebo Jager,
Let me know what else I need
JMO but i would suggest 2 100 heaters as apposed to 1 250, reason being if you have a malfunction with the 250 eg:- gets stuck on, it will quickly heat up your tank to undesirable temperatures possibly killing your livestock, with 2 less powerfull heaters if one gets stuck on then the other will turn off giving you much more time to notice and correct the problem.

 

[daredevil]

2 powerheads? R u sure? My tank looks crowded already. I will definitly put pieces of LR in the filter. My light is a 20w.
Also something else. Is it true if you put a shrimp ( dead like the ones u buy from the store to eat ) in ur tank it will speed up the cycle? If u can how does the shrimp need to be?
Thanx

 

[nudibranch]

I would get mini-jet power heads if it were me and use atleast 2. You might be fine with the one PH try it out, if you start to have any cyano problems you'll need to add more.
You need a lot more light for any corals at all. A low light reef tank minimum would be about 100Ws of light. To have a full blown reef you'll need about 150-200W of light. I know of a place where you could get a 3X55W PC light set for about $170 including 3 50/50 PC bulbs. Even a 70W MH w/ 2X55W would be AWESOME ($278)! Better yet there is also a 175W MH w/ 2X55W Actinic 03 bulbs for $260. For all of these you'll have to build a canopy. Email me for more info.
If you are going to be adding LR to the tank you don't have to worry about cycling because the LR will do that for you. Leave the shrimp out, although for future reference raw is fine.
Nudibranch@luckyreef.com