Please help!!!!

[TitoBoyz2491]

Well I had a 20 Gal Long Reef tank, it was running beautifully but due to a power outtage everything died. (this happened about a year and a half ago) well i shut it down, took the 30 ibs of live rock and put it in a bucket without water, and left the live sand in the tank with out water. I was heartbroken and wanted nothing to do with aquariums. But recently i've been wanting to start the reef tank up again. Yestrday I bought a bag of Live Sand and 1ib of live rock. I put up the tank with the skimmer, powerheads, and lights. will the bag of live sand and 1ib of live rock bring the dead live rock and dead live sand?

 

[Ziggy953]

I wouldn't count on the live sand too much but the 1lb of LR will help. It is still a good idea to introduce an ammonia source to help speed your cycle along. A cocktail shrimp will do the trick. Go to the article section of this site (link in my sig) and read up about cycling your tank.

 

[TitoBoyz2491]

thanks, but a quick question, will the 1ib of live rock bring back the rocks to life? Some of the rocks still have color on them but obviousley not "live".

 

[melosu58]

All live means that it has the nitrifying bacteria growing on it. You could do that with no extra LR added. Now if you mean all the little critters than live in the rock then I doubt that one piece will make much of a difference.

 

[TitoBoyz2491]

Yea that's what I meant. I just miss the excitement of adding liverock and possible hitchhikers such as pods, featherdusters, etc. But heyy at least there is no possibility of adding the bad hitchhikers either. Well Im going to use the shrimp method and hopefully the tank will cycle quickly. Thank You

 

[Erok7620]

Doesnt really have anything to do with your post but just curious here, how long was the power out? I've ran this senerio though my head if I had a power outage for a substantial amount of time what would I do. I've had power out for a few hours with no more than 1 degree of temp change and no Ill effects. Let me know. Thanks in advance!

 

[TitoBoyz2491]

well i happen to live in Florida, where hurricanes often hit. The power was out for a week and 3 days.

 

[HoCkEyGmC]

i wouldnt expect a long cycle with the cured or maybe base rock, u just gotta build up your bacteria colony again.
and i also have a question, what is the most curtial thing to have durring power outages? flow, filter, lighting, heat, or what?

 

[TitoBoyz2491]

Well water movement is vital. The lighting will be missed very much by the corals after a couple days. The temp could drop. Basically a power outtage means Uh Oh, unless you have a generator of course, or any other back up power plan.

 

[HoCkEyGmC]

we have a generator but im just wonderin cuz we need it for other items too and idk if the tank would prbly use a lot of the energy being made. and i have a nanocube so flow and filtration are powered by the same pumps so im good for both of those. so then i could prbly turn the pumps off for a little bit and the lights on for a little bit then back to normal. but idk.

 

[TitoBoyz2491]

Well your best bet would be to use the energy for the tank in spurts, when your not using it on your needs. Like let the filter and pump flow the water so it wont become stagnant. And if you have corals, try and give them some light from time to time. Hopefully you and I, and everybody for that matter, wont have to worry about this.

 

[HoCkEyGmC]

where i lived there are harsh winters and it gets ugly, many power outages.

 

[TitoBoyz2491]

well they sell little battery powered airpumps. Maybe you could use to help move the water.

 

[HoCkEyGmC]

arent airbubles bad for saltwater fish? or was i mis-informed?

 

[TitoBoyz2491]

You could take the airstone off and use the tube to help move the water a little.

 

[iceiscool]

I enjoyed a lot reading your suggestions and tips, so I though I some of mine. Here's a link to one of the helpful videos I found: YouTube - Saltwater Aquarium Fish Selection Advice