SETTING UP NEW 30G SALTY TONIGHT!

[chevyguy86]

Setting up first salty tonight any advice would be awesome!

This is what I have so far

1 - 30g tank....duh
30lbs of live carribean live sand
1 55gallon bag instant ocean salt
55lbs of cured fiji live rock
1 whisper 200 filter
1 penguin 150 filter
1 200w heater
1 air pump
1 bubble wand
1 large and 1 medium sized powerhead
1 36" T5 lighting with a 18k bulb and a actinic bulb (brightest thing I have ever seen)
1 custom built tank stand
1 light timer
30gallons of fresh RO water
(just placed a bid for a HOB 90g octupus protein skimmer on ebay)
1 150 gallon bucket of patience :headbang2:
1 salt water level thing...I forget the name of that thing...hydrometer...refractometer..super gravitonal measuring device...something - meter
1 bright blue backgroud

only other thing I know that I need is a piece of glass to make a cover for the tank. The tank is going in my 2 year old sons room...

any other advice on how to "start" er up or anything else in general would be much appriciated.

*EDIT* I have had a 50gallon bow front freshy, and a 100g freshy for about 10 years already so I have test kits, python...and all the goods and extra parts and stuff.

Also I love this site, lately I have been on in for hours a day reading your expert advice on saltwater tanks, and I want to tank everybody for the support, I have problably printed out 200+ pages so read when I am not near the computer or on lunch at work etc etc...


Thank you in advance.
Craig in Ontario

[BoCoMo]

Can't wait to see some pics! Upload some soon please! :thumbsup:

[ChrisK]

Can't wait to see some pics! Upload some soon please! :thumbsup:

Same here :popcorn:

[chevyguy86]

I got the sand bed, live rock, and all of the equipment hanging in there respective places,the timer setup and the lighting hung....although wrong size for tank. I think I can make it work. I seemed to have lost my large powerhead, so I will have to get another to circulate the front of the tank. I will take pictures of it tommorow, it's getting late here now, the only thing left to do, to start the engine sort of speak is add water....minor detail LOL....oh ya and mount the background. The only nervous part I have is adding the water, do I put the salt in the tank and then add the water. I don't really want to add salt to the water jug because we use those same jugs on the water cooler. I would rather add some salt into the tank then some water repeat etc etc. Can this be done? Or do I have to xfer the water to another container mix the salt then pour...this would be a pain in the butt!! :swear:

[chevyguy86]

Ok so I decided to take out the camera since I had to charge the battery anyways for my sons's 2nd birthday tommorow, so I took a few pix.

Yes the room is bright red, Lightning McQueen Red actually, I wanted to get his new room done before his birthday and all the family came over. Even thou the tank doesn't have any wawa in it...I think it looks....ok!
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm224/leggatautogroup/DSC_0140.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm224/leggatautogroup/DSC_0141.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm224/leggatautogroup/DSC_0142.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm224/leggatautogroup/DSC_0139.jpg

[red_wall]

Hah, setting it up this late at night?
Can't wait to see what it looks like complete.

[chevyguy86]

Yes BUT The only nervous part I have is adding the water, do I put the salt in the tank and then add the water. I don't really want to add salt to the water jug because we use those same jugs on the water cooler. I would rather add some salt into the tank then some water repeat etc etc. Can this be done? Or do I have to xfer the water to another container mix the salt then pour...this would be a pain in the butt!!

[chevyguy86]

Ok so I added water salt water salt etc into the tank, and the level is at 1.022 but still cloudy and the hydrometer has not been "seasoned" yet

[Amphiprion]

Generally, if you are going to mix water in the tank, you don't put the live rock, etc. in first. It makes the salt much, much harder to dissolve and it is very harsh on the life in and on the rock. If you followed the instructions on the bag verbatim, 1.022 is actually probably correct. Since I am assuming you have one of the dip and fill style hydrometers, you may want to invest in a good refractometer. It will save you the headaches associated with these kinds of hydrometers. Refractometers can be had fairly cheap, as well. Check out here (http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/Test-Kits-Refractometers/c69_117/p708/Refractometer-for-reading-salinity-w/-Free-Calibration-fluid/product_info.html)--notice it comes with the calibration fluid, which is a MUST.

