Need advice BEFORE I set up!

[Callen]

I wouldn't do more than 50% water change at a time.

In your circumstances you really need to invest in a rodi unit. No knowing what is in the water you are getting. If they use copper tubing in their process it could be contaminating your tank for instance.

I bought one and had to return it because it had a broken part. Looked around town at lowes, Home Depot, sears and can't find another. Will have to order online.

Should I wait on that before I do the water change?

 

[Dav3]

I would. Hopefully you can get one shipped fairly fast.

 

[Grizz]

For the first water change i'd leave just enough to keep the sponge covered With those TrAtes at 160? your only going to lower them by half forcing another PWC very soon in order to lower them to 40 then again to get them to 20 (50 percent PWC's)

Get yourself a RO/DI unit theres some good on e bay BRS has a very good one for around $200 look for a group buy to save even more. It wont hurt to add that small power head aim it the surface it will help with the PH.

 

[Tategrant]

When you do big water changes with rodi units do you put water in a container before the change or just let the water flow out of the rodi into the tank?

 

[Grizz]

I mix mine in a 32 gal. brute trash can if you add all that fresh water it will shock/kill the bacteria and any livestock The only time i do a large water change is right after a new tank has finished cycling

 

[Tategrant]

I mix mine in a 32 gal. brute trash can if you add all that fresh water it will shock/kill the bacteria and any livestock The only time i do a large water change is right after a new tank has finished cycling

Do you siphon it back into the tank?

 

[Tategrant]

For the big WC do you put the salinity the same as the main tank or what?

 

[Grizz]

Yes i try to match temp and SG to the main tank i use a mag 7 to pump it from the trash pail to the main tank

 

[Callen]

Good questions tategrant...I need to know this too!

Grizz: what is best way to empty the water for the change...siphon from the DT?...water hose out the back door? Dip it out with pitchers into 5 gal buckets or trash cans and then go dump?

Then I make new saltwater to replace it...right? When I filled the tank I just made the water in 5 gal buckets and dumped it directly into the DT. Can I do the same for the re-rill or will that upset anything?

 

[Tategrant]

Good questions tategrant...I need to know this too!

Grizz: what is best way to empty the water for the change...siphon from the DT?...water hose out the back door? Dip it out with pitchers into 5 gal buckets or trash cans and then go dump?

Then I make new saltwater to replace it...right? When I filled the tank I just made the water in 5 gal buckets and dumped it directly into the DT. Can I do the same for the re-rill or will that upset anything?

Your a little ahead of me but I need to know the same things!

 

[TheTodd]

Glacier is RO, but does not do the DI. It has two carbon filters, a micron and UV. That is what I do. I've had readings of .002 to .004 on my TDS meter. Usually depends on how close to servicing you are. For FOWLR, I feel it is more than fine. Purists will swear by 0 TDS for reefs, which is probably ideal, but a little TDS is probably not disastrous either. I've done reefs in the past with just RO and they were okay.

I used to do the "bucket pouring" method, but more recently got a pump with some tubing. I pump the water out into 5g jugs and the pump the new water back in the same way. Much less splash/mess that way.

 

[Callen]

So simple! And I already have an extra pump!

 

[Callen]

I found a local water store and talked to them about their water. It is RO but not Distilled. They use PVC for the plumbing, so no copper. Do y'all think that will be ok for me to use this weekend for my big water change to hold me over until i can get a RODI unit for my house? Since I'm gonna do a few more big changes I really don't want to do all those trips back and forth schlepping those bottles around.

I took a look at rodi units online and have no idea which one to buy. Any advice?

 

[TheTodd]

I think it will be fine. What really matters is TDS (Total Disolved Solids). RO can get really close to zero with properly maintained filters. Are you doing reef or FOWLR? I bought a TDS meter on eBay for a few bucks and went around testing water at a bunch of places. 0 TDS is ideal for reef, but FOWLRs are more forgiving.

 

[Grizz]

Good questions tategrant...I need to know this too!

Grizz: what is best way to empty the water for the change...siphon from the DT?...water hose out the back door? Dip it out with pitchers into 5 gal buckets or trash cans and then go dump?

Then I make new saltwater to replace it...right? When I filled the tank I just made the water in 5 gal buckets and dumped it directly into the DT. Can I do the same for the re-rill or will that upset anything?

