New 160 fresh to saltwater conversion

[buddha]

Hello all sorry about repost if indeed it is so.

Synopsis: converting my 160 gallon freshwater tank to salt. Right now I have 700 gph flowing through it but I need to know how much I should flow through? LFS says 6-8 times, but a guy I know has his tank pushing 250 gph he says and it's a 110 gallon tank. From what Ive read already in the forum, sand is the way to go, I planned on putting in aragonite with about 30-40 lbs of live rock to start with and the bio additive to start the tank cycle right away! With that, it's been proven to get about 48 hr cycle ready time. Also, do I need a UV Filter? Don't have one at the time but I'm not sure how much I need one either...What else am I missing?

 

[buddha]

O, I forgot to mention, this tank is going to be fish only...NO Reef. Thanks!

 

[lando]

Welcome to AquariumAdvice.com!!!

I need to know how much I should flow through?

figuring in all filters and powerheads the general rule is 10-20x your tank's volume per hour. Maybe more for reefs.

From what Ive read already in the forum, sand is the way to go,

I much prefer sand over CC.

30-40 lbs of live rock to start with and the bio additive to start the tank cycle right away!

Good call on the LR. The more the better. Skip the "bio additive", its a waste of money and will do you no favors in the end. Get more LR instead. If you are worried about having a quick cycle then maybe SW is not for you. Nothing good happens fast. The problem with products like Bio Spira is that they do not prepare the tank for long-term habbitation. You can use it as a cycle suppliment (still a waste of money) but there is no way a tank will be ready for any type of bioload in 48hrs.

Also, do I need a UV Filter?

Nope
Remember...take things slowly, it will save you tons of money and heart-ache in the end.

 

[flamingonhot]

Yep definitely sand. Crushed coral is a pain in the a$$ to. It collects detritus and makes your nitrates go up and stuff. Sand also has the benfit of looking much better.

 

[buddha]

no problem then...I will definitely make sure that I take my time...I'm not trying to rush anything seriously! I took 2 weeks just to cycle my fresh tanks. I will take as much time as needed! I will also pass on the bio-spira definitely! So seriously 10-20x? Is that really true?

 

[DragonForce]

For a FOWLR I would go with 10-15x flow. In my reef I have 20x flow, I can't picture the importance of having heavy flow with a FOWLR tank. I think 2 maxi jet 1200's would be enough for your setup since you are not going to have corals.

Sand over CC all the way.

A skimmer is also something you should look into.

You might want to also look into getting more LR, I personally would start with maybe 100LBs of LR if you can afford it, this will get your cycle going faster.



On a final note, there is an article on doing a fishless cycle located here:
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=15

 

[tmkx3]

Howdie!!! I am, also in the process of converting 125g fresh to a salt. I added my lr on Oct 22. I wasn't getting any die-off from my rock to cycle with so I added cocktail shrimp for four days. I still didn't really get any ammonia readings. As of yesterday my readings were all 0. I am hpoing that my rock had enough bacteria on it and that is why I never really had a cycle. I am still going to wait a full month before I add any fish. Keep me posted on your progress. maybe we can help each other over some newbie hurdles. Tmkx3

 

[buddha]

sounds good to me man. I just bought to canister filters and was going to add two more but that would only cycle my tank around 8.5 more times...Sounds like I'm going to have a problem with that. Do I need a UV Filter? Noone ever answered that question for me

 

[afilter]

Welcome!!!

No need for a UV filter at this time as Lando stated above. For what you want to accomplish the 2 canisters(assuming 350gph) and a 2-4 PH should do the job.

I am assuming this tank is not drilled. You could also look into an overflow and the idea of going with a sump style filter. There are some DIY ideas out there that can save you a lot of $ and are easy.

Here is a link:

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=62045&highlight=

Basic requirements at this time would include:

Filtration
Good protein skimmer(recommended, but not required)
PH for water flow.
Substrate
Lighting (If using LR you should try to get 2-3 wpg to promote coraline growth)
research(you are doing that now)
Most of all patience lots of patience

Check out the suggested reading lists as well. Fenner's book "The Conscientious Marine aquarist is one of the best. You can pick up used copies for under $20.

HTH,