View Full Version : had plenty of info on setting up my tank, but now in the dark.. help!
srossnz
08-28-2007, 5:25 PM
Hi,
It's odd.. Mass amounts of info on getting started is available. So I got everything setup but now I am not exactly sure what to do. I have a 25gal tank that i setup last night, salinity is ok, temp is stable etc. I added some nitro bac to help get things going. SO I did a ph test this morning at the ph is at 7.2 -I can't seem to find out if this is normal to have low ph the first few days? Should I be in panic mode? Will my cycle not kick in until I get the ph up etc? Thanks for any info!
No need to panic. Your numbers are going to change day to day, and pH especially will change depending on the time of day you are testing. Just try to relax and study up on the stock you want in the tank.
If you'd like you could also give us the specs of your tank and tell us more about your vision for it. Are you doing a fishless cycle? Sounds like it and I commend you for that. Are you using an ammonia source like uncured rock or a prawn?
srossnz
08-28-2007, 6:37 PM
Hi, thanks for calming me down, i needed that :)
I am not looking to have anything overly complex at this stage. I have one of these tanks:
http://www.aquaone.co.uk/AquaStyle_aquarium.php
the 25gal model with built in wet/dry filter system in the hood. That might make you cringe I don't know. I was going to get a standard tank and add a nice all in one bak pak2 type until off the back but in NZ these things are outrageously expensive. What did sell me on my current tank is that the shop had two of them on display running very nice little marine setups (there was no hidden filtration anywhere just the hood filter system) and I could afford it. My gut tells me I should probably add a skimmer to this setup but maybe I should just see how it goes for now? The filter system pours water over a long white material, that then goes into what looks like a carbon level and that then goes into trays of ceramic 'noodles'. As for stocking the tank my vision is starting with a damsel, then two small clowns, maybe a small mandarin and then a few creepy crawleys like a cleaner shrimp if that works? Currently there is nothing in the tank but 12kg's of dead coral mainly in the center. I have 2 small powerheads adding circulation to the system. I did add nome nitro bac to kick things off but maybe i need some other items in there?
edit*
So I'm on day 2 and the tank is starting to appear algae like. The shop said it might get nasty for a while. It would be good if I understood clearly what to expect over the next 3 weeks so I can know it's going well.. Thanks!
Hi, thanks for calming me down, i needed that :)
No problem, it is something we all do for one another here. You'll find this the friendliest global SW forum on the net I think. I use others but I always come back here.
I am not looking to have anything overly complex at this stage. I have one of these tanks:http://www.aquaone.co.uk/AquaStyle_aquarium.php
the 25gal model with built in wet/dry filter system in the hood.
Never saw anything like that before, the wet dry is in the hood?
That might make you cringe I don't know. I was going to get a standard tank and add a nice all in one bak pak2 type until off the back but in NZ these things are outrageously expensive.
Sooner or later you'll find out that there are multiple ways to approach this hobby. Although there are some things that make me cringe minor differences in approach isn't anything I'd let stop you from being active in the reef community. I've yet to find any 2 reefers that do things exactly the same.
What did sell me on my current tank is that the shop had two of them on display running very nice little marine setups (there was no hidden filtration anywhere just the hood filter system) and I could afford it. My gut tells me I should probably add a skimmer to this setup but maybe I should just see how it goes for now?
You may not need a skimmer at all. I'm pro skimmer but on a nano tank like yours many do without them. If you do go skimmer I'd encourage you first to see if there is a way you could add a sump/fuge first and then consider a skimmer for it. Not sure if that is at all possible with the hood on your tank.
The filter system pours water over a long white material, that then goes into what looks like a carbon level and that then goes into trays of cermaic 'noodles'. As for stocking the tank my vision is starting with a damsel,
Be sure you want one of these. They are aggressive and it isn't uncommon for people to decide to remove them. Warning..they are fast little devils and difficult to get out of the tank once they are in with rock as well.
then two small clowns, maybe a small mandarin and then a few creepy crawleys like a cleaner shrimp if that works?
I'd skip the mandarin on a 25g tank. They really need a larger mature tank to survive due to their diet. The two clowns and shrimp would be great though.
Currently there is nothing in the tank but 12kg's of dead coral mainly in the center.
If it is affordable where you are some live rock added to that will be good.
I have 2 mall powerheads adding circulation to the system.
How much flow do you have in the tank now? You're wanting about 10x turnover or in your case 25g x 10= 250gph turnover in your tank.
I did add nome nito bac to kick things off but maybe i need some other items in there?
I'd throw a fresh prawn in there, Put it in some cheesecloth or panthyhose and let it fall to the bottom. You'll see an ammonia spike after a short while and the cycle will be on it's way.
So I'm on day 2 and the tank is starting to appear algae like. The shop said it might get nasty for a while. It would be good if I understood clearly what to expect over the next 3 weeks so I can know it's going well.. Thanks
What kind of algae? What colors? A diatom bloom is normal but day 2 is awfully soon for that. It looks like brown dust and comes towards the end of a cycle.
srossnz
08-28-2007, 7:24 PM
Hi, I thought I would post some pics (taken 5mins ago):
I guess it doesn't look all that algae like afterall. Still reading through your info. Oh and today i'll be adding another powerhead behind the back coral to get some flow through there.. Thanks!
tank front:
http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/3892/tankfrontrs2.jpg
tank side:
http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/9404/tanksidequ6.jpg
tank top:
http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/8321/tanktopzf2.jpg
schigara
08-28-2007, 10:06 PM
I always cycle with pure ammonia. You don't have to wait for the shrimp to decay to start getting the ammonia spike.
