Originally Posted by
Nutta_Butta
http:///forum/post/3279147
Hi all, I am very new to the hobby and am seeking some advice. I recently purchased a 24 gal nano-cube. I placed in my live sand and cured rocks as well as 3-4.4 gallons of the nutri-sea water. I also went to a fish auction where i purchased some green star polyps, which seem to still be a bit shocked, as for some opened a tiny bit and others have not opened at all, maybe they are dead, i am not quite sure. Everything seemed ok and my LFS said i could add some damsels, so i purchased two, 1- a domino and 2- a yellow-tail. They were in my tank one day and the yellow-tail is dead and from what i can see an eye is missing.
Hello I'm Rob, nice to see you on the SWF forums. I've got some questions for ya. How much LR and LS (live rock and live sand) did you put in (in lbs)? And am I reading it right when you say you put "3-4.4 gallons of the nutri-sea water" in the tank? Does this mean you only have about 4 gallons in your tank at the moment?
If so I'd say unfortunately you may have started the tank incorrectly (no worries though if you did). Usually you fill the tank up all the way with your saltwater mix (if you are using tap water with a salt mix make sure you have a water conditioner that gets rid of chlorine and heavy metals, exp: Tetra Water Conditioner) or pre-bought saltwater first. Then you zero in the SG (specific gravity aka salinity) to where it should be at, right around 1.024 is perfect. Get yourself a heater and thermometer (either glass thermometer or the sticker ones which work great) Zero in your temp to 78-79. If you have your heater running right now with only 4 gallons in the tank you will destroy your heater. If it is exposed to air it will try to change the air temp which is impossible so it will fry itself out and will brake. Once all things zeroed in wait a couple days and then it would be safe to add LR and LS (if you add it before letting the salt water sit for a couple of days it will kill your LS and LR). Add those, let the debris settle and then turn on the pumps. Sand in the pumps will destroy them so make sure the water isn't cloudy. After a few weeks adding a clean up crew (CUC) which are all the critters who clean up your algae and leftover fish food and such may be possible to add depending on your params. But right now don't even think about buying livestock just like meowzer said lol. And yes listen to Flower. This was the first book I ever read on the subject and it helped out a great deal. It's a great starting point for beginners. Just make sure it is the 2nd edition and you can always check your local library for it if you are on a budget (like me).
http://img.infibeam.com/img/9be32d1e...0470068052.jpg
It will teach you all of the basics you need to get into the hobby.
I know this is a lot but I'm trying to cover all the bases in one post. If this is how you did it then good job! If not don't worry about it you're still good. If I am correct, you have 4 gallons of the nutri-saltwater (which is good stuff but gets EXPENSIVE haha) and LR and LS sooo what you have to do now is either buy a bunch of the nutri-saltwater jugs (keep them if you do, they work great for water changes and as containers for buying water from LFSs if they sell it) or buy some salt mix (Instant Ocean is what I use) and get some buckets (5g recommended) so you can make water changes down the line. Ok now either you added your nutri-water or will have to make the salt mix in your tank (which is way more easy but puts your LR and LS at risk of dying, but in the long run it will be fine) or you will have to mix it by bucket which will take some time but keep your LR and LS alive. Check SG like I said before as well as temp and wait it out and then we can go from there. You have to get your initial cycle completed before anything else happens.
I hope this helps out, just make sure you read the saltwater aquarium book or some other beginners guide, you'll be happy that you did trust me. And never be afraid to ask us or LFS staff questions. We are here to help you out.
