What order do I put in my live rock, sand, saltwater?
- Thread starter wpost2
- Start date
geoj
Active Member
Just put it in so the rock does not shift and fall breaking the tank glass and making a big mess. If the rock dried out then there will be less life but don’t get bummed out it will work just the same for now. Later you may add some of the macro animals that died off with other additions to the tank.
wpost2
Member
Thank you. Also, can I put my hands in the tank? That isn't going to mess up the ph etc, is it?
And are these fish compatible:
2 lionfish (bad idea?)
longhorn cowfish (or another similar boxfish)
snowflake eel
leafy filefish
dogface puffer
porcupine puffer
I have a 40 gal tank.
Thanks!
And are these fish compatible:
2 lionfish (bad idea?)
longhorn cowfish (or another similar boxfish)
snowflake eel
leafy filefish
dogface puffer
porcupine puffer
I have a 40 gal tank.
Thanks!
robertmathern
Active Member
For a 40 gal 2 lions is a bit much but if you keep up on weekly water changes you will be ok.
bionicarm
Active Member
Originally Posted by wpost2
http:///forum/post/2824913
Thank you. Also, can I put my hands in the tank? That isn't going to mess up the ph etc, is it?
And are these fish compatible:
2 lionfish (bad idea?)
longhorn cowfish (or another similar boxfish)
snowflake eel
leafy filefish
dogface puffer
porcupine puffer
I have a 40 gal tank.
Thanks!
First off, regarding the order:
You want to put your sand bed down first, preferalby 2 -3 inches in depth. Add you saltwater slowly. You will be stirring up the sand bed when adding the water, but after a few hours everything will settle down. Once the water's clear again, make sure the sand bed is relatively even across the bottom. Add you Live Rock carefully trying to not hit the glass too much. How you set it into your tank is up to you. Try to make a couple of small caves so fish can 'hide' in them when they feel threatened. Use your imagination with this.
As far as your fish preferences:
I wouldn't attempt two lions in a 40. The only realistic lion you should put in a 40 is a Dwarf. A Volitan would get too big for this tank.
Boxfish and Filefish are very docile and delicate animals. They wouldn't last long in an 'aggressive' tank like you look like you want to setup. They would essentially be food for either the lion or the eel.
I wouldn't mix puffers. They would fight in this small tank. A porcupine is also a fish that will outgrow a 40 pretty quick. If you want a puffer, you're better of going with a Valentini or Blue Dot.
The snowflake will coexist with the lion and the puffer. For a 40, I wouldn't put more than these 3 fish, and maybe one or two more. You could get away with a Flame Angel or Coral Beauty, and maybe a medium-size clown.
http:///forum/post/2824913
Thank you. Also, can I put my hands in the tank? That isn't going to mess up the ph etc, is it?
And are these fish compatible:
2 lionfish (bad idea?)
longhorn cowfish (or another similar boxfish)
snowflake eel
leafy filefish
dogface puffer
porcupine puffer
I have a 40 gal tank.
Thanks!
First off, regarding the order:
You want to put your sand bed down first, preferalby 2 -3 inches in depth. Add you saltwater slowly. You will be stirring up the sand bed when adding the water, but after a few hours everything will settle down. Once the water's clear again, make sure the sand bed is relatively even across the bottom. Add you Live Rock carefully trying to not hit the glass too much. How you set it into your tank is up to you. Try to make a couple of small caves so fish can 'hide' in them when they feel threatened. Use your imagination with this.
As far as your fish preferences:
I wouldn't attempt two lions in a 40. The only realistic lion you should put in a 40 is a Dwarf. A Volitan would get too big for this tank.
Boxfish and Filefish are very docile and delicate animals. They wouldn't last long in an 'aggressive' tank like you look like you want to setup. They would essentially be food for either the lion or the eel.
