live sand question

[daisy]

If the first things I intend to put into a brand new setup are live sand and live rock, should I put already-mixed, aged saltwater in the tank before I order the sand and the rock? It seems to me that this makes sense, since the sand and rock will come with critters that are used to living in seawater, and would not take kindly to freshwater being mixed with salt all around them.
Also, when the SWF.com page says that the live sand comes "full of critters," are these critters that I can actually see, or are these bacteria and other microscopic dudes that while important, are not actually worms, stars, hermits and other animals I would call "critters?"
Thanks!

 

[tjkohler]

You should mix the saltwater outside the tank. It wouldn't hurt to have the saltwater already in the tank before you put the LS and LR. However, it would probably be better to put the LS in first and then put something on top of the sand while adding the water so that it doesn't get to cloudy. It won't hurt the critters for it to be cloudy, just your eyes. Just don't mix the saltwater in the tank because there will be small amounts of salt that don't desolve right away and you don't want any salinity spikes later on.

 

[reefs_rock]

daisy
I'll address the second part of your question.
are these critters that I can actually see
Live sand comes with a myriad of living creatures, some you can see and some you cannot. The creatures you can see are mysid shrimp and various copapods, worms and the things you can't see like bacteria. I would suggest that after you set the tank up and add the rock and sand you contact an on-line supplier and spend about $100 on a critter package.
You'll receive additional copapods, mini-stars, bristleworms, various snails and some small hermits. This will super charge your bio-diversity.
I also recommend the book, "Natural Reef Aquarium" by John Tullock
Good luck.

 

[daisy]

Awesome -- thanks for the advice!