Did we mess up already??

[kaelyne3]

Hi everyone
Although I've been doing FW tanks for several years I am brand new to the SW hobby and am about to start my very first tank. We bought the majority of our equipment this past weekend from the LFS (of which there are only 3 options in the whole city and this one seems to have the best reputation) and have a few of questions re whether we are doing things right or not.
First off here is what we have so far:
- 37 gal tank w hood & marine flourescent lighting
- Prism protein skimmer (rated up to 100 gallons but I forget the exact model)
- Rio Powerhead 90
- Millenium Filter 3000
- Heater
- Marine specific test kit
- Thermometer
- Hydrometer
- 40 lbs Aragonite sand
Now, here are the questions:
1) Is there any other equipment we have forgotten or overlooked for this size setup for a FOWLR, or more accurately a fish/ simple invertabrate (cleaner shrimps, etc. but nothing advanced or that requires specialized lighting or additives) tank?
2) We are going to use live rock and were told we would need about 50 lbs for that size tank. Does this sound right or should we plan on more or less?
3) We were also going to use live sand but were told by the LFS that it was very difficult to deal with and that they don't recommend it for the price, for beginners, etc., etc. The short version is that he talked us out of it at the last minute and into the 40lbs of aragonite. Now I am second guessing again after finding this site. So, before we add the aragonite to the tank should we just eat the $$ spent and go back to the live sand idea? Or is it ok to use aragonite instead? What are the pros/cons to both? If we keep it does that sound like a good amount?
4) The LFS told us to put the aragonite & water in before the LR. Is this the proper procedure?
Any help, advice, suggestions or even criticisms at this point would be GREATLY appreciates before we go any further as we are really trying to start out on the right foot from the beginning to increase our chances of success.
Thanks so much for your help!!
Steph

 

[wax32]

Welcome! You have come to the right place.
1. Good start. That skimmer isn't too many people's favorite, but hey.
2. 50 pounds should be a good. Find BIG pieces, not lots of small ones.
3. Just so long as it is small grained not big chunks of shells. You want something like you see on a beach... a little bigger than sugar. IF you haven't opened yet and it IS big stuff, take it back and exchange it.
4. Yes

 

[rainfishy]

OK I dont think I'll be able to totally answer all your questians but I'll try.
1) For equipment I think you are going to need another powerhead for flow, but everything else looks fine.
2) 50 pounds of LR would be good, you could start with closer to 30 and work up over time if you don't want to or cant get it all at once.
3) IMO aragonite is fine, if it is not live it will become live in your tank over time. What size is it? You want pretty fine sand. But if it were me, and as long as we are not talking about large CC, than i would use what you have.
4) I would put some rock in before the sand, straight on the glass, then put in the sand in order to create stability
These are just my opinions based on what has worked for me and what my research has supported. Good Luck

 

[jobob]

well sand is a big deal, is it crushed coral? big pieces ( size of small pea?) or sand like beach sand. i would go and take back the crushed coral(if this is the case) and go to home depot and buy tropical play sand, southdown or yardright, onyl these kinds not any playsand. if ur not sure to the vinger test. if it fuzzes its good. then get one 10-20lb bag of the live sand and use that to seed the play sand. save a lot of money. yes 50-60lbs live rock will work. now u can use dead reef rock and seed it with live rock(just like sand) to save money. i have heard not so good things about that skimmer, u mite wanna take that back and get a bacpak skimmer, everyone on this site likes them. ask around first. other than that u look ok. as for lighting since u only want fish those lights will work. im sure u will get the coral bug and go buy better lights to keep corals,( i know i did)lol if u do the playsand deal u should rinse it out in a bucket or ur tank will look like milk!. then fill the tank up and put the salt in and wait a day then put the live sand in. i just dumped mine in, then add the live rock. then this is the hardest part, waitting 2 weeks for the cycle to end so u can add fish. but their are some things to look at ( the bugs on the live rock!) this will keep u amused untill the cycle ends. lastly ask, ask ,ask questions here before u buy anything. fish, equipment.

 

[pashari]

There is a huge debate on crushed coral or live sand as a substrate. I prefer CC but I think it's everyone's own personal choice. There are good and bad things about both. It seems to be the "fashion" to go with LS right now and most will tell you to go that way. It seems as if the CC lovers are tired of debating the issue and really don't respond too much.
I did, however, come across this really good post on the debate
https://forums.saltwaterfish.com/t/194646/live-sand-vs-crushed-coral
It has some really good advise and lists the pro's and con's of both. I just like the look of CC better.
If you do a search on this site with "CC" "DSB" "Nitrates" you'll get a good listing of posts.
Just my opinion. I'm not an expert.
lisa

 

[kaelyne3]

Thanks so much for all of your advice everyone! It is really appreciated.
The aragonite we got is the very fine stuff that looks just like beach sand or LS (not the crushed coral chunks) so it sounds from the various replies like we got the right stuff. Should we still mix it with some live sand for extra benefit?
As far as the skimmer goes we looked for the BakPak one but the Prism was the only brand that any of the stores sell out here. Is the prism bad enough that we should return it and try to find a BakPak online? Or should we stick with it for now and upgrade later on if necessary?
Lastly, should we still plan on getting a small 'cleaner crew" with the aragonite or is that only if we add the LS to it?
Thanks again and sorry for having so many question
Steph

 

[wax32]

Originally Posted by kaelyne3
Is the prism bad enough that we should return it and try to find a BakPak online?
Yes.

Your aragonite will become live sand one the junk from the live rock you will buy gets into it. No need to mix "live sand" into it.
A clean up crew will come later, once your tank has cycled (use the search button on this message board and read up on the cycle).
Questions are why we hang out here!

 

[farmboy]

Aragonite first, then sprinkle a lyer of LIVE sand all over it. This will "seed" the dead sand, and in no time, it should all have the beneficial bacteria that make our home aquariums possible. :joy:
I agree to put the rock on the glass first for stability. In my case, we have around 3-4" of sand, so some rocks almost disapeared. This is better than finding a "reef-alanche" later.

The more bio-load you have will dictate the nessecity of a bigger skimmer. I have a sea clown. . uh, I mean clone in our 75. We only have a few coral and 6 fish, though. I don't want a lot of maintenance to harsh my viewing time. ***)
HTH
. . .and WELCOME!

 

[farmboy]

I see Wax beat me to it! LIVE rock will have the same bacteria and will do the same thing to your dead, aragonite sand.
Wait for your tank to cycle before putting any critters in there. THere is no need to cycle with fish. Your live rock will probably have some die off and start the cycle. OR some folks put a raw shrimp a la shrimp cocktail in to start the cycle. (Search for it to find the method-I used live rock to start my tank cycle.) ALSO, if you know someone who has a saltwater tank, you might bum some of their ol filter media to jump start things.