New Tank Questions - 55 Gallon Cycle In 6 Days?!?

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noteworthy

Aquarium Advice Freak
Joined
Feb 21, 2004
Messages
376
Location
Texas
Hey Guys!

I've decided to go into the saltwater world by starting up a 55 gallon tank. I currently have 660 gph of filtration by means of hob filters. Yesterday I bought argonite sand from caribsea, salt, and a hydrometer.

The tank has been running water for about a day and I'm curious about the salt level. How long does it take to get accurate readings for salt in the tank? Sometimes when I use my hydrometer it is almost all the way up, and other times it is only a few notches above acceptable. I'll just dilute it down to get a better mix but I'm curious if the readings are accurate after 24 hours.

I do plan to buy live rock in the future but not yet. My main filtration will be mechanical. Eventually I would like to get a skimmer as well. My lighting is far below anything acceptable but it will work for a fish only tank.

I am planning to buy a few fish and use biospira for saltwater tanks. Has anyone tried this product before? I've read several people comment about this product on the freshwater forums but rarely talked about on the saltwater forums.


Thanks for reading a newbs post.
 
I am not certain about the time it takes to get an accurate reading for the salinity levels. However, I am in a similar position being that I just started a Saltwater setup yesterday. I noticed oddly varied readings of salinity as well. The high readings, as it turns out, were caused by bubbles attached to the swing arm on the meter. :? It turns out that I had to tap it or thump it several times to remove the bubbles and get an accurate reading. Not sure if that is your problem but, I thought I would make mention of it.
 
Once the salt is fully disolved and mixed with the tank, the reading won't very. But you do need to check for air bubbles as mentioned. And rince it out with fresh water when you're done to keep salt from drying inside it.
 
There are numbers on the hydrometer you want the salinity/spacific gravity of the water to be between 1.021 -1.025 and you want it to be constant once you pick where you want it.. In a rref tank most run around 1.025 ina a fowlr you can run on the low end.
Once you get critters or fish in the tank never add dry salt to the tank, you need to mix the slat water out of the tank in buckets. do some reading on the site there is a lot of good info out there for newbies... good luck..
Any questions just post away..
Like mentioned above... check for bubbles in the hydro.
 
Most people today recommend natural cycling without the use of chemicals and fish. You can throw a piece of coctail (raw from the grocer) shrimp in there whole and let him decay. That will produce the bacteria necessary to prepare your tank for fish.

Bummer on the live rock. That's the best means of filtration going in addition to providing your fish a natural environment where they can feel safe and secure.

The most frequently quoted phrase is "nothing good happens fast in this hobby". Unfortunately the converse is true as well. Bad stuff... happens REALLY fast.

Good luck with your move to saltwater!
 
As the Monkey said....beware of the bubbles. LOL. Make sure there are no bubbles on the "arm" of your hydromter. They will make you crazy trying to get a reading unless you thump them off.
 
Thanks for the messages guys! I went out and bought 30 lbs of live rock and I also have 20 lbs of live sand, and 30 lbs of regular argonite sand. I'll let the live rock cycle my tank.


The pet store guy that has been doing saltwater for 5 years says he uses his python on his salt tanks without any problem... but it does seem odd not to add salt to the water before dumping in the tank.

I got a good deal on the rock. $3.99 a lb for Figi Live Rock
 
How would you go about using a python to change water in a saltwater tank?

Does anyone out there try this method?


Thanks.

BTW The LR is beautiful :) I should get an ammonia reading soon.
 
Make mental note...First thing to replace, buy a refractometer to replace the hydrometer. You will thank me later.
 
Yeah. I can't spend anything else at the moment.
Initial Setup was a bit of a shock.


Did some tests after having the tank up for three days. I don't know exactly how accurate my findings are but you can give me any comments. :)


Salinity - 1.021-1.022
Ammonia - 1ppm
Nitrite - .5 ppm
PH - 8.2
Nitrate - somewhere between 0 and 2. I can't tell. It looks a bit orange but fits better with the upper level than the lower.

I did follow all the shaking instructions and my arm hurts. :)



Things seem to be going well for my first salt tank. My first aquarium was a freshwater only a few years ago. The wife sucked me into fish with a small tank. Funny how things turn around and I'm more into it than her.
 
I did some more testing today and found an interesting result.

Salinity - 1.022
pH - 8.2
Ammonia - .25
Nitrite - 0
Nitrate - 15

Is my tank already cycled in six days? I have a reading of 15 on Nitrates but still some Ammonia. I did add shrimp yesterday to help add ammonia to make nitrates but with my current reading of nitrates I'm thinking I don't need the shrimp in there.

Could I just remove the shrimp. Do a water change and add a couple of fish?

I'm thinking about the following:
Clowns
Damsels
Dwarf Angel
Tang
Snails

How many clowns and damsels should I get? Just pairs? How many snails do you guys suggest? I've heard inverts should be added first.
 
Tank seems to be doing well. I've been given 50-70 for a skimmer or more live rock. Do you guys think I should get a skimmer since I have 30 lbs live rock already?

I've heard good and bad about the seaclones but I don't need much. a seaclone 100 would be fine on a 55 gallon tank. Any other suggestions?
 
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