How do I start a Salt water tank?

[sarahh]

so i would like a saltwater setup, i have a 37 gallon older style corner aquarium (hex type as opposed to bow front)

My question is how do i start? i have all sorts of filters for my cichlids, fluval, eheim, hob, canister etc, do i need to go the sump route?

i planned on using crushed coral substrate with live rock that i will purchase from a LFS.
do i need to have special placement of powerheads and protein skimmers? or can you pretty much chuck em in?

also should i set up the tank with live rock, then fishless cycle? how long should that be for? i want to put in corals and anemones (sp?) eventually, should i put those in, then fish?

ok, that should start me off. i would like to eventually have a lawnmower blenny and a damsel fish of some sort, but that can wait

 

[the_fish_man]

Well a skimmer isnt needed but is useful You have to maintain a Ph of 8.2 and test your parameters every day.

 

[the_fish_man]

Do you know the basics of saltwater? If so your already a step closer to starting the cycle.Now there are to ways to cycle with lr You can buy cured lr or uncured lr. With cured It will take less time to cycle. But it costs a lot more then uncured. But uncured will stink during the cycle and will take longer. Do you have any salt yet? I am not a pro with filtering so I probably wouldn't no which filter to use.

 

[mr_X]

sarah, if you are heading in the reef tank direction, i suggest a completely different tank. a hex is very hard to keep the proper alternating flow in, for one. it's also got a bad foot print (insufficient surface area to place corals and have them grow out).
crushed coral is also a bad idea for a reef tank because of the maintenance issue. i suggest smaller granules. aragonite based substrate that is slightly larger than sugar sized.
you'll also need strong lighting for corals and anemones.

IMO, you'll get a lot more enjoyment out of a 40 breeder. it's got perfect dimensions for a small reef.

 

[the_fish_man]

aggreed with mrx

 

[sarahh]

Ah, i see what you mean. Luckily due to MTS, i have a suitable tank. lol
thanks for the heads up i was reading that if i had a wrasse (which may be an option) that he would dig, so crushed coral would be bad for that too...
hmm... before i get any live rock or livestock i will set up and let you guys critique i think...

 

[theyoungaquariest]

Don't forget to update us with pictures!

 

[sarahh]

lord help me i am a bargain hunter. i just bought a 40 gallon breeder off craigslist with 45 lb of live rock, 40 lb of live sand, everything you need and a pair of damsels for $160.
i am going to pick up at 4pm.. right now i need a master test kit, salts and a LFS for help... yay for me. i will keep you posted. i have the LFS on standby to take the fish if i am too far over my head, but wish me luck..

will be on periodically to check for advice

 

[melosu58]

Congrats on the 40 gallon pick up. Mr X hit it on the head on the other stuff.

 

[cmor1701d]

You are off to a great start. Ma I suggest you continue to do some reading on this forum and ask questions before you do or buy something. As you have already found out, there is some great advice to be had here from people who are not looking to sell you anything.

AA Articles

Stock list and tips for maintaining your SW tank

How to cycle your tank with out the use of fish

Quarantine article

An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure: A Quarantine Tank for Everything by Steven Pro

Refugiums

Reef Aquarium Water Parameters

And, my 10 rules for a successful marine aquarium:

Rule # 1. Nothing Good ever happens Fast in a salt water aquarium
Rule # 2. Don't add anything (supplements/chemicals/minerals)you don't test for first.
Rule # 3. PWC (Partial Water Changes) are your friend, and cure many ills.
Rule # 4. QT EVERYTHING before adding it to your tank (mandarins excepted, corals should be dipped)
Rule # 5. Use only RO or RODI water (either buy it or make it)
Rule # 6. All animal species live longer on a 30% reduced caloric intake. Only feed every other day at most (fish species Dependant)
Rule # 7. Hyposalinity is the best, safest, and most effective treatment for marine Ich (IMHO)
Rule # 8. A Refractometer is a MUST HAVE, not a luxury.
Rule # 9. Anemones will never live anywhere near their normal (approx 30 years) lifespan in a home aquarium. Leave them in the ocean.
Rule # 10. The tank size recommendations for fish are there for a reason - HEED THEM!

 

[mr_X]

cmor, you forgot "beware the LFS's advice...more times than not it's a sales pitch!"

 

[sarahh]

thanks you guys, i REALLY appreciate your help on this, you have no idea.

so i have the tank set up and it does not have just damsels like i thought.

there are 5 fish in there, one is a yellowtail damsel, the others i am working on ID's (sorry, no camera as yet). black with dorsal spots, black and white stripes, blue on electric blue, and a little black apisto looking thing. also a few little hermit crabs, a starfish and a little wavy looking thing that she said a peppermint shrimp will eat (not geting one, but good to know)

there are mushrooms, and a little coral thingy and the live rock is kinda awesome. The lady made me take home all of the water cos no one is open at night for salt water (thank you!!) and now the fish are swimming around happily. well they are staking out little territories.

There was only one powerhead, so i have added another one to avoid dead spots, and the HOB filter will be replaced as soon as i have a few bucks to spare (next thursday... this is going to be worse than the cichlids, i can tell already lol)i was thinking a sump/ refugium (sp?)

SO for now, they will sit as is for the next few months so that they can settle and i can learn and then we will see where to from there... pics to follow

 

[sarahh]

ha! thank you liveaquaria blue damsel, three spot domino, fourstripe damsel and still looking for the little black one

 

[sarahh]

maybe a lyretail blenny? photos tomorrow

 

[ShawnMMcKenna]

Looking forward to seeing the pics!

 

[abdhalim2]

nice deal sarah..but maybe u need to test the water....

 

[mr_X]

the wavy looking thing is a pest anemone more commonly known as "aptasia". left unchecked, it will turn into 100.

 

[cmor1701d]

Use some lemon juice in an ear syringe to get rid of the aiptasis. There are also commercial preparations like Joe's Juice to do the same.

 

[sarahh]

test results

so i di my readings on the API Master Reef Kit, and here are the results
they aren't great

calcium 420-440 (untrained eye)
KH 89.5
Phosphate 0.25
Nitrate 80

salinity is 1.024

ph is about 8.0


now if this were an established tank i would go ahead and do a 30% PWC, and i kinda want to, but the fish have only just got here, i have no water on hand ( i can make some-24hrs- or go buy some tomorrow cos i have no store nearby that will stay open until i get there)

is it ok to leave it overnight and do the PWC tomorrow? and should i add calcium when i do the PWC? or should i just mix a new batch of water and chuck it in and hope for the best?

sorry, complete rookie questions, but i don't want to upset the fish any more than they are. and something tells me the tank has been building the nitrates for a while... Ooh, is it ok to vaccuum the sand?

 

[mr_X]

the important tests you should be focusing on right now are ammonia and nitrite. calcium doesn't effect fish. the nitrates are up because you transported the tank. i would mix up a water change and do one tomorrow. after a tank has been cycled, there is never a bad time for a water change.

how long has this tank been up before you got it? what does the substrate look like? does it appear clean? small granules? how did you transport it?