What is this?!

[nicolea]

I just setup my tank with water and salt. Most of my salt is dissolved so I put one live rock in there as advised to by the local fish store. And this thing came off of it. I think it was alive it was moving. Not so much anymore :s it looks like a parasitic type creature. Any ideas? I attached the pictures

 

[Rosesrblu1]

It's a bristle worm. Part of the clean up crew. What are you using to cycle?

 

[Readingexcalibur]

That is a bristle worm, and it died because you added the rock to an un-cycled tank. Where is your experience at within the aquarium world?

 

[nicolea]

I am brand new with no experience with salt water. I put half distilled water and half tap with the treatments added that the store sold me. They sold me a rock, pictured below and told me if it dries out it would die so wait an hour or two after the salt and than put the rock in the tank. So i did!? I have a brand new Fluval C4 filter and Fluval heater.
I don't have substrate down yet I'm picking that up tomorrow.
They told me to keep the pump going and my tank should be okay in about 3 weeks.
I will test everything before I add anything first. Did I do something wrong here ? Am I going to kill the rock too!?

 

[nicolea]

Here's the rock

 

[Readingexcalibur]

Unfortunately you will and have killed the Rock, before everyone starts flooding you're thread, let me say you have been led down the wrong path a little... Or a lot and I am happy you are here to get it straight and save a TON of money. I am looking for my write up on cycling and general knowledge and I will get it to you.

 

[nicolea]

Oh boy. See this is exactly why I can't stand pet shops. Just to make money.... That's all they are about.

I bought a book "saltwater for dummies" I planned on reading it but I thought I'd get the water started bc the lady made it sound simple

 

[Sniperhank]

Saltwater is pretty simple, it is just getting started that people feel overwhelmed by at times.

 

[nicolea]

Is the rock dead for sure now.? How will I know? Do I take it out or wait?

 

[LaWoWee]

You can leave the rock in there. Beneficial bacteria will eventually populate the rock again but slowly. Your tank will cycle faster with more liverock, sand and other things that bacteria can multiply. a raw shrimp or pure ammonia can be used to help feed the bacteria. Do you have a hydrometer or something to test your water salinity? How big is your tank? Your filter is rated between 40-70 gallons so i assume its in that range. You may want to look into buying a protein skimmer unless you dont mind doing frequent water changes.

 

[Leedowlrods]

I'm six weeks ahead of you and I've got a thriving tank, just take your time and take everyone's advice and do what you think is best, you'll see the changes as the weeks go by.

 

[Leedowlrods]

All is well

 

[Crystal A]

I read saltwater for dummies before I started. Even though its for dummies it's a darn good read. It will tell you all about the cycling process, what to test for, approx how long it will take etc etc. while your water settles give it a read and it will help you decide what step to take next. Again very good read when you don't have a clue. Lol

 

[woody390]

So should you add live rock and sand at the beginning of cycling the tank as that's what I was told to do?

 

[hellaasian]

Heres my cycling tank

 

[Beengirl]

So should you add live rock and sand at the beginning of cycling the tank as that's what I was told to do?

Yes, because the cycle is all about bacteria being allowed to grow and reproduce, and the rock and Sand is what they grow on.

 

[nicolea]

Ok so I got some sand in and I put 2 raw shrimp in. I took some water out and put some demineralized h2o in. My tank was over salted bc I wasn't told the right size when I bought. My salinity is now at the top of the acceptable zone, 34, sg is 1.026

Also got a new LED light. Hope I'm on the right track. I bought a water testing kit.. 5 in 1. So I should just be monitoring the water before t
I add anymore rocks?
How will I know when there's enough bacteria and when I'm ready for fish? Here's a pic of the tank a few hrs after I put argonite in.

 

[Beengirl]

Ok so I got some sand in and I put 2 raw shrimp in. I took some water out and put some demineralized h2o in. My tank was over salted bc I wasn't told the right size when I bought. My salinity is now at the top of the acceptable zone, 34, sg is 1.026

Also got a new LED light. Hope I'm on the right track. I bought a water testing kit.. 5 in 1. So I should just be monitoring the water before t
I add anymore rocks?
How will I know when there's enough bacteria and when I'm ready for fish? Here's a pic of the tank a few hrs after I put argonite in.

If you have more LR already, add it now. If that's all you have, that's fine. Just after your cycled, if you get more rock, either get dry base rock and rinse it off before you put in tank or only get 1 piece of LR at a time. If you add too much LR to a cycled tank, you could set off a mini cycle and hurt the fish.
A specific gravity of 1.026 is great- I think most people keep theirs at 1.025-1.026. The light looks nice!! I love LEDs. Let the shrimp rot in there, you can test ammonia, nitrite and nitrate every day during the cycle- it's good practice. You'll see ammonia go up (needs to get to at least 4ppm), then it'll start to decrease and nitrites will rise and then decrease, then you'll get nitrates. When ammonia and nitrites spike and return to zero, then you're cycled. Your nitrates will probably be high at that point- do a PWC to get them down below 40 (lower is better though) and then your ready for fish!! This is a great time to research fish you wanna get.

 

[nicolea]

If you have more LR already, add it now. If that's all you have, that's fine. Just after your cycled, if you get more rock, either get dry base rock and rinse it off before you put in tank or only get 1 piece of LR at a time. If you add too much LR to a cycled tank, you could set off a mini cycle and hurt the fish.
A specific gravity of 1.026 is great- I think most people keep theirs at 1.025-1.026. The light looks nice!! I love LEDs. Let the shrimp rot in there, you can test ammonia, nitrite and nitrate every day during the cycle- it's good practice. You'll see ammonia go up (needs to get to at least 4ppm), then it'll start to decrease and nitrites will rise and then decrease, then you'll get nitrates. When ammonia and nitrites spike and return to zero, then you're cycled. Your nitrates will probably be high at that point- do a PWC to get them down below 40 (lower is better though) and then your ready for fish!! This is a great time to research fish you wanna get.

Awesome thanks for that info! So LR vs dry base rock... Should the tank be 50/50? Can corals live on dry base rock?
I saw a rock today it looked like a big chunk of glass... Teal in color and clear, can I put that in my tank as dry rock?

Also is there a good site to get testing strips at? The local store it's like $1 per strip

 

[Beengirl]

The liquid test kits are better for SW, strips aren't accurate enough for SW.
Base rock is much cheaper than LR. You could do all base rock if you want, but the rock should be porous. My 55g i used all LR, my 30g i used mostly base and seeded it with a couple puces of LR. all the tock will become LR over time. You can have as much or as little rock as you like. The smooth rock you're talking about wont have many nooks and crannies for BB to grow, but you can use it as a decoration if you want. BB will grow on the sand, rock, decorations, filter media, and surfaces in the tank.