VERY new to this -- Please help!

[jamie907]

Hey everyone!
Well, I've finally decided to go saltwater. I've had two freshwater tanks before, and both turned out well. Saltwater's just so much prettier, and I finally have the time for the management I know it involves. However, I'm not exactly sure on -any- of the specifics, so here's a little overview of what I DO have:
+a 46 gallon bowfront tank
+a wet-dry filter
+a light.. a really powerful light, because I told the person at the local tropical fish store that I wanted to make it a reef tank. There's a white light, a blue-ish light, and a deep blue light that makes it look like deep water. I'm not positive about the brand or wattage, we've kind of been going off of the petshop workers' advice!
+the tank is filled with tap water that's been dechlorinated with .. Prime, I think it's called? And salted with Instant Sea or something like that. I should really be going and checking that all of this is correct, but.. ::shrug::
+40 lbs of live sand on the bottom
+salinity of about .023, .024
+Relatively normal nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia levels.. a teensy bit high, but it's a new tank so I guess that's expected? Even with the live sand..
+pH of about 8.0
+4 damsels.
We've had the tank set up since last Sunday, when we put in the water and salt and sand. The following Monday, we picked up the damsels because they told us the live sand would make it so that we could introduce fish much quicker. I was wondering if I should get some live rock, but I don't know. The fish seem to be doing very well, our only problem so far is that the filter is so strong that when we feed them, it tends to get sucked up very quickly. However, the fish are quickly learning to attack the food as soon as it's put in, lol.
Anyway, we were told told to let the tank cycle with these fish for a week and a half, and then to bring in a sample of our water to be tested before we add other fish or inverts or anything. I've been reading a lot on saltwater tanks, so I know a -little- bit about it, but certainly not very much. I was just wondering if any of you had any suggestions or wanted to point out anything I'm doing wrong, because it would be good to know! lol, thank you all for you time and reading my super-long entry here. Much love.

 

[jamie907]

Oh, and I have it heated to 76 degrees.
Could somebody please explain the water changes and protein skimming? I'm completely mystified. lol
Thanks again.

 

[jcarroll]

1- cycle your tank- this takes 2-6 weeks. buy a test kit like salifer that tests for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH. Your levels will all spike and when they are all at zero, your tank is done with its cycle. At this point you can begin to add one fish at a time to your tank. It's a good idea to take the damsels out because they are territorial and can be very aggressive to your other fish
2-The food. put a cup in your water fill about half way and put your food in the cup. Swirl it around until the food starts to fall to the bottom and then add it to your tank. The food will sink instead of getting sucked into your overflow box
3- You can add live rock during your cycle. It helps it
4-Do NOT add any other fish until your levels are all at zero!!
5-If your pH is less than between 8.2 and 8.4, go to your lfs and get some pH buffer, follow directions only use once a day until your pH gets to where it should be
6-If your salinity is really what you say, you've got a problem. It should be 1.025 or just under.
7-be patient with your cycle! It takes time

 

[ophiura]

This is an excellent "starter" thread with some other links as well.
https://www.saltwaterfish.com/vb/show...threadid=80022
I will disagree a bit with the pH listed above (#5). pH is a complex matter that involves alkalinity, calcium levels, and circulation...it is important to understand what is going on and not just buffer. Also, a pH from 7.8 to 8.4 is a normal range, IMO, so long as it is stable.

 

[jamie907]

My salt levels are actually 1.023, sorry about that. However, I have a feeling that the indicator I'm using might not be exactly accurate. It's a very simple plastic device that you float in the tank and then read. I don't know.
I set the heater up a few degrees because I'm only at 76. I want to see if I can get it up to 80.
I read all of the posts on that thread that you linked me to, thanks very much. There's so much to know! It's so confusing. :notsure: Anyway, I'm sure I'll learn fast. Thank you all for your help. I'm just worried because there seems to be such a negative reputation for using just plain tap water, and that's all I used! I hope it'll be okay..

 

[jamie907]

I have to stop replying to myself, lol.. but also, I don't have any powerheards or a protein skimmer... should I get these now? And how exactly do I use the powerheads? I'm a little unsure as to their function..

 

[ophiura]

Power heads, yes...they help in circulation in the tank which in turn may assist in stabilizing pH...but it als prevents the accumulation of detritus in areas.
A protein skimmer will be a good investment. The "investment" part is important, because they can be pricey. So there is research to be done there. A protein skimmer effectively produces "sea foam." Proteins, lipids, organics, etc adhere to the surface tension of the bubbles, and are removed from the system before breaking down into ammonia and other waste.
I am not entirely sure what sort of hydrometer you have, but they do tend to be less accurate that refractometers for measuring specific gravity/salinity.
I agree to boost the temperature up to 79-82, IMO.
As for plain tap water, well, rest assured plenty use it. Including me. But I am having the same issues one sometimes has with using tap water - notably algae problems. So I will, when I save up, buy a small RO unit. Some tap water tends not to be as problematic as others.

