WoW!!! new guy here!!! new tank!!
- Thread starter joelito86
- Start date
snakeblitz33
Well-Known Member
Read. Research. Go slow. Take everything with a grain of salt.
Buy a good beginner book or two and ask lots of specific questions after you have read them.
wrlcome to the forums. I hope you enjoy your stay.
Buy a good beginner book or two and ask lots of specific questions after you have read them.
wrlcome to the forums. I hope you enjoy your stay.
flower
Well-Known Member
Hi, Welcome to the site!
You won't need the skimmer for at least a few months, so turn it off. A beginners book is exactly what to get before you even begin. I used the "Saltwater aquariums for Dummies" another really good beginners book is "The Conscientious Aquarist"
1st purchase after the tank...needs to be lab type saltwater test kits. Stay away from API they misread on nitrates.
You need to use RO (reverse osmosis) water to mix your saltwater. Tap is no good. So if you filled the tank with tap mixed water, I would start over. You will need at least 40 to 50 pounds of live rock...you can use dry base rock and use just a few pieces of live rock to seed, but rock is absolutely needed or an equal amount of resin decor that will seed just like the rock does....rock is best. Use sand as a substrate, crushed coral is hard for the CUC (clean up crew: snails, serpent or brittle stars, hermit crabs and such) to keep clean.
You have to have the rock or decor on the flat bottom of the tank and put the sand around it, you can't build on shifting sand, it will cause a rock slide that could crush the critters or break the tank.
You need at least 2 power heads, the wave is the life of the ocean and your saltwater tank. You need the wave more than the heater. You can use any type of filter you want EXCEPT the under gravel one. The best filter is the sump system, canister is the next choice, and then the HOB like the Whisper or penguin type.
The top needs to be open, so no glass tops with the lights on it. Saltwater has less oxygen then freshwater, so you need to have really good gas exchange...that means the top of the tank water needs to agitate, make it look like it's boiling. Some folks use a power head aimed at the surface, or if you use a canister, get the spray-bar.
Last but not least...now is the time to set up the quarantine tank. A 10 to 20g tank...nothing on the bottom, an overflow Penguin or Whisper filter type that has no roller thing on the top. An air line with no stone, just big bubbles, and a piece of PVC pipe or cheap resin decor to make the new fish feel safe and secure to be able to hide. Just put floss in the filter.
Then put a chunk of raw shrimp or pure ammonia in each tank. At this point you can use the cheap strip tests for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate...all you are doing is monitoring the first cycle, but that is the only time you can get away with strip tests. Please don't use a fish to cycle the tank. To start with, the first fish you put in will dictate what you can add later. Second, a live fish will slow down the cycle process, because to keep the it alive you will have to soft cycle by doing a water change as soon as you see the ammonia spike. It's much faster and easier to just add a chunk of raw shrimp or pure ammonia, and let it ride until the first cycle is done. (You can remove the shrimp after you see the ammonia spike. but you don't have to, I always did)
At the top of the "New Hobbyist" section is a posted 101 tips for starting...read that. Snake has a newer thread on how to begin, but I don't know off hand how to find it...maybe he will chime in again and post the link.
You won't need the skimmer for at least a few months, so turn it off. A beginners book is exactly what to get before you even begin. I used the "Saltwater aquariums for Dummies" another really good beginners book is "The Conscientious Aquarist"
1st purchase after the tank...needs to be lab type saltwater test kits. Stay away from API they misread on nitrates.
You need to use RO (reverse osmosis) water to mix your saltwater. Tap is no good. So if you filled the tank with tap mixed water, I would start over. You will need at least 40 to 50 pounds of live rock...you can use dry base rock and use just a few pieces of live rock to seed, but rock is absolutely needed or an equal amount of resin decor that will seed just like the rock does....rock is best. Use sand as a substrate, crushed coral is hard for the CUC (clean up crew: snails, serpent or brittle stars, hermit crabs and such) to keep clean.
You have to have the rock or decor on the flat bottom of the tank and put the sand around it, you can't build on shifting sand, it will cause a rock slide that could crush the critters or break the tank.
You need at least 2 power heads, the wave is the life of the ocean and your saltwater tank. You need the wave more than the heater. You can use any type of filter you want EXCEPT the under gravel one. The best filter is the sump system, canister is the next choice, and then the HOB like the Whisper or penguin type.
The top needs to be open, so no glass tops with the lights on it. Saltwater has less oxygen then freshwater, so you need to have really good gas exchange...that means the top of the tank water needs to agitate, make it look like it's boiling. Some folks use a power head aimed at the surface, or if you use a canister, get the spray-bar.