It can be difficult sometimes to find pure ammonia though. Just make sure it is clear and does not contain Surfactants or coloring. Shake the bottle and if it does not fizz, it is actually pure.
srossnz
08-29-2007, 6:41 AM
latest progress (who knows maybe a newbie down the road will find this thread usefull). Day2 is coming to a close. I've been reading more today and also did an ammonia test which showed my ammonia levels after day 2 at 1.5 so maybe that means the spike is starting. To answer an above question my filter system moves 400litres/hr, the small power head does around 300, and another small one will be directed behind the coral soon. The cloudiness in the above pics remains and the tank has an ocean/algae type smell, not too major. My research indicates my lighting will not be sufficient enough for much other than fish only system but I am hoping there is some type of plant life and small robust invertebrate type life considered less fragile and requires low light -so any advice there would be good.. PH today has increased and is now 7.9 up from 7.2 I haven't tested nitrate and nitrite not sure there is any point to testing that just yet..
Also, i have calculated that for a waterchange i will need to exchange 16litres every 2 weeks. I'm a bit clueless as to the most efficient way to do this. I am thinking:
-mix the water up into a container that can handle 16 litres
-have a small powerhead circulate the mixture as well as a heater in the bucket to get the water temp stable
-let it run overnight
-next day verify the salinity and the PH level. I am assuming though that my water supply will have a low PH so I might need to treat the water to get the PH normal?
-take my ready made mix to the tank, syphon out 16 litres and then pour in the new water
Is that about right? Thanks!
srossnz
08-29-2007, 8:34 AM
One other concern.. I have a 90 ltr tank and all the rock i added took up 14 of that. That leaves me with 76. I would like to build out the top of my rockspace a bit more but if it is highly advised I do not lose any more water volume i'll back off on that. I estimate I would probably use up about 6 more ltrs leaving me with 70.. hmm...
Grins
08-29-2007, 11:48 AM
What are you using for your water source? Tap water? Have you considered a RO/Di unit?
srossnz
08-29-2007, 7:54 PM
My water source is rainwater. Some of us NZers collect our water from the roof via rain. it is then stored in a large concrete 5,000gal tank. The water is then pumped through a filter (25 to 1 micron) and into the house. For the fish tank i run it through a large benchtop filter just to be safe. So I guess in a way my water is already RO by default? Or maybe more like distilled..
Ah OK. the water change you described sounds good to me. I let the water mix up during the week. I just refill it after the waterchange and then it is good to go the next weekend. Test your water after you mix the salt before adding anything for the pH. One of those never add before you test things in reefing.
I think you'll be fine with building up the rock work a bit more.
srossnz
08-30-2007, 2:27 AM
Ok, I've been real busy today. I built up my rock a bit more. I added a protector on my jaeger heater (more of a visual thing, the black makes it far less distracting. I added a nanostream power head that you can see top left boy was that thing expensive but well worth it, my tank is now alive with nice current (I moved my little power head to the back and it is pushing flow behind my rock stack to keep things moving back there. I also added a box of micro-merc bio material to my filter system. The system came with a very sparse container of ceramic noodles and i loaded up the containers with the micro-merc balls as well so now i have 2x the bio media in the filter system and it seems to be running good. Really looking forward to getting some life into the tank but am being patient. here is a pic (the tank looks so tiny in the pic but it's a decent size for our living room):
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/9725/tankupdateux0.jpg
srossnz
08-30-2007, 6:11 AM
I don't know about this nanostream head. It has great flow but is about to vibrate us out of the house, it is extremely loud. I'll play around with it tomorrow but not sure if anything will help. hmm
I've not noticed them being loud when at homes with them. Is it rattling against the heater maybe? And good job on your rockwork, I like it.
srossnz
08-30-2007, 7:26 AM
ok, here is a pic after moving the nanostream to the back. Can you tell me if my circulation is in a good state now? I really am going on instict as to what it should be doing. Here is a diagram, thanks!
http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/4299/circulationjh4.jpg
.
.
*edit - i left out one of the flows, the filter outlet also drops water straight down towards the small powerhead..
srossnz
08-30-2007, 7:29 AM
I was also wondering about water changes. If all your readings are a-ok then why change out some water? Is it to get fresh salt into the tank or something like that?
The flow is probably OK, you're trying to avoid dead spots is all. The one behind the rocks is good as it will help keep dietrus from building up there. You can always place your hand in the tank and see if there is a section not getting flow.
On the water changes, one of the reasons is that the salt mix will help replace trace minerals to your water. Many get away without dosing things like calclum, magnesium, etc. because they use a good salt mix and keep up with water changes.
srossnz
08-30-2007, 8:32 AM
The flow is probably OK, you're trying to avoid dead spots is all. The one behind the rocks is good as it will help keep dietrus from building up there. You can always place your hand in the tank and see if there is a section not getting flow.
On the water changes, one of the reasons is that the salt mix will help replace trace minerals to your water. Many get away without dosing things like calclum, magnesium, etc. because they use a good salt mix and keep up with water changes.
Cool thanks. Is "Red Sea" a decent mix or should I switch brands?
I haven't personally used it to say.