My 55 Gallon Thread

jaxfishgirl

jaxfishgirl

Active Member
GRRRRRR my LR came in while I was at work, so the FedEx man took it to the office and they were closed!!!!!!!!!!!!
So NOW, I have to wait until the FEDEX driver pulls back into his station and I have to go pick it up. Which won't be until 530. which is also like 20 miles away.
 
jaxfishgirl

jaxfishgirl

Active Member

I about PEED in my pants when I opened up the boxes! I received 2 boxes of 45lbs of LR. Thanks to Gill

I will be adding the rest of the water tomorrow as well as the sand, i didn't want an overflow. Here are some pictures!






there are a lot of big pieces. you can't really tell from the pictures. i am so excited. my refractometer will be here on Monday, so a hydrometer will have to suffice until then.
 
jaxfishgirl

jaxfishgirl

Active Member
ok...so after hours of arranging and rearranging the rocks, i am finally happy with the way it looks. comments? suggestions?
 
gill again68

gill again68

Active Member
Ok so now that your happy with the rocks, a question. Are you going to have a bare bottom tank or sand bed? If sand you will want to consider something to lift the rock up so that you don't bury them. I used PVC pipe to elevate my rock. I wish I would have used egg crate. If you set your rock directly on top of the sand then sand digging critters can mine under and around your rock and cause slides...
Just something to think about. A mistake I made was I have the rocks on both ends of my tanks just a little to close so I cant clean the glass. You will want to avoid this. Get you mag float or what ever you will be using to clean the glass and do a run through before you get to far.
As fer as comments on the looks of things I think you are doing great. You may also consider at this stage the fact that some corals and fish love caves and darker spots of your aquarium. Its hard to see int the picture if you have these so disregard if you do.
 
jaxfishgirl

jaxfishgirl

Active Member
Originally Posted by Gill again68
http:///forum/post/3200024
Ok so now that your happy with the rocks, a question. Are you going to have a bare bottom tank or sand bed? If sand you will want to consider something to lift the rock up so that you don't bury them. I used PVC pipe to elevate my rock. I wish I would have used egg crate. If you set your rock directly on top of the sand then sand digging critters can mine under and around your rock and cause slides...
Just something to think about. A mistake I made was I have the rocks on both ends of my tanks just a little to close so I cant clean the glass. You will want to avoid this. Get you mag float or what ever you will be using to clean the glass and do a run through before you get to far.
As fer as comments on the looks of things I think you are doing great. You may also consider at this stage the fact that some corals and fish love caves and darker spots of your aquarium. Its hard to see int the picture if you have these so disregard if you do.
I am getting the sand in there tomorrow. I was "advised" to put the rocks directly on the glass before you put the sand in so the burrowing critters don't shift the rocks around. They had said to just put the sand in and move it around the rocks and use a turkey baster or your hand to blow the sand off of the rock
 
jaxfishgirl

jaxfishgirl

Active Member
So my sand is in, it's super cloudy. I rinsed the sand with RODI water really well before I placed it in the tank. But there is foam on the water surface, will that go away?? anyone?
 
jaxfishgirl

jaxfishgirl

Active Member
oh yeah....picture. I know there is a lot of sand in the front, i will be moving it around once it settles and i can see what the heck i am doing.
 
gill again68

gill again68

Active Member
The rocks will be very stable sitting directly on the glass. Some of the things I read about this was that people were able to get better flow through the rock with them elevated above the sand bed. The foam at the top can be skimmed off. Looks like your getting close now. I bet your having fun. The next trick is getting your power heads set so that you get the flow you want through your entire tank but dont blow the sand around at the same time. Cant wait to see the next picture.
 
jaxfishgirl

jaxfishgirl

Active Member
Originally Posted by Gill again68
http:///forum/post/3200786
The rocks will be very stable sitting directly on the glass. Some of the things I read about this was that people were able to get better flow through the rock with them elevated above the sand bed. The foam at the top can be skimmed off. Looks like your getting close now. I bet your having fun. The next trick is getting your power heads set so that you get the flow you want through your entire tank but dont blow the sand around at the same time. Cant wait to see the next picture.
LOL I Don't think the next picture will be for a while! The sand I used was so fine (like powder) it will be a while till it settles. This morning I can see a part of a rock. I am having a blast, my husband thinks we did something wrong since you can't see the rocks. LOL. He doesn't know much about SW tanks and how they are set up. I am by no means an expert, but I have done plenty of research to know this is normal.
The powerheads are probably going to be a pain to place right. lol
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
The sand will settle in as bacteria begin to colonize and it gets kind of "sticky". You did well to place the rock and then backfill with the sand. Get yourself a new turkey baster that will only be used with the tank. As the sand begins to settle it will be all over the rock. Use the turkey baster to gently clean the rocks off. Also use it each and every time you do a water change to gently blow on the rocks just before the change. This will suspend some of the detritus that acculumates on the rock into the water column. Then as you remove the water for the change, it will be removed with the water. This also helps the filters to remove detritus that has settled on the rock. This also as it suspends the detritus gives the coral a change to consume some of it as food.
Looking forward to seeing your continued progress here.
 
jaxfishgirl

jaxfishgirl

Active Member
Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/3200805
The sand will settle in as bacteria begin to colonize and it gets kind of "sticky". You did well to place the rock and then backfill with the sand. Get yourself a new turkey baster that will only be used with the tank. As the sand begins to settle it will be all over the rock. Use the turkey baster to gently clean the rocks off. Also use it each and every time you do a water change to gently blow on the rocks just before the change. This will suspend some of the detritus that acculumates on the rock into the water column. Then as you remove the water for the change, it will be removed with the water. This also helps the filters to remove detritus that has settled on the rock. This also as it suspends the detritus gives the coral a change to consume some of it as food.
Looking forward to seeing your continued progress here.
Thanks, that's the first thing I am doing today. buying a new turkey baster. I didn't think about "dusting" the rocks off before you do a water change. that makes a lot of sense. thanks :)
 
gill again68

gill again68

Active Member
Your right, you can see a rock in there

So now whats next? Ahhh the cycle of the tank. This is the test of the marine world. Can you wait long enough or will the pressure get you? Wait I tell ya wait.
This time is a good time to plan where your tank will go next as well as install that RODI your looking for.
 
jaxfishgirl

jaxfishgirl

Active Member
Originally Posted by Gill again68
http:///forum/post/3200996
Your right, you can see a rock in there

So now whats next? Ahhh the cycle of the tank. This is the test of the marine world. Can you wait long enough or will the pressure get you? Wait I tell ya wait.
This time is a good time to plan where your tank will go next as well as install that RODI your looking for.

well, I am a pediatric dental assistant so patience is definitely something I have. If I can deal with crying kids getting fillings done, this is a piece of cake. I can definitely wait it out.
 
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