Ok I have decided

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dralarms

Aquarium Advice Addict
Joined
Sep 7, 2003
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Location
Athens, TN.
Well I'm gonna take the plunge, I'm gonna get some lr from liverocks.com, do I need to put my fish in another tank and let the lr do it's thing or will they be ok? Also I read alot of posts about unwanted critters. How do I get rid of them before placing them in my tank? What I am thinking is this, get some sand and move my cc to one side of the tank, let it set for about 7 to 10 days, then remove the cc completely and finish up with sand, let it set for another 7 to 10 days and order the lr. Am I likely to have problems with my tank if I just put the lr into my tank with my fish? Oh and during this process I am getting rid of the 2 black and white damsels and the 2 yellow stripe damsels, and maybe part of the "blue devils" (sure wished I knew their nickname when I got them). If I have to move my fish, will the remaining 4 clowns, and 4 to 8 damsels be ok in the 29 gal while the lr does it's thing? Also do I need to remove the penguin 330 because I'm getting lr?
 
do I need to put my fish in another tank and let the lr do it's thing or will they be ok?

Leave them and cure the rock in a seperate container, the rubbermaid tubs work well for this.

What I am thinking is this, get some sand and move my cc to one side of the tank, let it set for about 7 to 10 days, then remove the cc completely and finish up with sand, let it set for another 7 to 10 days and order the lr

That should work fine.

Am I likely to have problems with my tank if I just put the lr into my tank with my fish?

WQuite possibly you will experience die off on the rock and it will cause an ammonia spike in the tank, cure it in another container.
 
Thanks. :D So I'M Off to home depot soon to find some sand. (now just what was that stuff called anyway?) mumble mumble.
 
You might be hard up to find it in TN. I have a hard time finding it here in VA. Not to mention its more of a seasonal item at Home depot. Its really sold for kids play box's so if they dont have any left over from summer then they probaly wont restock till spring.
 
justmy2cents said:
Also I read alot of posts about unwanted critters. How do I get rid of them before placing them in my tank?

What I am thinking is this, get some sand and move my cc to one side of the tank, let it set for about 7 to 10 days, then remove the cc completely and finish up with sand, let it set for another 7 to 10 days and order the lr.

If I have to move my fish, will the remaining 4 clowns, and 4 to 8 damsels be ok in the 29 gal while the lr does it's thing?

Also do I need to remove the penguin 330 because I'm getting lr?

Unwanted critters: You can soak your LR in a clean bucket full of hypo salinity salt water. Everything will basically jump ship, then you can pick through what you want and dont want.

My suggestion on the CC and LS is to just pull it and replace it all at once. I have seen it done several times with no ill effects. If your concerned about a mini-cycle, you can cure your sand in a rubber maid tub just like LR. It doesnt take nearly as long and it will be ready to handle your bio load when it goes in. If you want to add an ammonia source for the sand, just toss a raw shrimp in on top of the sand while it cures. When the parameters read zero..your ready.

definitely do what he said about curing the LR outside the tank. You will likely lose everything if you just put it straight in.

The HOB filter is great for surface agitation..on a small tank, not drilled, I would run it (w/o the filters in it)

HTH
Squishy
 
you can cure your sand in a rubber maid tub just like LR. It doesnt take nearly as long and it will be ready to handle your bio load when it goes in. If you want to add an ammonia source for the sand, just toss a raw shrimp in on top of the sand while it cures.

One thing not mentioned about this...is that the sand will be "heavier" with the bacteia and bacterial slime and will not cause a "sandstorm" as easy as it will if you just put it straight into your tank. If cured outside the tank, I would expect the sand to settle and the tank to be clear within a few hours rather than the few days of just adding it to the tank with no cycling.
 
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