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Hey everyone newbie here. Just got a 50 gallon and attempting to get it going. Looking for some advice. Set it up with about a 1 inch of crushed coral on the bottom. Got a submurseable heater set at 80. A non canister filter. Just put in 50 gallons worth of sea salt. Right now im just letting it sit and keeping and eye on the salinity, ph, nitrates..ect ect. I cant wait to get it going.


Dont go with CC, you should go with Aragonite or Dolomite if you can get it. Read some of the articles :p

Good luck though. You will get tons of great advice from this website!
 
No, it is suppose to already have the bacteria, but with the shelf-life of these bags of sand sitting in a warehouse and at the LFS...I dought it's really live. Back to the Question. Aragonite sand will help to stabelize your PH and alkalinity. It acts and/or is a buffering agent.
 
well everything is looking good so far. My salinity is a bit higher than i want. everything else is great. Ive had 4 damsels in it for about a week now, two 4 stripes,1 domino,1 blue. Everyone is moving around happily so far. Looks awesome and colorful, well to me it is lol. Dropped in a maroon clown fish yesterday and looking good so far as well.
 
one thing i noticed about the clownfish..kinda strange. He/she likes to swim right near the heater and filter..is it bubbles or extra heat maybe? my tanks around 80 degs so idk if thats the problem. Everyonce in a while he`ll explore the rest of tank but seems to hang there alot. ANything i should be worried about ?
 
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geez...I have CC in my QT.
I just added a wrasse, will it be okay for a couple weeks till he's out of there?
 
and I agree with HN1, crushed coral should be replaced with sand.

i started my first tank (a 75g) in January. I started with crushed coral and replaced it last week with sand. Take my advice and get the sand. Looks better, and stays cleaner!!! Debris gets trapped in the crushed coral, and gets messy, and a breeding ground for algae and decaying matter! check my tank showcase to see the difference!

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f71/75g-tank-119218.html#post1010945
 
if its a HOB filter that you have, then im guessing that he is staying there because the water is slightly more oxygenated. thats might not be the case, but it was the only explanation that I could come up with lol
 
Clowns swim funny anyway. How many clowns do you have in there.
 
Clowns swim funny anyway. How many clowns do you have in there.
just 1..he def swims a bit funny lol..

is the tank cycled..id say yes.. all my levels are correct according to my strips and hydrometer.

im gonna wait a few weeks but then start looking for a couple new community friendly fish as long as these guys stay healthy. Looking for something colorful and intresting that would get along with clown,domino,4 stripe,blue damesel. Any suggestions?
 
oh you know what i had a question..looking for suggestions on something to clean the bottom of the tank..un eatten food and what not. Any suggestions on cheap bottom feeders?
 
First off, you got all damsels in there and as they grow you will be having territorial problems. I would invest in a liquid test kit. API makes an easy to do test kit. Get one that test for at least Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and PH. I would also recommened a salinity refractometer instead or a hydormeter which is not that accurate if you plan to get some corals later. I don't know your location but some online companies run some sweet deals on CUC's.
If you are getting extra food in your tank you are feeding to much. Cut back to everyother day and see if that helps.
 
i cant see myself getting coral honestly. Just trin to keep it simple and budget seeing how my work is becoming very very slow money is very tight.

So what do people do with the damsels after the tank is established if there that territorial ?
 
That is why a fishless cycle is so much better. If your LFS will take them back you could do that Or you could add a bicolor psydochromis or some Blue/green chromis.
 
I say blue/green chromis, thats what I went with and I love my little guy. I heard the bicolor pseudochromis could become a tad aggressive. Is that true TC?
 
Yes, my bicolor is the boss of the tank. It will handle itself with the best of the Damsels.lol
 
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