new to saltwater new tank cleaning help

[cooma7]

Hi all,

i just came across this site, and am probably going to spend the rest of the day browsing it

Ok to the question.

I am new to saltwater and just bought a Aqua Mercury Barrier Reef 400 (you all will probably not know what the **** that is since i cannot find ANY info on the internet, and the fact i am in australia!)

Anyway it is a All in one reef tank like the biocubes. actually, ill give you the specs as it may help, or help in the future.

Tank = 37L (around 14g?)
hood lights = 2x 24w TC-L (one blue, one white) VERY BRIGHT!
refugium light = 5w TC-D
Filter water pump = 420L/H, max water head : 0.7m (i dont know what the last part means)
skimmer pump = 420L/H, max water head : 0.7
moon light = 3x 15mA LED
fan = 1.9w
Substrate is just very fine crushed coral, and i have 1 live rock in there.

ok NOW to the question

I was at the aquarium shop, and got a REALLY good deal on this tank (just under half price) which ended up costing me $180au instead of $330
because this tank was just sitting there EXTREAMLY filthy with water in it and everything. (you couldnt even see in the glass as it was covered in a brown algie)

so i bought it, he gave it a quick clean and i took it home.
I put new water in it (bought from the shop) waited for all the crap to settle and it looked awesome!
but after a few days the algie (i cannot spell algie i am guessing) started to form again, over the top layer of substrate like a blanket. starting over the glass and now my rock also has ALOT of brown stuff all over it too.

i was wondering if it would be trying to cycle some more or some thing (this tank was running for a few months before i got it so should be setup ready to go)
or is it just absolutly filthy and need a really good clean?
if so what would be the best way to clean it, and ways so the bacteria stay there? (i.e cleaning the filters and ceramic rocks in the filters?)
and what about the substrate. would i just get a gravel cleaner to get all the crap out of that?
and also how would i clean the live rock so it doesnt have as much brown stuff all over it?

any other tips for a brand new first timer would be also really helpful.!

oh another thing i am fighting is heat issues. its just getting summer here and getting very warm. i have read ALOT on chilling tanks, and am going to give fans ago (cheaper!)but my tank gets up to 30 celcius!! then down to 24 at night (i just bought a heater so now it sits on around 26.7 and 27.2 at night) would fans get it from 30 to the required temp for a few clown fish and live rock (also a shrimp or something?)
if not what would be another cheap alternative?
i looked at the ICEPROBE but you need to drill a hole in your tank, and make it look kinda ugly!

anyway, sorry for the REALLY long winded first message, it was just the easiest way for me to explain hahah.
also sorry, i like to use (brackets) alot haha

thanks guys.

Ryan

 

[sogreene]

Did you keep the crushed coral that was in it at the store? That may be a source for the algae to have begun such a strong bloom, along with the water. One thing I found out the hard way, is that my water is horrible, and in no way ok for my sw tank. I have to by r/o water every week for my pwc's. The phosphate reading in my water was way high. If it is near a window, obviously that could be another source for the algae, as well as overfeeding, if you have put any food in the tank yet.

I am sure someone soon will ask you for your water readings, so you might want to get them ready for some better ideas ; )

Welcome to the site!

 

[melosu58]

I agree let`s see some water test results and we can go from there.

 

[roka64]

Welcome to the site!
I agree, can you give us some test results like, ammonia, nitrItes and nitrAtes?
Right now we can really only (and not very accruately) guess what's going on. It sounds like a possible diatom bloom. You may also want to rethink the crushed coral substrate, but that is for another thread.

 

[cooma7]

hey, thanks guys,
I will get some readings either tonight or tomorrow and post them.

So what about my pump and skimmer? is that enough water flow for that tank?
also the skimmer makes a whole lot of tiny bubbles through the tank, is there a way to stop this?

 

[austinsdad]

Any critters in the tank? Keep the lights off except for the prime time you view it too. 9hrs max IMO, but might want to go less and see if any growth slows.

Depending on what live stock there is in the tank, it might be easier to replace that crushed coral with fine sand.

Can you get light bulb replacements too?

 

[austinsdad]

what livestock is in the tank? How old are the lights?

I'd start to think about changing the gravel to sand. What are those ceramic rocks for? Could be a problem also. Can you get small pieces of live rock to replace'm?

Edited: time to go to bed.I thought my previous post was lost in cyberspace. Logged on later and thought I had to send it again. OOPS!

 

[cooma7]

No there are no critters in the tank yet.
I did ask the guy for live sand, whatever is in there is very small but to me it looks like crushed coral to me.

The tank is in my bedroom so its only really for my viewing pleasure (greedy i know)

also with temp, what is the maximum fluctuation that i can have? as i am finding it hard to keep a very constant temp.

just another question. maybe a stupid one haha, but with live rock, the longer its in the tank, does it grow more stuff on it? like little critters that live in it, and strange plant type things. or does it just have what it came with from the ocean?

 

[Ziggy953]

I agree water parameters. Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite, PH and SG.

You want to shoot for stability. Most would say no more then a 2 degree swing in 24hours. I try and keep my tank between 79.5 and 81. Now that winter is here I'll be more successful in doing that.

