Very new and needing info.

[bree]

So i am working on a 30 gallon cube aquarium at the freshwater aquarium store i work at (aka i am very new to saltwater, but addicted to freshwater aquariums...)
I have an aquaclear 110 and aqua clear 70 powerhead running, temp. is at 78.
Approx 30-40Ibs. of live rock, 1 tomato clownfish and various snails.
I would like to add some new inhabitants if possible. Was thinking of starting off with a black longspine urchin as i have a bit of algae to get rid of, they are just really cool things and can ward off aggressive tankmates.
Are there any hardy fish that i can place with the setup right now?
How about corals? I tryed a colt coral and it was just 100% gone the next day...Almost like it was eaten?
-Emily

 

[1guydude]

how old is the tank? It will usually go through a break in period or a cycle...
also powerheads are something u need in a sw tank both good movement below and at the surface for oxygen exchange.
Wats ur salt level? S.G.? Did u use tap water? This may be why the coral was gone the next day... mushrooms and zoos/palys are some good starters, than leathers like fingers or colt and toadstools....
than some lps and sps and before u know it ur upgrading and buying spendy stuff....
welcome to the addiction i mean hobby.

 

[bree]

I know all about the cycling process, this tank has been running close to 5 years now, but was horribly maintained before i started working on it, so have just been cleaning it up for the last few months. And like i said i have a strong powerhead in the tank along with the 110 filter to provide lots of water movement.
The salinity is 1.025, and for water changes i will take a 10 gallon bucket, mix dechlorinated tap water with the proper amount of salt till it has cleared and fully mixed in, then closely add that to the aquarium till full.
What kind of corals exacily? And again i have high water movement, with 48 watts T5 lighting.

 

[travelerjp98]

48 watts with T5s is a bit low... you should really also wait 24 hrs before you add the mixed sw to your tank....
for corals, you should start off with mushroom polyp corals or zoanthids... they're good begginers... basically converting oneguydudes sw slang to English...lol.
be sure to add things very slowly to let nitrifying bacteria grow with the bioload.
nice job ged getting a neglected tank up and running again.. it annoys me when I see neglected tanks in fish stores. Welcome to swf!!
P.S: pics of the setup would be helpful!

 

[bree]

Haha okay awesome, well its either T5 or T5HO, Not quite sure, will check tomorrow if i remember, and will try and take a picture with my iPhone, its been so busy this week for some reason and its only me out front looking after all the animals and people! haha
I only have 1 fish bucket right now and very little room in the store i can't actually wait 24 hours for the salt to fully disolve, Which is why i do only 10-20% water changes at a time rather than the normal 35% like on the freshwater tanks, hoping that will help it out a bit.
And yes i would only add 1 or 2 things to the tank at a time (i order every other week or more) so the tank doesn't go into shock.
Will look into those corals thanks. I am so hesitant about added another one since the last didn't make it. But really want to make this tank beautiful!
So do you think it was the salinity that killed this last coral or something else? I did notice that one...Arm (?) of the coral came off of it in the shipping bag...Maybe it was already sick?
-Emily

 

[travelerjp98]

Oh yeah... I forgot to add... what are the water parameters, such as nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia?
and what type of test kit are you using.. and from when (expiration date is usually somewhere on the box)?
You only have 1 fish bucket??!! YOU WORK IN AN AQUARIUM STORE! Lol.

 

[bree]

I will test water parameters tomorrow, and will write down the test kit name and expiration date.
I do know that i have liquid test kits in the back, but i think they are expired...And i use API strip tests, are they even any good though?
Hahaha trust me I KNOW! There are so many things we don't have in this store...It makes it very hard to do my job sometimes...But its still the best job i could imagine. But yea, this one bucket i use to do the salt water, all the freshwater, and all the amphibians, etc. with, its a great bucket- very useful! LOL
BTW i run the filter with large sponge, carbon, biomax and Fluval phosphate remover on top.
Water change every 2 week- 3 weeks since there is seriously just the one fish in there and all. lol

 

[1guydude]

omg u use the same bucket for ur sw as ur reptiles? Thats why ur coral died! Also tap water with dechlorine is still tap water.... theres things in tap water like copper and other things i dont even know about. We call this total dissolved solvents...a quick search under the search bar for the threads should bring up a write up i wrote.
Get some more buckets and a turkey baster and dedicate them to the tank only!
All in all... thank u and keep it up! SW tanks arent easy but they arent that bad if u have the knowledge and correct equipment.
48w is prob one or two bulbs, u need a 4 bulb t5ho fixture with a decent reflector to grow some of the kool corals! Check out the auction site and look for reef lighting.
HTHs
-d

 

[bree]

Why did that kill the coral? When i say i use the same for my reptiles, i only use tap water to refill their water fishes and what not, no chemicals or dirty water from them touches that bucket.
Everyone i know of with both fresh and saltwater uses regular tap water for their aquariums, and sadly i have no other choice but to keep with that.
Yes, there are 2x 24 watt bulbs, one is blue, the other white. But again, will need to check on actual details. But yea, i just want some basic corals, i won't be working at this store for ever and just want to spiffy it up and regain its health, but still keep it as simple as possible for myseld and others who follow after me. lol

 

[travelerjp98]

And let me add... the strip tests are worthless!
I had strip tests before and the nitrate readings were 90ppm off!
If your on a budget... go for the API Saltwater Master test kit... It's a $20 or $30 kit and it will give you everything you basically need to know.
If you don't mind spending a bit more... go for Seachem test kits (my personal favorite).... and get the nitrate & nitrite box ($20 ish), pH and alkanity box ($15 ish), copper test (also 15 ish... you definitely need it if your going for the inverts/coral...) some ammonia test (but def. not Seachem ammonia alert, I have heard horrible things about it)... and I think that shuold be good... am I missing anything???
Both test kits are sure a lot better than what your using now!!!
1 guy dude gave some good advice.
Of you hsvr the money I would definitely look into an R/O unit... and also a refractometer (hydrometers are worthless, just like strip test kits)
HTH!