More Questions

kelly4687

kelly4687

Member
Okay so I have more questions about my tank....
1. How often do you top off your tank? It seems like I have to atleast once a week.
2. How do you top off your tank. Right now I only have hermit crabs in there right now with live rock and sand. I have been adding tap water with dechloranator into the tank slowly. I tried the drip method but after a half hour of nothing moving through the tube I got frustrated! I add the water slowly with a cup in the one corner where the crabs aren't. Should I fill gallon buckets with water and let them sit for a few days and then add it??
3. I posted last week about my lights not working. They are 2 blue actinic,1 white, and 1 50/50 for a 55 gallon. I just pop them into the light setting, the prongs into the surge, I guess. But they aren't working and neither are the old ones now.....so I know something is up with my lighting and it's not the bulbs. I was told to check out the balast but I don't want to make it worse......could a fuse be broken or something?
4. I am scared of my live rock, yea I know I am weird to say it but after it stinging the lfs guy it scares me so after I made my bf sit them in the tank I haven't moved them and I really want to !!!!!!
5. What is ro/di???? Do I need it?
I don't have any fish yet because of the lights not working and I have all of those questions I want answered first. I need help before I move any further in this. I don't want to kill any fish!!! Thanks everyone!
 
E

eric b 125

Guest
Originally Posted by kelly4687
http:///forum/post/2962705
Okay so I have more questions about my tank....
1. How often do you top off your tank? It seems like I have to atleast once a week.
I top off my 125g w/ a gal/day. if you're topping of around a gallon in a 55, then that is a HUGE sway in salinity in your water.
2. How do you top off your tank. Right now I only have hermit crabs in there right now with live rock and sand. I have been adding tap water with dechloranator into the tank slowly. I tried the drip method but after a half hour of nothing moving through the tube I got frustrated! I add the water slowly with a cup in the one corner where the crabs aren't. Should I fill gallon buckets with water and let them sit for a few days and then add it??
you should be adding water that is the same temp and pH as your tank water.
3. I posted last week about my lights not working. They are 2 blue actinic,1 white, and 1 50/50 for a 55 gallon. I just pop them into the light setting, the prongs into the surge, I guess. But they aren't working and neither are the old ones now.....so I know something is up with my lighting and it's not the bulbs. I was told to check out the balast but I don't want to make it worse......could a fuse be broken or something?
always start with the most simple fix first. i would check fuses.
4. I am scared of my live rock, yea I know I am weird to say it but after it stinging the lfs guy it scares me so after I made my bf sit them in the tank I haven't moved them and I really want to !!!!!!
LR cannot sting you. the dude at the LFS could have put his hand in a tank that had stray voltage going through it, or there could be the remnants of a stinging coral on one of your rocks.
5. What is ro/di???? Do I need it?
Reverse osmosis, and i believe the DI is deionized, but i could be wrong. these units are highly recommended. you could call your water treatment facility to find out the exact composition of the water, but usually they'll dose the water a few times of year when it's not so clean. a $150 purchase now could save you thousands down the road. i personally don't have one, and haven't had any problems, but it is next on my shopping list because i'd rather not risk it.
I don't have any fish yet because of the lights not working and I have all of those questions I want answered first. I need help before I move any further in this. I don't want to kill any fish!!! Thanks everyone!
It can be frustrating at first, with all the information, chemistry, etc. but you're doing what you should be doing and that's asking questions. take it slow, and you'll learn everything you need to know as you put one foot in front of the other. this site is an amazing source of information from people who just want to help.
 