[ChrisK]

looking good

[BoCoMo]

Looking good!

[chevyguy86]

Generally, if you are going to mix water in the tank, you don't put the live rock, etc. in first. It makes the salt much, much harder to dissolve and it is very harsh on the life in and on the rock. If you followed the instructions on the bag verbatim, 1.022 is actually probably correct. Since I am assuming you have one of the dip and fill style hydrometers, you may want to invest in a good refractometer. It will save you the headaches associated with these kinds of hydrometers. Refractometers can be had fairly cheap, as well. Check out here (http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/Test-Kits-Refractometers/c69_117/p708/Refractometer-for-reading-salinity-w/-Free-Calibration-fluid/product_info.html)--notice it comes with the calibration fluid, which is a MUST.

I purchased the one you recommended, thank you...good price as well. I had a question, I did put the salt in a half a cup at a time, I poured it slowly into the filter which only had a sponge filter in it, so that it could solidify and slowly work itself into the tank so that I would not have clumps of it on the LR. Also I put the water in problably 12 hours ago, and the water is still somewhat cloudy, anyway to help the clearing process...

[dirtydawg10]

Nice start. Great looking setup!

[chevyguy86]

I was thinking of the following to stock the tank

2 Ocellaris or perc Clowns (first)
1 lawnmower blenny
1 cleaner shrimp (first)
2 cardinals
1 small crab...I forget the technical name for them. But I was hoping to put in a crab closer to the end of the cycling process.

whats the best thing to add during the cycling process to get the levels perfect.

what is a good yellow colored fish to put into a 30g

[7itanium]

nice tank... just one question

that looks like cured live rock (which is a GOOD thing.. it will cycle much faster)

but.. how long did you let it sit there with no water? if it was more than a couple hours you probably caused some die off

[chevyguy86]

nice tank... just one question

that looks like cured live rock (which is a GOOD thing.. it will cycle much faster)

but.. how long did you let it sit there with no water? if it was more than a couple hours you probably caused some die off

It was cured LR, and it sat out for like a day before I put it in the tank and added water. The guy that I got it from said it should be ok.

[evelyn80]

1: invest in a bucket for pure SW use
2: mix SW night before, it needs a chance to dissolve and make a proper SG reading, you wont get 1 if u mix then measure, u could a non salty spot or a very salty spot
3. dont add any livestock till the tank has cycled.
4: your LR is now dead which will cycle your tank for you but add a peice of prawn in a net of some sort for additional ammonia
5: get a SW kit, generally FW kits dont work on SW.
6: unless your going reef, keep the SG at 1.018 with a hydrometer. they tend to be very inaccurate
7: GO SLOWLY!!! you cant ruch SW set-ups, they take lots of time! I spent months researching and learning about SW set-ups b4 even setting the tank, then took an additional month to build and set-up my tank.

good luck with this 30 gals is a great starter size for SW, lookin forward to readin the bilod thread

[7itanium]

It was cured LR, and it sat out for like a day before I put it in the tank and added water. The guy that I got it from said it should be ok.

it will be ok.. but you will experience a bit of die off and it may take an extra week or so to cycle

not gonna hurt anything.. just an FYI

[chevyguy86]

1: invest in a bucket for pure SW use
2: mix SW night before, it needs a chance to dissolve and make a proper SG reading, you wont get 1 if u mix then measure, u could a non salty spot or a very salty spot
3. dont add any livestock till the tank has cycled.
4: your LR is now dead which will cycle your tank for you but add a peice of prawn in a net of some sort for additional ammonia
5: get a SW kit, generally FW kits dont work on SW.
6: unless your going reef, keep the SG at 1.018 with a hydrometer. they tend to be very inaccurate
7: GO SLOWLY!!! you cant ruch SW set-ups, they take lots of time! I spent months researching and learning about SW set-ups b4 even setting the tank, then took an additional month to build and set-up my tank.

good luck with this 30 gals is a great starter size for SW, lookin forward to readin the bilod thread

1 I have a 5 gallon water jug just for the SW

I bought a refractometer the one someone else on here recommended, I cannot remember that persons alias.

I have been reading and reshearching the SW setup for almost a year now but I still had a few questions thats why I came here...THANK YOU :)

Raw prawn or shrimp I am assuming, I just have to find somewhere that sells it raw, can I add a hermit or cleaner shrimp if I cannot find a prawn somewhere.