 

[kdfrosty]

Powerheads are of the utmost importance in regards to water circulation throughout the tank. Anywhere water is moving throughout the tank is good. "Dead spots" in the tank, where water is not moving are usually the problematic areas in regards to algae growth.
Spend $50 on a refractometer...much more reliable than any plastic floating hydrometer I have used.
Don't waste your $$ on a piece of junk protein skimmer. Save your $$ and get a good one....Another great investment for a healthy tank.
Get a good master test kit to test your water levels. Then use it to test your tap water. While a master test kit will not show you all chemical levels in the water, it will give you an idea of where you stand. Ironically, my tap waters pH is at 8.2, and pretty good actually. I used tap to fill my tank the first time, and now I do top offs with distilled water. For me, it almost seems better to use tap water, as the distilled water drops my overall pH to 7.8 every 3 days when I top off the water level. I also need to get better gas exchange, which should maintain a proper pH. I use the hood that came with this tank, until I get my PC lighting either later this week or next week. Then I might try egg crate, which is available at most large hardware stores (Home Depot, Lowes, etc.)
HTH

 

[jobob]

well i would get live rock, the tank will be healthier. helps with bio filter and gives places for fish to hide.look on auction sites for skimmer, i got a cheap one that works great. so ask before u buy. if you want to keep corals u will need a good light. the powerheads u put in ur tank to help the circulation. very important. o make sure u get a clean up crew. yes get the skimmer now. i would get a insump skimmer, so u dont see it. if u are goin to keep other fish, u mite want to think about gettin rid of those damsels. they can be very aggressive.

 

[jdragunas]

jamie,
The first thing you need to determine (if you want a reef tank) is what kinds of inverts and corals you want. Some inverts require intense lighting (anemones) and some require less lighting (sponges). Once you determine that, you need to figure out how many watts per gallon your lighting system is producing. If you want a tank with anemones and other things that require a lot of lighting, you need about 3 watts per gallon (so in your case, about 150 watts of lighting).
Having ammonia levels a little high when first introducing live sand and live rock is perfectly normal. Ammonia is produced when things die. Your live sand is cycling, which means things are dying. You should do water changes to reduce the amonia levels, but not too many. I personally thing you should get live rock. Not only is it a great means of filtration, it's really beautiful (purple, orange, red algae).
The way you change the water is to get some tubing, or a gravel vacuum (from any pet store). Place a large bucket next to the tank. Place one end of the tubing in the tank. Then, you place your mouth on the other end and suck on it until you see the water from inside the aquarium pass over the edge of the aquarium in the tubing. Obviously, remove your mouth before water reaches your end. Quickly place that end into the bucket, and forces of nature will cause the water to leave the tank and enter the bucket. (to stop the siphon, just pull the tubing out of the tank).
You only want to do 7-10% water changes at a time (at the most). This means you should empty 4 gallons of water into the bucket, throw the water down the drain, and replace the water with a fresh batch.
You should also let your new water cycle before you put it in a tank (for about 24 hours). This will ensure the water becomes room temp., and you are able to test the salinity and chlorine before you put it into the tank. (to cycle water, fill a bucket with water, put in the salt, water conditioner, and stir. Then you want to get a small powerhead, put it in the bucket, and plug it in. With a powerhead, the unit goes in the water, so you don't have to worry about getting electrocuted or anything...)
Also, a little trick about feeding the fish... Get a small cup, fill it with tank water, put the food in the cup, and the pour it in the tank. This will cause the flakes to sink in the water, rather than float on top, making it easier for the fish to get, and the food won't get sucked up bye the filter so much.
Now that I've rambled on forever... :sleepy: Hope everything goes well with your tank!!!

 

[wax32]

3W per gallon isn't exactly a "lot of light".

 

[kdfrosty]

Originally posted by jdragunas
Then, you place your mouth on the other end and suck on it until you see the water from inside the aquarium pass over the edge of the aquarium in the tubing. Obviously, remove your mouth before water reaches your end.
Geez, I hate it when I suck down water. There are vacs that start a siphon on their own, I believe.

 

[jacknjill]

^ yep hes right
i have one that has a top on it thats bigger than the tube. here is what i do
1 fill the top with water and let it run all the way to the tube
2 cover the end with my finger to stop water flow
3 refill the top and repeat steps 1 and 2
4 with the end still covered with my finger and the top full of water, i stick the top into the tank and let go of the bottom of the tube
5 this starts the siphon.
very easy and no watr in my mouth lol

 

[wax32]

Just pretend you are snorkling.

 

[jamie907]

Thank you all -so- much for your help. You're really.. helpful. lol
I'm not sure how to tell where my cycle is.. and I don't know what to do right now except wait. However, brown.. stuff has been forming in my intake box on my filter and on some of my live sand. I'm thinking it's diatoms. Am I correct, and what does this mean? Also, my fish look kind of.. I don't know. White-ish? I think they may have ich, but I'm not planning on keeping them anyway, they're only cycle fish. Oh, and I have a metal halide light, I'm not sure of the specs but it's VERY strong and should be fine for anenomes, because that's what I decided I wanted to keep.
Anyway, thank you for all your help.:happyfish

 

[reefraff]

If your Damsels have white specs it could be Ich. If you want anemones you need live rock, a skimmer and lots of pantience. You need to have the tank up for about 6 months before the water quality will be stable enough. If you are going to use tap water get a copper test kit. If you intoduce copper from your water you will kill invertabrates.

 

[misty7850]

Originally posted by KDFrosty
Geez, I hate it when I suck down water. There are vacs that start a siphon on their own, I believe.

I agree with KDFrosty; I don't like sucking on the tubing. I use one of my power heads to get it going. I just place one end of the tubing in the bucket and the other end in front of one of my power heads, and swooooshhhh, it starts the flow. :jumping:

 

[buckshott]

I'm w/ J Carrol this is what I'd do.