Last but not least...now is the time to set up the quarantine tank. A 10 to 20g tank...nothing on the bottom, an overflow Penguin or Whisper filter type that has no roller thing on the top. An air line with no stone, just big bubbles, and a piece of PVC pipe or cheap resin decor to make the new fish feel safe and secure to be able to hide. Just put floss in the filter.
Then put a chunk of raw shrimp or pure ammonia in each tank. At this point you can use the cheap strip tests for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate...all you are doing is monitoring the first cycle, but that is the only time you can get away with strip tests. Please don't use a fish to cycle the tank. To start with, the first fish you put in will dictate what you can add later. Second, a live fish will slow down the cycle process, because to keep the it alive you will have to soft cycle by doing a water change as soon as you see the ammonia spike. It's much faster and easier to just add a chunk of raw shrimp or pure ammonia, and let it ride until the first cycle is done. (You can remove the shrimp after you see the ammonia spike. but you don't have to, I always did)
At the top of the "New Hobbyist" section is a posted 101 tips for starting...read that. Snake has a newer thread on how to begin, but I don't know off hand how to find it...maybe he will chime in again and post the link.
saltydiamond
New Member
let the tank cycle thats the very first thing you have to do is let it cycle completly, patients is a must. patients. patients patients. i have one large blower at end of tank some things need higher flow some need lower flow i wouldent use your protein skimmer yet untill you get good bacteria growing. if your gonna grow corel i would simply start out with ricordea very easy and hardy. and a cheap fish.
deton8it
Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by saltydiamond http:///t/395135/wow-new-guy-here-new-tank#post_3518159
let the tank cycle thats the very first thing you have to do is let it cycle completly, patients is a must. patients. patients patients.
Nothing good happens fast in a saltwater tank.
Oh yeah, welcome
John
Originally Posted by saltydiamond http:///t/395135/wow-new-guy-here-new-tank#post_3518159
let the tank cycle thats the very first thing you have to do is let it cycle completly, patients is a must. patients. patients patients.
Nothing good happens fast in a saltwater tank.
Oh yeah, welcome
John
snakeblitz33
Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by saltydiamond http:///t/395135/wow-new-guy-here-new-tank#post_3518159
let the tank cycle thats the very first thing you have to do is let it cycle completly, patients is a must. patients. patients patients. i have one large blower at end of tank some things need higher flow some need lower flow i wouldent use your protein skimmer yet untill you get good bacteria growing. if your gonna grow corel i would simply start out with ricordea very easy and hardy. and a cheap fish.
Welcome to the forum! I hope you enjoy your stay.
Skimmers don't necessarily remove enough bacteria to make a difference if it was on or off during a cycle. The important thing is to monitor ammonia levels. Not letting ammonia get above 1.0ppm during it's peak is essential for keeping living things on your rocks alive. Ricordea is great, but per polyp, they can be pretty expensive. Mushrooms in general, however, are relatively cheap per polyp and are easy to keep. Xenia, zoanthids, and other types of protopalythoa are also pretty easy to keep and are great for beginners.
Cheap fish can lead to headaches later. It's better to fully cycle your tank and add your first planned fish on a fish list that you have pre-planned. For example, Blue Devil Damsels and yellow tail damsels are cheap ($3) but can cause you to have to break down your tank to catch them because they are overly aggressive.
Originally Posted by saltydiamond http:///t/395135/wow-new-guy-here-new-tank#post_3518159
let the tank cycle thats the very first thing you have to do is let it cycle completly, patients is a must. patients. patients patients. i have one large blower at end of tank some things need higher flow some need lower flow i wouldent use your protein skimmer yet untill you get good bacteria growing. if your gonna grow corel i would simply start out with ricordea very easy and hardy. and a cheap fish.
Welcome to the forum! I hope you enjoy your stay.
Skimmers don't necessarily remove enough bacteria to make a difference if it was on or off during a cycle. The important thing is to monitor ammonia levels. Not letting ammonia get above 1.0ppm during it's peak is essential for keeping living things on your rocks alive. Ricordea is great, but per polyp, they can be pretty expensive. Mushrooms in general, however, are relatively cheap per polyp and are easy to keep. Xenia, zoanthids, and other types of protopalythoa are also pretty easy to keep and are great for beginners.
Cheap fish can lead to headaches later. It's better to fully cycle your tank and add your first planned fish on a fish list that you have pre-planned. For example, Blue Devil Damsels and yellow tail damsels are cheap ($3) but can cause you to have to break down your tank to catch them because they are overly aggressive.