I wouldn't mix puffers. They would fight in this small tank. A porcupine is also a fish that will outgrow a 40 pretty quick. If you want a puffer, you're better of going with a Valentini or Blue Dot.
The snowflake will coexist with the lion and the puffer. For a 40, I wouldn't put more than these 3 fish, and maybe one or two more. You could get away with a Flame Angel or Coral Beauty, and maybe a medium-size clown.
puffy_fish
Member
Put your base rock down first on the glass. Then fill your sand around it. Then add the rest of your rock to your base rock. I put the rock on the sand in my old tank and my hermits, nass snails, and goby shifted rock daily. If the rocks are flat on the glass they will not be able to move them as easily. Finally add saltwater carefully. Do not pour all at once or you will have sand everywhere. I usually poured the water directly on the live rock and let it trickle to the sand.
As for your fish selection, I would do a lot more reading. I do not have experience with any of these fish because many of them are listed as difficult or fish you don't want to maintain for various reasons. There is a thread out there of fish/inverts to avoid, I would check it out. Do plenty of reading before you buy any fish.
As for your fish selection, I would do a lot more reading. I do not have experience with any of these fish because many of them are listed as difficult or fish you don't want to maintain for various reasons. There is a thread out there of fish/inverts to avoid, I would check it out. Do plenty of reading before you buy any fish.
sueandherzoo
Active Member
I'm still very new to this but from what I've read and been told that is WAY too much fish for a 40 gallon tank. I don't think I would attempt a porcupine puffer ALONE in a 40 gallon - he's going to outgrow that very fast. To put him in with another decent sized puffer like a DogFace sounds like trouble. I would LOVE to get a puffer or two but even though I have a 12 gallon, a 46 gallon and a 55 gallon tank I haven't found the right environment for a puffer yet. Compatibility is so important in this hobby, as well is overload. My opinion is you need to cut down your stocking list by a bit.
And yes, put live rock first, THEN sand, then water. Or you could do rock, a few inches of water, and then sand, but the rock should be flat on the bottom or it will be more likely to topple over.
Sue
And yes, put live rock first, THEN sand, then water. Or you could do rock, a few inches of water, and then sand, but the rock should be flat on the bottom or it will be more likely to topple over.
Sue
bionicarm
Active Member
I would not put the rock in first. First thing, it could possibly scratch the bottom glass, even crack it if you're not careful putting it in. Second, most LR is very dense, and rartely moves around once settled into the sand bed. And third, if you put the LR in first, then add sand, you will most likely get sand in all the creavases in your LR, making it a pain to clean out.
wpost2
Member
Thanks for all of the helpful advice! So I suppose my biggest question now is that two different retail stores are telling me opposite information. One store is telling me to use live rock, and the other is telling me not to. Which should I go with? As per your advice I'm thinking I will just stick with just one lionfish, one puffer, one eel, and maybe a clown. I was told if I use live rock I wouldn't be able to medicate the fish or something? So what should I do, live rock or lava rock for my saltwater 40 gal? And also, how much should I put in? I currently have 12 lbs of live rock.
Thanks in advance, you guys are great
Thanks in advance, you guys are great
mboswell1982
Active Member
you are going to want a minimum of 30lbs of live rock, if your planning on doing a FOWLR tank, a fish only with live rock. also, go with live rock, it will help with your bioload, and it will be amajor help with that. its basically like having another filtration system set up on your tank when you have live rock in it
robertmathern
Active Member
I would deffintly use live rock. I have herd bad things about lava rock. And you should use a qt tank. Then you would not have to worry about medicating the fish.
wpost2
Member
so as for acclimating my tank to the point of being able to put these fish in it, how should i do this? i bought the salt water premade so it is all balanced, and i have an Eheim Professional II canister filter. that being said, i hear there is some sort of packet of something with "spider" in the name, that I can put in the tank and it will be ready for fish the next day. is this recommended or should i put in some hardy fish and wait a month?
mboswell1982
Active Member
how long has your tank been set up? an has it fully cycled yet? unless the cycle has happened, you arent ready for anything yet
trouble93
Member
Originally Posted by wpost2
http:///forum/post/2835497
tank has been set up with 12 lbs of live rock for about a week. it is running through the filter and has no fish in it, only live rock and the pretreated sand.
