Not sure which to do first.

karot

karot

New Member
Hello all,
I plan on starting my 16g tank soon. I am planning on it being a live rock with fish set up. It is going to have a 5 or 6 gallon sump tank (I was told show tank size / 3 = sump tank size).
Should I get all of my tanks and necessary pumps and hoses first, or go ahead and buy my sand, live rock and dead rock so it can start establishing and buy the protein skimmer, pump and smaller tank next pay check?
Also in the sump tank goes the heater and protein skimmer, what about the filter?
Another question I have is how exactly does one fill the tank? I know salt is needed, durf, but should I buy a bunch of bottles with purified water, or would tap water that will be treated with chemicals once in the tank do just fine?
Most of the information I have received so far is word of mouth by other tank owners, so it all might not be 100 percent correct.
Thank you,
Karot.
 
mony97

mony97

Member
Hey Karot and welcome to the boards!!
Alright I'll do my best to help on the things I know..
1. I would recomend you buy everything first (the absolute biggest tank and system you can afford) than once it is set up and running you can add the Live Sand (LS), and Live Rock (LR).
2. Best way to fill your tank the first time In My Opinion (IMO) is go to your Local Fish Store (LFS) and buy pre mixed saltwater most will sell this, usually about $1 a gallon (you will need your own buckets). After this you can buy Reverse Osmosis (RO) water to do water top offs, and to mix salt with for water changes.
Good luck.
 
foxface88

foxface88

Member
Originally Posted by Karot
http:///forum/post/3198829
Hello all,
I plan on starting my 16g tank soon. I am planning on it being a live rock with fish set up. It is going to have a 5 or 6 gallon sump tank (I was told show tank size / 3 = sump tank size).
Should I get all of my tanks and necessary pumps and hoses first, or go ahead and buy my sand, live rock and dead rock so it can start establishing and buy the protein skimmer, pump and smaller tank next pay check?
Also in the sump tank goes the heater and protein skimmer, what about the filter?
Another question I have is how exactly does one fill the tank? I know salt is needed, durf, but should I buy a bunch of bottles with purified water, or would tap water that will be treated with chemicals once in the tank do just fine?
Most of the information I have received so far is word of mouth by other tank owners, so it all might not be 100 percent correct.
Thank you,
Karot.
I'm fairly new also but might be able to help along with others. Def correct me if im wrong. IMO i would buy the tank, sand, LR and a piece of raw shrimp to toss in the tank to kick start the cycle. The cycle length is different tank to tank but takes 3 - 6 weeks with no livestock at all but with regular water tests for ammonia nitrites and nitrates you will know where your cycle is done. You will need a powerhead or something in there to push some water around.
Your second question of tap or bottled water is a much debated topic on here. Obviously RO water is better then tap but both works, i personally use my well water and have had no problems i use a conditioner that removes some of the stuff found in well/tap water.
when you first fill the tank you can just add all the water directly into the tank then add your salt mix until your salinity/SG reading is correct. but then you need to pre mix it before adding it.
hope this little info helped!
P.S. Welcome to the hobby!
 
mony97

mony97

Member
Fox is correct with adding a shrimp to start the cycle (look to the top of the New Hobbyists section for more info on your initial cycle) this does not NEED to be done, however, die off from the LR should help start the cycle, if you do add the shrimp get everything up and running before you add the shrimp.
Also check this tread out before you decied what type of water you would like to use. https://forums.saltwaterfish.com/t/370064/tap-vs-ro
 
karot

karot

New Member
Thank you both for the warm welcome

As of now I can only afford a 16g, I also have a 10g freshwater I am working on.
My LFS will in fact sell my their saltwater, only thing is right now they are having a sale. If I buy a tub of Sea Crystal salt ($80 value) I also get 40 dollars of in store credit. That right there is how I plan on paying for my sand a a pound of live and a pound of dead rock. So spend 80 and get basically everything needed except a few pounds of rock. Might I mention the tub is rated to create 160 gallons of water, so it seems like almost too good of a deal to pass up just to buy their water.
Also both replies while offering good information, provided information that clashed with one another, in regards with whole system or sand rock first (I already have the 16g).
Anybody else?
Also, looking at some pictures of sumps online, does it really need to have all of those separate compartments for different filtration? What about just the tank, since it will be quite small, some live sand maybe a pound or two of LR and some plants? Would that be enough?
 
mony97

mony97

Member
Okay, sorry for the confusion if you alreay have the tank than go ahead and add the LS and LR followed by the water (pour over the rock to help with the cloudyness). That is my opinion :)
As for the sump, the more and better filtration you have for that size tank the better, due to the fact that you will have a smaller amount of LR/LS and not as much water if something goes wrong it could be a bad outcome for fish etc.
Hope this helps
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
If you put you LR in first...then the Live sand....then add your premixed Saltwater...you can place an empty bag (like the one the sand comes in) on the botton of tank, and pour the water on that so you do not create a sand storm...
You will need a heater and at least one powerhead while you go thru your initial cycle....MAKE SURE you buy your own test kit, and test daily so you know when the cycle begins.
You can get your filter as soon as possible, and the protein skimmer before you add anything live
 
mony97

mony97

Member
Originally Posted by meowzer
http:///forum/post/3198891
If you put you LR in first...then the Live sand....then add your premixed Saltwater...you can place an empty bag (like the one the sand comes in) on the botton of tank, and pour the water on that so you do not create a sand storm...
You will need a heater and at least one powerhead while you go thru your initial cycle....MAKE SURE you buy your own test kit, and test daily so you know when the cycle begins.
You can get your filter as soon as possible, and the protein skimmer before you add anything live
+1 good clarification meowzer
 
karot

karot

New Member
Ok great thank you for clarifying that.
Looks like by this weekend I will have my LR and sand ready to start its cycle
.
As far as anything else needed to start, the person that has been helping me at my lfs claims I should upgrade my filter to one that has a "waterfall" that moves a revolving filter, as best as I could describe it, should this be done when I start cycling everything or can it hold off until I actually buy my protein skimmer and sump tank?
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
Originally Posted by Karot http:///forum/post/3198910
A 20 gallon Aqueon Power Filter, rated at 125 GPH.
OK...In my honest opinion...and I am not a filter expert..lol...the filter you have NOW is fine...for now
As a matter of fact it may be fine later too...lol...On my 29G (I also have a 225G and a 54G) BUT on my 29g I have one of those aquatech hang ons with NO wheels....we do not use those wheels in salt water
I think you are good to begin

OHHHH...let me add...YOU MAY WANT to get a filter rated larger later.
 
karot

karot

New Member
Alright great!
That just saved me 40 bucks.
So be it that I have not purchased my actual sump tank yet, if when I get it and it is too small for compartments for different filter types which should I go with? I was thinking some sand and live rock some some nice biological filtration and maybe a really small Aqueon filter (or just move my big one down there and leave the show tank with only a jet or two and sand / rocks).
Do you think that would filter enough?
I actually just found a 10 gallon tank I will be using for a sump instead. So my heater / filter on the 16 gallon will easily fit in the new tank.
I cannot thank you all enough for the help you are giving me.
I am reading around but there are so many different opinions everywhere and no really straight answers.
 
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