Starting 75 Gal. Reef Tank -Questions-

[tmoney]

Hey Guys,
Ok, decided on getting a 75 Gal. tank instead of a 55 and now I have some questions. I will order the tank tomorrow at my work (I work at a Pet Shop). Now I have some questions.
1. I will order LR to go along with it, Premium Fiji, 40Lbs to start out with. Should I get the LR now or weeks after adding the water into the tank? Won't most if not all the coralline disappear during cycling?
2. I will also order a 260W PC fixture for this tank. I have read that the LR does not need light to live/grow. Is this true? I will probably receive the light a week after the LR.
3. I have read that adding a frozen shrimp is a good way to get ammonia levels up? What's the best way to do it?
Thanks for all the help! If you have any more suggestions please tell me!

 

[scotts]

There are 2 trains of thought as far as the rock. One is to add it now so that it aids in cycling the tank, the other is that the ammonia during the cycle may kill off any good things on your rock. I ain't smart enough to tell you which way to go. But your coralline will not die off during the cycle.
You LR does not need light to grow, but the coralline does. A week without light? There may be some die off on your coralline, but in the long run it will come back.
Yes the shrimp is the way to go. To find out more do a search on here for cycle or cycling, the search button is at the top right of this screen.
What kind of substrate are you going to use. Hopefully sand. Really hope it is sand
Scott

 

[tmoney]

I don't know if its going to be a whole week without lights, it will most likely be 2-4 days. As for the sand, I am buying one bag of Aragonite Live Sand (40Lbs I believe?) and another 40-80Lbs of dead Aragonite sand off a buddy of mine.

 

[airforceb2]

Originally Posted by TMoney
1. I will order LR to go along with it, Premium Fiji, 40Lbs to start out with. Should I get the LR now or weeks after adding the water into the tank? Won't most if not all the coralline disappear during cycling?
Get the LR now. I cycled with fully cured LR and I still have plenty of hitch hikers. I would add it all at right away.
Originally Posted by TMoney
2. I will also order a 260W PC fixture for this tank. I have read that the LR does not need light to live/grow. Is this true? I will probably receive the light a week after the LR.
LR does not need light to grow. Do you have any light fixture with your tank? If so, they would work till you get your new set-up.
Originally Posted by TMoney
3. I have read that adding a frozen shrimp is a good way to get ammonia levels up? What's the best way to do it?
Add a fresh raw shrimp. It should be the grey colored one...not the pink one. Just pull the shell off and toss the shrimp in. It will decompose and eventually disappear.