 

[cooma7]

Hey all, I finally got to test my tank. paramaters are:

p.h 8.2
ammonia = 0,
nitrItes = 0
nitrAtes? = 0
SG = 1028
current temp = 27.5c

it looks like its good to go. the only thing i am not sure about is the P.H?

the temp was to much of an issue so i took the tank down stairs into the lounge. its a bugger because i really wanted it next to my bed but cannot afford over $300 for a chiller just yet. maybe ill move it when i get one.

also the brown alge has gone now. maybe it was just from moving the tank (from the shop to my house) could it have just gone through small cycle or something?

the temp is ALOT more stable now. its a pretty hot day and its sitting on 27.5c with no fans on it what is the best temp for it to be?

p.s i still have no fish or critters. i just want everything stable first.

ill try to get some photos tonight.

thanks..

Ryan

 

[roka64]

First things first. GREAT job on what you are doing.
Your pH will still fluctuate since your tank is still in the process of stabilizing.
You have no critters producing waste, so you may want to add a tiny bit of fish food (so it will decay and produce ammonia) to feed the beneficial bacteria (remember, that bacteria needs that ammonia to keep it alive and to convert it to nitrItes and then to nitrAtes).
The "perfect" temp is a stable one with a 2 degree swing max.
Allen, cooma7 is on the C scale not the F one. I grew up in Germany and am now corrupted by the "standard" (not really, since the US only uses it....so it's not really standard...)....off my soap box....
PS.....metrics are waaaaaaay easier! LOL!

 

[cooma7]

thanks for the reply roka.
ok so it will be best for me to put something in my tank to produce ammonia?
i dont have any fish food. could i put a little bit of canned tuna or something?

i dont really get it, isnt the point to have my ammonia on 0 before i add any fish? my tank was second hand when i got it so it had already been through its cycle.
i think i am missing something haha.

ok so with the temp. since i know my tank will always get up to around 28.5c during the day i would be best setting my heater at say 27 and try to have 29 as my max?
or is that a little bit to warm for them?

also my live rock is pretty boring, none of it really has any cool little critters on it (apart from a few little swinging plants that hide when they notice you.)
do other things grow into the rock, or do they always just stay the same (whatever is on them from the ocean is what will always be on them)?

 

[cooma7]

oh and yes, im on the C scale haha, completely random but i dated a german girl for a while

 

[cooma7]

here are just a couple of photos taken with my phone. they are pretty bad but u get the point

this is my substrate is this crushed coral or sand? it doesnt look like coral now i look at it properly. it looks like little rocks.
\

this is the rocks i have so far. they look ok in real life, not so good in the pic. but i have managed to make a nice little cave in there. ill get a bit more rock soon.
(and a better camera haha)

 

[catmel]

hard to say for sure about the substrate, looks like a coarser grade ( bigger grains) sand.

Nice live rocks! I wish mine had that much coraline on it Looks like your tank is off to a great start. As I'm sure it was stated before just kick start your cycle when you're ready with some grocery store shrimp and test every day to every few days to see the cycle working.

I am a HUGE advocate of having a QT tank to not only qt all new arrivals but also for treatments if needed. I would highly suggest buying a cheap 10-20 gallon tank set up ( pretty cheap here, usually about $20-40 US) and get it cycling along with your main tank, so you can put your first fish in there

good luck!!

 

[roka64]

Hmmm, ok, well, add a raw shrimp and test for ammonia in 3-4 days. If there is no ammonia present, your beneficial bacteria is alive and converting the ammonia to nitrItes into nitrAtes, you can then add a fish and a very small clean up crew.

 

[cooma7]

ok thanks,

and what about temp. would 28.5c be ok or is that to warm?
I read on a site that the ideal reef temp is between 27 - 29 but i think thats a bit higher than what you guys are all saying.
If it could sit at about 28.5 it would be perfect. I am getting some fans for sure, so hopefully that can drop it down a little bit.
but being on the gold coast.. where i live, It does get very warm. (we just had indy by the way!)

and i will get some raw shrimp tonight after work. how much do i put in there? as said before, would a bit of tuna work? or does it need to be shrimp.

 

[roka64]

28.5 is about 82F which is a little on the high side (but still acceptable) as long as it doesn't go much higher. You want a range from 25.5-27.8 (stable is important) so even if you are on the higher end if it is stable you should be good.
You can probably use the tuna (anything that will decompose) but I would wonder about any preservatives in the tuna.

 

[cooma7]

thanks, i think once i get this fan i should be able to keep it to about 28 maybe even lower.
the strange thing is i woke up this morning, wend down stairs and it was on 27.4! what the? i have my heater set at 28 just to try to keep everything stable. now it was on 27.4 and the heater isnt even on? maybe its a bit dodgy.

about the tuna, oh well, i just put a little bit in there, will have to see what it does, but my tank should already be cycled and ready to go i would think. i dont mind waiting , i cannot do anything until i get this temp sorted out anyway!

 

[roka64]

That's no a bad swing. What kind of thermometer are you using?