New Reef Tank Advise

[peppy]

Did a terrible thing and bought a new tank on impulse decision. 100g uniquarium w/ built in wet dry. JBJ retro deluxe lighting x2. Also 100 lb of tonga live rock, 80 lbs aragonite live sand. Guys from shop came over and set up on the 3/16. Put in sand, mixed water in tank, added cured rock and starter chems. 3/18 salinity was a little high added 5g fresh water salinity now 1.027. Put in digital temp gauge water about 70 day and night. I read it needs to be closer to 80 / 84? Added 10 teaspoons nitromax live bacteria, 1 teaspoon biozyme bacteria and 10 damsils. Still reading everything I can get my hands on, any other advise.

 

[stacyt]

My recommendations would be to lower your salinity to 1.024-1.025, and raise your temp to mid to high 70's. Also you may want a little more LR. Just remeber to research before you buy anything. Have you tested the water for Ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, and ph?

 

[leigh]

Yah, lower that salinity,...you're essentially dehydrating your damsels. And 10 damsels! 1) they're horrible to get out if you ever want anything else in that tank. And 2) 10 fish in a brand new tank is cruel and unusual. they're damsels so they may well make it, but talk about rough. I'd fish out the damsels while you can return them for store credit and let the tank cycle fishless. if you're really itching for a fish maybe keep one of them...but 10 is overkill. Check your ammonia, nitrates, nitrites and ph...when nitrites are 0, then think about fish.
just my 2c. -leigh

 

[peppy]

That is the info I'm looking for. From what I read on tank cycling it sounded like damsils were the way to do it? I could have cycled the tank just with the rock?

 

[stacyt]

There are a couple of ways to cycle the tank. I used store bought frzen shrimp to cycle my last couple of tanks. Just throw a peice in, and leave it there for a couple of days. If the LR is uncured the die off will also cycle the tank.

 

[peppy]

I noticed that advise to a couple of other posts on this site. I've never heard of that one before and have not read about that anywhere on the net when I look up cycling reef tanks? Where did you get that info? How long does it take to complete the cycle in that way?

 

[stacyt]

If you do a search in the beginners forum you should be able to find several posts about cycling using a raw shrimp. As far as how long it takes, hard to say, all tanks are different.

 

[goldrush]

Peppy,Right now the best advice I can give you is SLOW DOWN!! Read as much as you can on this forum and wait out the cycle. Please don't put anything else in the tank.

 

[peppy]

damsils are doing well, no casualties. My water temp just before turning off lights at night is 73 and in morning before turning lights on it is 71. What should I do for heating? I need to get up around a constant 79/80?

 

[stacyt]

Turn your heater up. Just turn it up a degree or 2 everyday until you get your desired temp.

 

[peppy]

Sorry I forgot to mention, I have no heater yet, that is just the natural temp of the tank w/light on and off? I do have a 100w from a friends previus adventure? Do I need a really powerful 200+w to just increase 5/6 degrees? 100g tank.

 

[bang guy]

Your Salinity is right on.... just raise the temp.. a lot, at least 80F IMO. I would suggest getting another 100W heater and using both. As the temperature increases you'll notice your Specific Gravity drop into the prime range of 1.025.

 

[leigh]

even if the damsels are doing great...and even if they survive the cycle, you're still not going to want 10 damsels. in a 100 gal that's almost your entire bioload, so unless your damsels are a really pretty school of green chromis or something, i'd still suggest fishing them out before you have so much rock it's an issue. a decent fishstore should take them back in on trade--for a heater perhaps.

 

[wolffam]

Agree with above, although the damsels look nice, just one in a tank will keep you from adding anything small in the future. And the fact that their hard to catch in a full tank doesn't help. Send them back. Cycle with the LR. Welcome to the hobby, enjoy!

 

[peppy]

My kids like looking at the damsils. Can I cycle the tank with the LR and the 10 damsils and after cycle is finished trade in the majority of damsils? Is the 10 damsils and 100lbs LR, 80lbs LS too much for cycle?

 

[eng50]

The LR and LS will help buffer the cycle some..you should be ok, but test as suggested above to know where you are at...Please do the research and learn, its very easy to just do what looks good, but you may do something that is not good for your tank and it will cost big $$ not to mention the loss of life..

 

[sunken ship]

It's not too much for the cycle, but it is attempted murder to those damsels. I have an 18g reef and cycled with 3 domino damsels, one died off during the cycle, and I couldn't catch the other 2 for the life of me. Lucky(?) for me I had an ich outbreak that killed off the other two.

 

[scarybo]

Lose the damsel's...I know how it is with kids. They always ask me to stop buying "rocks" and get more fish. Damsel's are very agressive and territorial fish. If you leave the 10 in now and decide to reduce later, the one's you keep will be even more territorial. Last man standing syndrome.