[ToeJam]

Setting up first salty tonight any advice would be awesome!

This is what I have so far

1 - 30g tank....duh
30lbs of live carribean live sand
1 55gallon bag instant ocean salt
55lbs of cured fiji live rock
1 whisper 200 filter
1 penguin 150 filter
1 200w heater
1 air pump
1 bubble wand
1 large and 1 medium sized powerhead
1 36" T5 lighting with a 18k bulb and a actinic bulb (brightest thing I have ever seen)
1 custom built tank stand
1 light timer
30gallons of fresh RO water
(just placed a bid for a HOB 90g octupus protein skimmer on ebay)
1 150 gallon bucket of patience :headbang2:
1 salt water level thing...I forget the name of that thing...hydrometer...refractometer..super gravitonal measuring device...something - meter
1 bright blue backgroud

only other thing I know that I need is a piece of glass to make a cover for the tank. The tank is going in my 2 year old sons room...

any other advice on how to "start" er up or anything else in general would be much appriciated.

*EDIT* I have had a 50gallon bow front freshy, and a 100g freshy for about 10 years already so I have test kits, python...and all the goods and extra parts and stuff.

Also I love this site, lately I have been on in for hours a day reading your expert advice on saltwater tanks, and I want to tank everybody for the support, I have problably printed out 200+ pages so read when I am not near the computer or on lunch at work etc etc...


Thank you in advance.
Craig in Ontario
All looks good to me. Minus the bubble wand. Not necessary and creates a mess. An annoying mess. The bubbles pop and leave a crusty residue on glass covers …rim of the tank… its just simply a pain … You don’t need the bubble wand.. The skimmer will produce the bubbles in the water anyway. Unlike fresh we don’t need those bubble wands.

You have the filtration requirements already. A good skimmer and Live Rocks. That’s all you need. Though mods disagree with me to some degree. The use of Hob Filters we use in fresh are detritus traps. Detritus rots and adds to the pollution. Its better to let that detritus keep getting stirred by lots of flow so that your skimmer eventually removes it.

As for not wanting to use your water thing since its for consumption also. 5 gallon gas can (plastic) at Lowes or Homedepot roughly 7 dollars. Its what I use for water transport and removal. Works great.

Otherwise good luck…I know im nit picking some things here.. just wanted to inform you.

The test kits you have…from FW days. You more than likely have the wrong PH test … Since fresh doesn’t normally test at 8.0 ranges.

Though you already know most of what you need for kits… here is a list.

Nitrate, Nitrite, Ammonia, High range PH 8.0 ranges, Phosphate, Calcium, Alkalinity, are good base kits you should use.

Good luck…

ps: My new recommendation to all new SW folks nowadays.

Buy a Phosban reactor by 2 little fishies company and Phosban or Rowaphos media for it. It will need 1/2" tube also and a RIO pump to suck water into it.

That device will prevent annoying algae issues. Its a common problem that SW people stumble into ... if you purchase this now... you won't regret it.

About Cycling: .. SW world is taking your time. You shouldn't even skim for the first month or stock if you want to take it slow and careful. Just run everything but the skimmer (you want the dissolved organic compounds aka DOC) to remain so it gets the cycling going. You will defeat the purpose of cycling if you skim the water now.

I recommend you watch the algae blooms appear and disappear and drink a beer =).

Dont Rush like someone else said. Rushing = messes to clean up and becomes costly.

[chevyguy86]

So I went to a local grocery store and the Seafood emplyee give me a large raw prawn for free. I have it wrapped in a netting type bag and clipped at the top. How long do I leave this in the tank for...and is this thing gunna stink after awhile hehehehe oh the joys of a liquid hobby...LOVE IT!!

[chevyguy86]

so how long should I keep the prawn in the tank?

[GregAW]

You might want to read this.

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=91273

[chevyguy86]

of all the hours I spent reading this forum, I don't know why I didn't see that post, thank you. So i took the prawn out, tested the water and it's reading 0.5 ammonia, and 8.0 PH the salt is reading 1.027 so I am going to do a water change with just fresh and try and get the salt level back down to 1.021-1.022

[chevyguy86]

oh ya and I also bought 2 Koralia #3's on ebay cheap cheap, might only just need 1, with the one that I already have, or I may remove my original one, and replace with both the Koralia's will see if it turns into a whirlpool or not LOL. Hopefully my skimmer comes soon.