First of all if you walk into a fish store and they let you walk out with a bag of salt in one hand and a bag with fish in the other you never want to go back there again because they don't care about what goes in your tank then in there pockets. You might want to do some more reading on the fish you want to put in a 40gal. tank. That eel will out grow that tank before you know it, but even before that you have to let you tank cycle 12lbs. of lr is not enough. What will happen is you will get half way through a cycle then add more rock and have to start all over again. Do you have a water test kit yet? What kind of lighting do you have? I know you said you are running a canister filter, what type of media are you using these are the things you need to address first the fish will come later down the line. Remember this your LFS are just after your money we want to help you enjoy this hobby of ours.
http:///forum/post/2835497
tank has been set up with 12 lbs of live rock for about a week. it is running through the filter and has no fish in it, only live rock and the pretreated sand.
First of all if you walk into a fish store and they let you walk out with a bag of salt in one hand and a bag with fish in the other you never want to go back there again because they don't care about what goes in your tank then in there pockets. You might want to do some more reading on the fish you want to put in a 40gal. tank. That eel will out grow that tank before you know it, but even before that you have to let you tank cycle 12lbs. of lr is not enough. What will happen is you will get half way through a cycle then add more rock and have to start all over again. Do you have a water test kit yet? What kind of lighting do you have? I know you said you are running a canister filter, what type of media are you using these are the things you need to address first the fish will come later down the line. Remember this your LFS are just after your money we want to help you enjoy this hobby of ours.
mboswell1982
Active Member
you need about 20 more lbs of live rock, easy, and like trouble said, you're going to have multiple spikes, so i can gather from all the research ive done, if you start adding it piece meal
ca161406
Member
Originally Posted by wpost2
http:///forum/post/2824913
Thank you. Also, can I put my hands in the tank? That isn't going to mess up the ph etc, is it?
And are these fish compatible:
2 lionfish (bad idea?)
longhorn cowfish (or another similar boxfish)
snowflake eel
leafy filefish
dogface puffer
porcupine puffer
I have a 40 gal tank.
Thanks!
maybe 2 dwarfs.. ive seen it done before and was cool how they interacted with each other
id pass the cowfish..they get big min tank size of 180 and if they die theyll kill everything in the tank
SFE. might be ok for a while but it can get over 24 inches so it cld outgrow the tank
filefish from what i hear are pretty tough to care for with except for species only tanks and most get to big for a 40gal
dogface could be ok for a while if its a small one, but i decided not to get one for my 125 because it will get too big long term
porc..same as above
http:///forum/post/2824913
Thank you. Also, can I put my hands in the tank? That isn't going to mess up the ph etc, is it?
And are these fish compatible:
2 lionfish (bad idea?)
longhorn cowfish (or another similar boxfish)
snowflake eel
leafy filefish
dogface puffer
porcupine puffer
I have a 40 gal tank.
Thanks!
maybe 2 dwarfs.. ive seen it done before and was cool how they interacted with each other
id pass the cowfish..they get big min tank size of 180 and if they die theyll kill everything in the tank
SFE. might be ok for a while but it can get over 24 inches so it cld outgrow the tank
filefish from what i hear are pretty tough to care for with except for species only tanks and most get to big for a 40gal
dogface could be ok for a while if its a small one, but i decided not to get one for my 125 because it will get too big long term
porc..same as above
wpost2
Member
Originally Posted by trouble93
http:///forum/post/2835524
First of all if you walk into a fish store and they let you walk out with a bag of salt in one hand and a bag with fish in the other you never want to go back there again because they don't care about what goes in your tank then in there pockets. You might want to do some more reading on the fish you want to put in a 40gal. tank. That eel will out grow that tank before you know it, but even before that you have to let you tank cycle 12lbs. of lr is not enough. What will happen is you will get half way through a cycle then add more rock and have to start all over again. Do you have a water test kit yet? What kind of lighting do you have? I know you said you are running a canister filter, what type of media are you using these are the things you need to address first the fish will come later down the line. Remember this your LFS are just after your money we want to help you enjoy this hobby of ours.