Easiest way is to siphon it out. when mixing try to use as large a container as you can this way the water is the same with 5 gl. pails it's harder to maintain same temp and SG You should try to have your water mixed ahead of time. I mix mine 24 hrs. before a water change This lets me get it to temp as well as be sure it's well mixed.

Callen You will only need to do a large water change the first time, once you lower the nitrAtes smaller PWC's will keep them down What i do is remove 90 percent of the freshly cycled water then fill tank 1/3 full test and if trAtes are still high change half of that water this way your still lowering trAtes but not wasting salt water.

PS This is the Ro/di i have it's paid for it's self in a year http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brs-4-stage-value-plus-ro-di-system-75gpd.html

 

[Tategrant]

Glacier is RO, but does not do the DI. It has two carbon filters, a micron and UV. That is what I do. I've had readings of .002 to .004 on my TDS meter. Usually depends on how close to servicing you are. For FOWLR, I feel it is more than fine. Purists will swear by 0 TDS for reefs, which is probably ideal, but a little TDS is probably not disastrous either. I've done reefs in the past with just RO and they were okay.

I used to do the "bucket pouring" method, but more recently got a pump with some tubing. I pump the water out into 5g jugs and the pump the new water back in the same way. Much less splash/mess that way.

You pump tank water into 5 gallon buckets

 

[Callen]

I think it will be fine. What really matters is TDS (Total Disolved Solids). RO can get really close to zero with properly maintained filters. Are you doing reef or FOWLR? I bought a TDS meter on eBay for a few bucks and went around testing water at a bunch of places. 0 TDS is ideal for reef, but FOWLRs are more forgiving.

I am ultimately going for Reef but I guess its nothing right now...except for my sponge...would that make me reef already?

Rock and Critter questions:
Q1. Is there a best config for the rock for a reef setup? I've prob got 2/3 of the bottom of my tank filled up and it angles toward the back of the tank as it gets higher. My talles rock is about 3 inches from the surface of the water.

Q2 my sponge is on bottom rock just above sand by the back corner of tank. Do I need to try to put his rock in a different location? Do they move around and find their ideal location on their own?

Q3 Crabs: those guys we brough from the Gulf are loving life in the tank. We put in 7 and they are happy as can be climbing all over the rock. Is 7 too many?

Q4 Snails: I put in one snail and he immediately burried himself in the sand never to be seen again. When I do the water change do I need to dig around an try to find him or remove him? Is he beneficial at all?

Q5 sandbed: During this water change I though I would do a better job of getting my rock all the way down to the bottom of the tank. Since my tank is so new, will my sandbed still be OK if I disturb it?

Q6 dead space: I still don't know wht to do with that dead space in the back corner where the overflow box is there is about a 3-4 inch square column of dead space. Do I put rock back there, leave it open for fish, a little bit of both?

 

[Grizz]

Q1. as long as you dont have detritus building up and a few caves for fish your rock will be ok. what i look for is can my fish find a place to hide? are there places to set my coral?

Q2 Id leave the sponge where it is as it looks happy

Q3 What kind of crabs are they? some will eat coral.

Q4 Snails IMO are an asset if it's digging in the sand it's stirring the bed which is a good thing add a few more

Q5 Yes you should rest the rock on the bottom some fish will dig and if the rock shifts it can cause a collapse

Q6 Not sure what you mean by 'dead space' can you post a pic?

 

[Callen]

No idea what kind of crabs they are. The folks at the beach just call them hermits.

Here is a pic of the " dead space" ... Justus term for this awkward are in the back corner. Don't know what to do with it.

 

[GoldfishJoey]

I found a local water store and talked to them about their water. It is RO but not Distilled. They use PVC for the plumbing, so no copper. Do y'all think that will be ok for me to use this weekend for my big water change to hold me over until i can get a RODI unit for my house? Since I'm gonna do a few more big changes I really don't want to do all those trips back and forth schlepping those bottles around.

I took a look at rodi units online and have no idea which one to buy. Any advice?

DON'T DO IT!!!!

Just my opinion... I had similar thinking and went to a water store and I ended up with a massive Cyanobacteria outbreak and not to mention huge algae blooms. if i we're you I'd stick to a lfs store RO/DI water. Its relatively cheap to buy. Shouldnt be more than a $1 per gallon. Unless you can test with a TDS meter I'd leave it alone. A lot of those water stores carry massive silicates in their water.