[chevyguy86]

I bought 1 turbo snail, and 2 hermit crabs, one blue and a scarlet, my PH is 8.0 my ammonia is now at 0.25 I did a 10% water change, and I have only used RO water. I seem to have greenish brownish algae in the tank is this normal on a cycling tank, the guy at the LFS suggested the small cleaning crew to help cycle and clean the tank.

[Reefscape]

of all the hours I spent reading this forum, I don't know why I didn't see that post, thank you. So i took the prawn out, tested the water and it's reading 0.5 ammonia, and 8.0 PH the salt is reading 1.027 so I am going to do a water change with just fresh and try and get the salt level back down to 1.021-1.022

You need to leave the prawn in there till your ammonia is reading about 4 or 5ppm.....Aim to get your SG to 1.025 as an average....



I bought 1 turbo snail, and 2 hermit crabs, one blue and a scarlet, my PH is 8.0 my ammonia is now at 0.25 I did a 10% water change, and I have only used RO water. I seem to have greenish brownish algae in the tank is this normal on a cycling tank, the guy at the LFS suggested the small cleaning crew to help cycle and clean the tank.

It wont really help to cycle the tank....As i see it, your cycle is not complete, so, clean up crew is best not to go in there...If it already is, then just keep a close eye on them.....The brown algae is Diatom algae, it happens to all new marine tanks, nothing to worry about and will pass shortly....

[Corax]

1 - The person that told you it was ok to leave that liverock out for a day should be forever scratched from your list of people you accept fish advice from. Selling you a clean up crew while cycling was also bad, but then, he probably expected a repeat sale when those die.

2 - Pull everything living and let that shrimp dissolve completely. It'll take time, but your tank will have a very strong cycle and be ready for a full stocking within a few weeks.

3 - Don't skim the tank while cycling, as it sort of defeats the purpose.

4 - Crack open that 150 gallon bucket of patience and use some of it.

If you had set the tank up, then added your liverock within a couple hours of pulling it out of the shop's tank, your tank would have been pretty much instantly cycled. As it is, you are re-curing the liverock you paid all that money for. It's a mistake lots of people make, so just learn from it and move on.

[chevyguy86]

I was going by a previous post, that someone else had posted a link to a sticky saying to pull the prawn out after 2-3 days which I did after 3 days, the post was the following http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums...ad.php?t=91273 (http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=91273) . This is what is frustrating mixed information seems that everybody has different opinions of cycling SW tanks. I was following what was in the sticky. The prawn was in the tank for 3 days the smell was horrible I wanted to leave it in longer but since the room was just painted I did not want that smell to sink into the fresh paint, and when I read the post in regards to cycling a tank and it said to remove after 2-3 days that's what I did. I have lots of patience, however the only reason I bought a snail and 2 crabs was because it was suggested, I can wait a year, it doesn't bother me, I am thinking I am going to pull out 2 pieces of LR and replace with 2 new pieces and do a direct transfer, and not leave out. The cost is the least of my concern I have already dumped close to a grand into a tank that I got for free. I just want it to be right and get the best of the best and not worry about upgrading it later. Eventually I want to convert my 55 and my 100 gallon FW tanks to SW tanks. This 30 gallon is just a starter for now to see if I can make it all happen.

[Corax]

Here are my own methods of setting up a sw tank..

Method #1: Expensive and fast..

1 - prep the tank
2 - put in 100% livesand (not that bagged crap, either..)
3 - put in 100% liverock to instantly cycle the tank.
4 - done

Method #2: Cheap but takes a while..
1 - prep the tank
2 - put in 80% dry sand (Caribsea Seaflor)/20% live sand (again, not the bagged crap)
3 - put in 100% base rock
4 - throw in 1 large shrimp per 30 gallons, let the shrimp melt completely. It's going to stink, live with it or use some pure ammonia.
5 - wait 4-6 weeks
6 - after the cycle, add 10-15lbs of nice liverock to help seed the other liverock with some macro life.
7 - done