tank a holic

tank a holic

Active Member
1. Depends on your tank size, the more surface area the more evaporation... when water evaporates the salinity of your water goes up so the longer you wait the larger the swing in your salinity, some hardy species can handle this, some cant...
I top my 125 off every other day
2. I have a 30 gallon tub of RO/DI water sitting around, I just use a pitcher and dump it in slowly in front of the power head...
I'm working on an auto top off though
3. not sure about your lights, have you tried something else in the outlet, is it hooked to a ground fault interrupt?
4. never heard of live rock stinging but you can use those rubber surgeons gloves and nothing will get you
5. Reverse osmosis / De ionization it is very pure filtered water and the general consensus is no you don't need it, yes you should have it, especially if you're doing corals, with fish only its not as crucial
hope i helped
 
bountyhunter23

bountyhunter23

Member
It depends how fast your water evaporates. My tank had an open top and it needed water everyday. I put a glass canopy on top and it cut down on the evaporation. YES you absolutely need RO/DI water. Tap water has trace elements in it that you dont want, such as copper. RO stands for reverse osmosis, it is simply water that has been filtered using a membrane. I used tap water at one point and then i had a red algae outbreak and it took awhile for it to go down. As far as the lighting it could be a number of things. Call the company or call ur LFS and see if someone there knows a thing or two about lights. Maybe you could take it in and they could look at it.
 
bountyhunter23

bountyhunter23

Member
Originally Posted by tank a holic
http:///forum/post/2962752
1. Depends on your tank size, the more surface area the more evaporation... when water evaporates the salinity of your water goes up so the longer you wait the larger the swing in your salinity, some hardy species can handle this, some cant...
I top my 125 off every other day
2. I have a 30 gallon tub of RO/DI water sitting around, I just use a pitcher and dump it in slowly in front of the power head...
I'm working on an auto top off though
3. not sure about your lights, have you tried something else in the outlet, is it hooked to a ground fault interrupt?
4. never heard of live rock stinging but you can use those rubber surgeons gloves and nothing will get you
5. Reverse osmosis / De ionization it is very pure filtered water and the general consensus is no you don't need it, yes you should have it, especially if you're doing corals, with fish only its not as crucial
hope i helped

I disagree on the RO part. Even with fish your tank can go to crap with tap(haha that rhymed) Unless your cities tap is really good then i do agree, but my city(knoxville TN) has pretty good water and i still had problems using tap.
 
kelly4687

kelly4687

Member
Okay- so I read your post and I am convinced that I obiviously need one....so where do I start??? When I do get one should I empty out my tank?? I mean I did have some mean looking algae in there but I kept the lights off for like 3 days (when they worked
) and the algae went away.
I have a 55 gallon with about 75lbs of live rock and about 5 hermit crabs. I am not adding any fish until all of my facts are straight and I am more educated about this. I am so glad I found this place for all of you to help me!!!! Can you let me know where I can get one..I am not trying to go cheap but I am a full time student with a full time job trying to get by in this lovely economy! How much would one cost me?
 
jackri

jackri

Active Member
100-150 bucks?
I ordered on from airwaterice dot com
You don't need to empty out and start over..but just do water changes with it from now on with it.
 
kelly4687

kelly4687

Member
Perfect. So I just looked on there and found one for 139.95-compact 5 stage rodi. Would that do?
Also how does this darn thing work? I am trying to kick this cold I have had for weeks now so things I would usually understand, I am now not getting!!!! What does it do?
 
jackri

jackri

Active Member
It will go through different sized filters for the RO portion... 10 micron, then 5 micron down to 1 micron -- each time removing more from the water.
When it gets to the DI portion theres a membrane that further reduces your TDS.
Really all you do is tap into a water source like an ice maker for a fridge, and the rest is "plug and play". Just push in a water line here or there (instructions are pretty easy) and you're good to go. Mine goes under the kitchen sink and we drink off the RO side -- got the dual reef keeper and has a 3 gallon storage tank for drinking. The water comes out pretty slow.. so it will take an hour to get a gallon or so of water.
Also -- remember which type you got for when you're ready to order replacement filters.
Hope this all helped
 
kelly4687

kelly4687

Member
And you drink from that too??? Doesn't it take out needed elements for your health, teeth, etc????
When you are filling up your tank, do you just let it fill up in a bucket and walk away doing other things while waiting?
 
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