Cycling my new tank

[jonathon0883]

I am brand new to the whole saltwater tank hobby and I just want to make sure that I get off on the right foot. I have been cycling my 10 gallon for alittle over 2 weeks now and I need to know if there are any steps I want to make sure the process goes smoothly. I have 4 pounds of live sand underneath about 2" of what was dry sand with a layer of crushed coral on top. I have 3 pieces of base rock and about a pound of live rock on top of it. My LFS is called Inland Aquatics and they are probably one of the better stores in the midwest. I have a penguin bio-wheel filter running all the time with what I am pretty sure is a 25 watt heater. My lighting is a 28 watt PC, my lfs said this would be good for soft corals but not hard, now is my live rock going to die or something because my lighting is only for soft coral or am I alright? I now have like brown algae growing on the sand and parts of the glass. Do I need a powerhead? well I dont even really know what those are but they seem to be common when reading everyones specs. When i put my rocks in the tank do i need to push them into the sand or just leave them on top? should I leave my light on all the time too? As you can see i have a ton of questions but I would hate to do it wrong and kill a fish or whatever for some stupid reason that I didnt know about. Thank you to anyone who takes the time to help me and im glad to be part of a community like this!

 

[saltym3]

no bites yet so guess I'll throw in what i can for help. Your doing the right thing about asking and welcome aboard. Are you only using the live rock to cycle the tank? If you already havent picked one up you need to get a test kit to check the levels for ammonia, nitrate, nitrites to see where you are in the cycle. Im not sure why you have crushed coral on top of the sand, a sand bed would of been your best choice. You should have a powerhead to circulate the water and cure any dead spots in the tank. If the rocks are secure where they wont move if anything bumps into them than i would not worry about them. Otherwise the best bet was to put the base rock in before the sand was poured in. If you have any questions, just ask everyone is here to help.

 

[mchandler]

First of all, welcome. Make sure you ask PLENTY of questions here. Also search the forumns. Everyone is very helpful. Sounds like you did some research first. The biggest thing is: TAKE YOUR TIME. I wanted to rush and go buy every type of fish i could when i got my tank. It's so hard to resist that urge. I would get a bigger [submersable] heater maybe 50 watts - temp will be more stable. Many people don't like crushed coral [cc] because uneaten food and waste gets stuck in gravel causing ammonia, and other element spikes. I have 2 seperate lights on my system. I have them on plain old timers i got from home depot. One comes on at 9am; the other at 915a; both on from 915 to 730p; at 730p one goes off; then the other does - that way the light is gradual. Although if you have corals they may require special lighting situations. I just stacked my Live Rock (LR) on each other on top of sand; although i know they make some sort of glue or something...good luck.

 

[jonathon0883]

Well, i have a 50 watt heater and i just thought it was a 25, do powerheads come in sizes for 10 gallon tanks? and my lfs told me to put cc on top of the sand because I if have a jawfish or something that burrows then it will help support the hole or something like that...do i need to start taking it out? or is it going to be alright in there? What about the brown algae stuff on my walls what is that?

 

[elan]

i would get a few books. First off, get
The Conscientious Marine Aquarist: A Commonsense Handbook for Successful Saltwater Hobbyists - Robert M. Fenner
Its a great, in depth starter book on setting up your tank and different methods of doing so. Easy to read, and explains alot of answers to questions you are asking and will be asking as your adventure continues.
then, Aquarium Corals : Selection, Husbandry, and Natural History by Eric H. Borneman if you are interested in a reef tank.
I just got the book by Borneman and its basically a "school text" book for corals. i am only on page 30, but by flipping though the book, i think its a well written, in depth, very knowledgeable, and unbiased, and the pictures are amazing!

I also had a poll on here called "Can someone suggest a book??" where i got some people to vote their opinion.
good luck, and keep us informed.

 

[overanalyzer]

First - Welcome!!
As Kip said - brown algea stuff means you are progressing nicely.
I would remove the crushed coral and if you get a jawfish or what not you can add it to the tank in an area where you want the jawfish to locate. Personally - would not put a jawfish in a 10 gallon - they tend to leap out.
Do a search for different books to read up on the whole hobby.
I have heard and read about inland - they come highly recommended by several different books I have read. I am jealous!!
Sounds like you are off to a good start - I use live sand and live rock to cycle my tanks. I would bury the base rock since it helps it come alive faster but otherwise patience is the key!!
Good luck and post some pictures of your tank when you can!

 

[jonathon0883]

I asked my lfs if i should remove the cc and they seemed to believe that any shrimp, hermits...etc would clean the cc and it wouldnt make much difference..What if i just pushed it all to one side? is an inch layer of cc over my sand make a difference or something...also does anyone put algae in their tanks? my lfs said it would help with the filtering and they recommended a grape somethingorother...it started with a C and just cant remember how to pronounce it...the lady i talked to said it was a tangs favorite food...i am sure somebody out there knows what im talking about So back to my question should i add algae?

