HELP! Kevin's New Saltwater Setup

[kwandrsn]

Could I go ahead and get the water rock and sand in then add the salt once I get it?.

 

[kwandrsn]

Ok well I guess I'm gonna clean the rock and sand add my water to the tank then rock and then sand and this weekend when I get my salt I'll add it

 

[mr_X]

I would not clean the rock unless it's loaded with nuisance algae. Those dead sails will provide the die off for you to start your cycle.

 

[kwandrsn]

Ok some of the rock has white powdery stuff on it

 

[kwandrsn]

Here is some of it







Just add it like it is? The snails are pretty dried out they will still produce ammonia?

 

[kwandrsn]

Found a bunch odd either dead snails or empty shells and found a piece of green fuzzy stuff that isn't too dry

 

[kwandrsn]

Here is the rock in the tank

 

[mr_X]

The green fuzzy stuff I'm guessing is a nuisance algae called Bryopsis. i wouldn't keep that. The dried up snails will rot in the water. Them you can keep. It's important to make sure you actually do get an ammonia spike from this. Give it a few days, then test.

 

[kwandrsn]

Ok well I got the rock in gonna add sand. I can't get salt till tomorrow should I go ahead and put snails in and should I leave them even when cycled?

 

[kwandrsn]

And how do I get sand under the rocks like where there is holes? I had a bunch of small rocks to stack up

And also my sand is kind lumpy should I still use it?

 

[mr_X]

Just push it under with your hand. It will go under with a gentle wave of the hand. Make sure your rock pile is sturdy and allows plenty of water flow to go through it. Don't just pile them in a tight pile.

 

[kwandrsn]

You can see light from the other side and I rinsed the sand and it helped with hard clumps probably where he didn't dry it and put a lid on the bucket

 

[kwandrsn]

ok here is what it looks like
Its pretty cloudy but I guess it will clear up over time . Gonna add salt tomorrow

 

[mr_X]

It's not that bad.

 

[kwandrsn]

I wish I could stack the rock up higher I'm just afraid it will fall. How much sand space should I have?

 

[mr_X]

You need more rock. Double that I would guess. How much sand space do you need? What will you be placing on the sand?

 

[kwandrsn]

nothing I guess I just wasn't sure if I needed it. I figured I will get some snails and maybe a hermit once its cycled then a pair of clowns

 

[mr_X]

Just keep the rock away from the glass so you can clean it easily, and make sure it's stacked well so it doesn't come crashing down and kill things. Also, flow is important. Try to arrange the rock so there are as little low flow areas as possible. You might need a second power head on the right, facing opposite.

 

[kwandrsn]

Ok I will get another. There isn't any hurry my heater isn't working right. Its a recalled stealth I figured I would use it. The manufacturer is sending me a new heater just figured I would use this one until I got the new one. The water is still cloudy this morning

 

[mr_X]

It's clearing up already though.