How much?
- Thread starter blj1234
- Start date
S
sinner's girl
Guest
We have a 55gl. We had an undergravel filter at first (later we added the bio wheels). We have about two inches of live sand (for the ugf). The amount of lr depends on how much you want or what you want to do with your tank. In our 55 we didn't have any for about 8 months. When we took our 25gl down we added the 20-25lbs of lr to the 55gl.
We have never used tap water. We always buy our water. At wal-mart it's .33 per gl. for a fill-up (yes when we first set the tank up we did buy 55gls of water...)
I've heard some people use tap water but you have to treat it-I think there's a post about useing tapwater, you might want to read that if you don't want to buy water.
We have never used tap water. We always buy our water. At wal-mart it's .33 per gl. for a fill-up (yes when we first set the tank up we did buy 55gls of water...)
I've heard some people use tap water but you have to treat it-I think there's a post about useing tapwater, you might want to read that if you don't want to buy water.
nm reef
Active Member
blj ... Let me see if I can get ya started in the right direction...in response to your questions.....
1) for a dsb its common to set up a bed of 4-6 inches depth....to figure just how much that is use the following formula
length x width x desired depth of DSB x .0579 = amount of sand needed
2) suggested amounts of LR are 1-2 lbs per gal.....some use less others use more....I have 100+ lbs in my 55 reef
3) Personally I would strongly urge you to either locate a source for ro/di water or invest in a ro/di unit that you could use to purify you own.........apparently you use well water and we all know that there is tons of stuff in well water that may be bad for your reef......hope this helps ya a lil......*_^
1) for a dsb its common to set up a bed of 4-6 inches depth....to figure just how much that is use the following formula
length x width x desired depth of DSB x .0579 = amount of sand needed
2) suggested amounts of LR are 1-2 lbs per gal.....some use less others use more....I have 100+ lbs in my 55 reef
3) Personally I would strongly urge you to either locate a source for ro/di water or invest in a ro/di unit that you could use to purify you own.........apparently you use well water and we all know that there is tons of stuff in well water that may be bad for your reef......hope this helps ya a lil......*_^
volitan
Member
Most people recomend about 1.5 lbs of live rock per gallon of water your tank will hold. Are you planning on a fish-only or reef setup? Either way I would recommend using lr in a salt water tank. It's a great filter, and looks great. I would also definitely reccomend getting a filter to start the tank off with. It will help your tank cycle more quickly, and add water flow. Good luck!
adrian
Active Member
My suggestion would be to use the formula NM suggested and build yourself a DSB of at least 4" in depth, and then place as much rock in the tank as you wish, like said above some people stuff their tanks full of rock, and some people use much less. I have 30-40 pounds in my 55, and 110+ pounds in my 75. IMO your sandbed will provide ample area for biological filtration needs, and the rock is more for provding retreats for fish, places for coral, and looks. I like using less rock, not only because its cheaper, but it also allows much better circulation in the tank. With a deep live sand bed youll have about the same results filtration wise whether you add 2 pounds per gallon or .5 pounds per gallon. So its really up to you 
With a DSB there is also no need for a filter per say, you may want a protien skimmer, or a place to run activated carbon, but outside biological is not needed. HTH
With a DSB there is also no need for a filter per say, you may want a protien skimmer, or a place to run activated carbon, but outside biological is not needed. HTH
fshhub
Active Member
i would definitely use filtered or better yet R/O water, on a well system, often town water ahs chlorine, and this can be taken care of with a dechlorinater, but wll water has alot of other goodies in it, which may be unwanted in your tank, like iron, sulfur, or other minerals, often they are at levels that you won't visibly see, but are stilll present and it does not ake alot to give you problems in a tank
HTH
HTH
daluminum
Member
length x width x desired depth of DSB x .0579 = amount of sand needed
QB]<hr></blockquote>
you know.. this is based on alot of calculations that are of no importance.. but I found a calculator that said the density was .0673 I wonder what this has to do with particle size or what.. but I caluclated a 4-6" and got a 6-8" ... and Im glad I did.. it took about 20 extra pounds of base rock in the sand.. but a DSB looks really cool.. actually come to think of it.. the base rock in the sand probably caused the DSB to be much thicker.. so I retort.. what is the best density number for calculating a DSB.. ???
QB]<hr></blockquote>
you know.. this is based on alot of calculations that are of no importance.. but I found a calculator that said the density was .0673 I wonder what this has to do with particle size or what.. but I caluclated a 4-6" and got a 6-8" ... and Im glad I did.. it took about 20 extra pounds of base rock in the sand.. but a DSB looks really cool.. actually come to think of it.. the base rock in the sand probably caused the DSB to be much thicker.. so I retort.. what is the best density number for calculating a DSB.. ???