 

[elan]

IMO, it depends on what kind of tank you eventually want to have. It seems like you want a reef tank, and if so, you are probably going to want to get something like a goby or other small fish that will sift the sand for you. CC will be way too hard for the goby to sift through. As far as the crabs and shrimp eating stuff in your CC, mine didnt, and when i replaced my CC with sand, there was so much detrius and other stuff in my CC, IME, the crabs didnt do much. And, i dont think the crabs and shrimp eat detrius which is what you will eventually will have to clean somehow (vacuming).
IMO, get rid of all the crushed coral before its too late.

 

[overanalyzer]

I have seen some pictures of people who keep macro algea's in their tanks but with a ten gallon tank you are going to be limited enough on space so I would not waste any of it on Crucshed Coral or Caulerpa. In a ten gallon you could do a nice little nano reef (nano reefs are generally tanks smaller than 29 gallons - not sure who came up with this but I am propogating the myth/fact as it makes sense).
I think you need to start asking yourself - What do I want in this tank and how much time, effort and money and I willing to put into the hobby?

 

[jonathon0883]

Well I plan on taking the cc out, will this affect my cycling at all? im getting towards the end of the process and i would hate to do anything to render that. Is a nano reef anything special or is that just the name for a small reef tank? So the macro algae is also bad...well im learning a lot, thanks everyone

 

[overanalyzer]

Originally posted by jonathon0883
Well I plan on taking the cc out, will this affect my cycling at all? im getting towards the end of the process and i would hate to do anything to render that.
I would pull it out based on the amount of live rock and live sand you put in there might be a bit of hiccup when you remove the CC, but nothing major. I would be very careful to not lose any water. A water change or addition at this point would prolong your cycle.
Is a nano reef anything special or is that just the name for a small reef tank?
A nano reef is a rewarding but time consuming portion of the hobby. Since you have delicate corals and inverts in the tank you have to pay close attention to the water parameters and tank conditions. In a larger tank if you have a slight change it is not as dramatic because you have a greater water volume. In a nano you have very little if any wiggle room.
So the macro algae is also bad...well im learning a lot, thanks everyone
The macro algea is not BAD - it is just not appropriate in your case.
This whole hobby is one long learnign process. Once someone tells you they know everything then I would become very leery of what they say!!
From your knowledge level and where you are at I would suggest looking at making your tank a FOWLR right now - which is a Fish Only With Live Rock. You could do some damsels and/or a clownfish and small goby or a firefish tank.
That is just my opinion.

 

[jonathon0883]

The lighting I have doesnt support hard corals but only soft so I didnt really plan on doing anything but a couple different types of crabs, shrimp, and slugs with one or two clown fish and maybe a jawfish or goby....This is what you mean by just fish only right? anything else would be like a featherduster or anemones which would be harder to support in a small tank..?? is that what you mean?

 

[overanalyzer]

not really - what I meant by fish only was no inverts, no soft or hard corals - just fish and rocks.
I would say you would be OK with some inverts and some simple corals to start - like shrooms, polyps, maybe some zooanthids.
I'd forget the slugs as sea slugs can be difficult and can pollute tanks.
If you do clownfish they will have to be small ones - like 2 tank raised percs or tank raised false percs. That would max out your bioload. (probably overload it even)
I'd forget the jawfish entirely - they jump and they can get pretty good sized.
You could do some clown gobies and a shrimp goby or firefish (which are types of gobies) - a school of 3 firefish would be pretty and would set off your soft corals (some people will jump on me for 3 firefish in a 10 gallon).

 

[jonathon0883]

what do you mean when you say set off my soft corals? im guessing its good since you recommended the 3 firefish but i just wanted to make sure...i appreciate your help on this...do you recommend a powerhead for a tank this small..right now i have a over the back bio-wheel filter and a air pump with an air stone...just curious on your opinion.

 

[overanalyzer]

offset in terms of color - the bright reddish orange with some ruddy brown and electric green shrooms would look nice (imo)
Uhm no way in heck should you use an airstone - they cause a ton of salt creep.
I would use a HOB (hang on back) filter. A lot of people are down on them but in a smaller tank it is a good place to add some water volume (not a lot but in small tanks every little bit counts), it allows you a place to run carbon and poly filters and it adds to your water movement. So I would go ahead and get one and use it.
Also I'd get a power head or two - depends on your tank set-up but I am currently setting up a 20 gallon tall to breed clownfish and I plan on 1 HOB and 3 powerheads. they are all low volume but I am planning on aiming one down low across the back of my rocks. One across the top of my rocks and one to manuever my clownfish into a place where I can gather the eggs rather easily instead of having them be behind rocks or hidden in caves ....

 

[overanalyzer]

and no problem - happy to help out!!