Temporary Lighting.

[RocketSeason]

Hey gang. I am getting my LR here in a few days and I want to know what bulb I should use temporarily till I can afford my real lighting system. Right now I have the standard 16 inch florescent bulb that came with the hood.

Its a 37 gallon cube tank 20 inches high

 

[captivereefs]

That will be fine for liverock. I would get something better over it soon though.

 

[RocketSeason]

Live Rock from Liverocks.com is coming on Thursday!

should I spring for a 10,000k bulb or a 50/50 actnic? Will any of these help protect my Live Rock? It will probibly be a good 3 months before I will be able to upgrade my lighting beyond that.

Also, should I leave my carbon in my Magnum 350 or take it out?

Also, should I purchase my additional Powerhead now? My canaster Filter Cycles 300-350 GPH. I know I will need to add another small powerhead for the fish. I just didnt know if I needed it for the rock as well.

Thanks!

 

[MT79]

should I spring for a 10,000k bulb or a 50/50 actnic?

You can, although it won't affect the rock much it may look better to the viewer.

should I leave my carbon in my Magnum 350 or take it out?

I would remove it. Don't worry about GAC until it cycles.

should I purchase my additional Powerhead now?

Yes. It will help push water through the rock and help w/ the die-off process.

 

[malkore]

changing bulbs isn't really gonna help much...you need more bulbs..not a different bulb.
better to save money for the new fixture, which will be halide or power compact...meaning any bulb you buy now will be useless in the new fixture.

 

[RocketSeason]

right. good to know.

I need to purchase a timer for the light anyway because I go away on most weekends.

My plan is to purchase a 24" Coralife Lunar Aqualight. that thing is sweet!

What SG should my water be when I go to do my High salinity Dip on my LR and How long should I leave it in the water?

 

[Zack]

Please don't do a high or low SG dip with our rock, many creatures will die on it causing a very high spike in any tank.

 

[RocketSeason]

ok. anyone have any Ideas on how to remove Mantis Shrimp and Other unwanted hitchikers?

 

[Zack]

Most of our customers have the mantis in their tanks. mantis from the gulf/keys are not agressive at all like the ones in imported rock. We have many in our display tanks that are scared to hell of the fish. We can hand feed them as well. Some customers who get mantis will just set-up an easy trap if they don't want them. I find a lot fall out of the rock when handling them.

 

[AR15 guy]

I plan on keeping clowns, firefish, and gramma's. Should I worry about mantis shrimp with these types of fish?

Also does the "base" rock have a lot of hitchhikers?

 

[RocketSeason]

wow. this is an old thread.

Ok, Hello and welcome to Aquarium Advice!!!

Base rock won't have anything on it but rock. (unless you get it from LiveRocks.com, then you will get some life.)

Live Rock will often contain Mantis Shrimps and these little guys are killers. I would say that definatly your firefish would be in trouble. and The Clowns and gramma's would be in danger too.

But with patience and a keen eye, the mantis can be removed and your fish will be much happier for it.