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dw6565

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
Sep 13, 2010
Messages
6
Hi
My name is dave. I am returning to SW with a 50g- going basic FOWLR 2/3 argonite 1/3 live sand, dead corals from storage and and 5 lbs or so of cured live rock (not yet bought). Looking for final to be 2 to 4 nice fish and invert for clean up. Very basic. Have fluval 305, skimmer, 240gph recirc pump, new lights for FO.
I welcome any and all suggestions re stocking ideas and especially re cycling needs. Due to some issues, I do not plan to introduce fish until late October. Not sure if I should add live sand and rock now.
 
Welcome back to the hobby and to AA...

I'm no expert but 5lbs of LR in a 55G does not sound like enough... My understanding is at least one lb for each G.
 
My thinking is the fluval 305 has bio material, the live sand will provide bio, and the other rock and coral in the tank will be live after some time. I also have some bio addititive (dry material) that I can use if necessary. I plan on a light fish load and do not want a lot of rock if i can be successfult without it.
 
Chances are the bio material in your canister are end up causing you more headache then you bargained for. They end up trapping detrius and basically turn into an unnecessary nitrate factory. The difference between the live sand and the live rock, is the bacteria can only process the water its in contact with. The super porus and lightweight rock is the best because it has the most amount of surface area for the bacteria to live on and get in contact to process the water. If you want to have a cleaner more open tank, look into getting a sump and putting most of your LR in there.
 
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