need some info

[Smokinn]

My wife and I found a 95gal with a awsome stand with everything included and ready for saltwater for a steal at 200.00. The tank has only been down for 4 months and the only thing were going to replace is the skimmer. My question is how much LR shold we use? Also how long after adding saltwater should we put in LR? Heres my thinking and please correct me if im wrong. Set up tank get chem levels correct, add LR let the tank cycle then add some fish. Is this a good way to do this?

Thanks
Jason

 

[liquidreamer]

How much rock really depends on what type of filtration you are going with. I would personally go with about 125-140 lbs of live rock and run a sump/refugium to aid in filtration. You can use RO/DI water and them mix your salt and make sure your water levels are right and then stick the LR in right after to start the cycle. You may also want to use the cocktail shrimp method to jump start the cycle. You can do some searching on this (often called the "fishless cycle") method here - it is mentioned many times.

Also - RO water is available from your LFS for around .50 - .80 a gallon. Many here would advise using just normal tap water because it can cause problems in the future with algae and other incorrect water readings. Some people have nice tap water and swear by using theirs instead of RO water - but unless you get yours tested and dont want the chance of trouble in the future, I would go RO. You can also save yourself some time and money in the long run and purchase an RO/DI filter system to convert your normal tap water to a usable level.

Hope this helps.

 

[liquidreamer]

Also, welcome to AA - I'm a n00b too

 

[Smokinn]

Thanks for the info. The system has a wey/dry filter system and I have a RO system in the house. Just a matter of running another line to the tank. I have never set up a SW tank with all this filter system so were going to have the Fish store come out and set it up for 25.00/hour and they will even bring the RO water with salt at .70 a gal. He said they could set it up in about a hour. Sounds good to me. That way I can ask all the questions I have and I'll know its set up right. I plan on ordering my LR from liverock.com the next day then since they ship next day. So how long does it take a tank to cycle?

Jason

 

[Fluff]

It took my tank 4wks to cycle. Cycling with cured LR should help things along and go quicker. If you haven't already, get a good test kit so you can watch the water parameters and know when your cycle is complete. As for LR, I believe the recommended amount would be 1.5-2lbs per gal. What are you going to use as a substrate? Or will you be going bare bottom? If you can find it, tropical playsand can be bought and used and is a fraction of what you will pay for the bagged sand at your LFS.

 

[Smokinn]

I plan on useing live sand.

 

[first-timer89]

I bought 30 pounds of lr from lr.com and added it to my 75 gallon along with 25 pounds of lr that I cured myself from the lfs. I tested 2 times a day for 3 weeks with 2 test kits and had no amm. spike. The lr from lr.com is good stuff and will probly not caus a large cycle if any at all. HTH