Stlrockguy
Aquarium Advice Addict
Good luck. I've been rushing to get my 150 up and it's been 2 weeks. So much to do and such little time. But I am going to let it sit for a month since I'm adding so much rock
When I set up my tank I rinsed the sand in freshwater by filling up a 5 gal bucket half way and running the hose in it slowly and mixing the sand by hand from the bottom up.
I rinsed 40 lbs and then added 20lbs of new sand and had no problems.
I also filled my tank half way first then arranged my rock ( this way the water is clear) then filled the tank to 3/4 or so full, then I added my sand, then topped off. This way your rock can't shift and gives you a sturdy foundation to start from ( especially if you are planning to add gobys, or anything else that likes to burrow in the sand)
My friend who got me into SW had about 60 lbs fall over in his 175 gal and he is the one who advised me to do it that way and I had no problems with set up at all
KCCO
Sorry to hijack tex. did you have to let the sand you washed dry out before adding or was it still wet
That's what I figured but never hurts to ask lol. I've got about 250 pounds more to clean
Did you rinse all 60lbs or just the old 40lbs then just added new sand into it and then filled the tank? Did you mix all of it together then add to the tank?
Sorry to hijack tex. did you have to let the sand you washed dry out before adding or was it still wet
I rinsed only the old 40lbs and added it first then just dumped the new bag on top because the old sand had shells and bits and pieces of rock in it and I wanted a soft/clean looking sand bed. After an hour or so I took a long turkey baster and blasted all the sand off the live rocks.
I don't think so. The guy who is helping me said to clean the hell out if it until only clear water comes out. He has some really nice tanks and he told me that's what he did
Yea I've been washing sand for a week
Lmao. Yea sometimes. But it's all worth it in the end. I basically got the sand free with the live rock I bought
Put the rock in first. That's my plan. It'll make your structures more secure. I'd wait a week or two. Just to keep an eye in everything then after that you should be good to add more rock