first off no one has sold me any fish as of yet, which is why i am doing all of this research. i think that the main issue here is both of the fish stores in santa monica that are reasonably close to me are both run by foreigners with very thick accents. it is difficult for me to follow what they are saying in terms of fish lingo, and on top of that their english is somewhat broken. that being said, i think this process has somehow become entirely more complicated than it should be.
to answer your question about the media that is in my canister filter, i'm not sure what it is called - they actually opened up the package and put it in the canister for me at the store. it is the little white circular pieces that are somewhat chalky, if that makes sense. and then some smaller black ones on the top layer that stayed in a bag. i hope that answers your question.
anyhow, so let's figure out what i do next. apparently i need about 20 more lbs of live rock, correct? so i'll go toss those in and wait a month? and yes, i have a water test kit.
so as for tank size issues, having a 40 gallon tank was seemingly huge in my first pass, but now i am seeing that maybe it is smaller than i figured. from my research i have found the following:
- Blackfoot Lionfish: Full size 8 inches. Is this true? If not, would I need a Dwarf Lionfish?
- Puffer: I want to put a puffer in my tank, but is there a puffer small enough to fit in a 40 gal without outgrowing it?
- Is there any species of eel that will fit in a 40 gal?
Other than the above questions, what fish would one recommend for a 40 gal FOWLR that would live with a Lionfish?
http:///forum/post/2835524
First of all if you walk into a fish store and they let you walk out with a bag of salt in one hand and a bag with fish in the other you never want to go back there again because they don't care about what goes in your tank then in there pockets. You might want to do some more reading on the fish you want to put in a 40gal. tank. That eel will out grow that tank before you know it, but even before that you have to let you tank cycle 12lbs. of lr is not enough. What will happen is you will get half way through a cycle then add more rock and have to start all over again. Do you have a water test kit yet? What kind of lighting do you have? I know you said you are running a canister filter, what type of media are you using these are the things you need to address first the fish will come later down the line. Remember this your LFS are just after your money we want to help you enjoy this hobby of ours.
first off no one has sold me any fish as of yet, which is why i am doing all of this research. i think that the main issue here is both of the fish stores in santa monica that are reasonably close to me are both run by foreigners with very thick accents. it is difficult for me to follow what they are saying in terms of fish lingo, and on top of that their english is somewhat broken. that being said, i think this process has somehow become entirely more complicated than it should be.
to answer your question about the media that is in my canister filter, i'm not sure what it is called - they actually opened up the package and put it in the canister for me at the store. it is the little white circular pieces that are somewhat chalky, if that makes sense. and then some smaller black ones on the top layer that stayed in a bag. i hope that answers your question.
anyhow, so let's figure out what i do next. apparently i need about 20 more lbs of live rock, correct? so i'll go toss those in and wait a month? and yes, i have a water test kit.
so as for tank size issues, having a 40 gallon tank was seemingly huge in my first pass, but now i am seeing that maybe it is smaller than i figured. from my research i have found the following:
- Blackfoot Lionfish: Full size 8 inches. Is this true? If not, would I need a Dwarf Lionfish?
- Puffer: I want to put a puffer in my tank, but is there a puffer small enough to fit in a 40 gal without outgrowing it?
- Is there any species of eel that will fit in a 40 gal?
Other than the above questions, what fish would one recommend for a 40 gal FOWLR that would live with a Lionfish?