New 55g sw setup!! questions may follow

bigbadlenox · Jun 4, 2009

went to the lfs today and purchased a 55g setup complete with lighting and sump. i have no clue about plumbing so my grandpa will be coming over to do that part lol. but thought i would share some pics along the way. currently i have a 12g nano cube that i have had for 4 years just wanted to go bigger. will convert them together down the road. but like the title says ill have some questions along the way.

bigbadlenox · Jun 7, 2009

ok so got the plumbing done this week and now ready to start the fillup with water, liverock and sand. question is from my old nano tank can i use the water rock and sand to start out the new tank? grant it the nano cube is probably only 10g of water going into a new 55g tank. 25lbs of sand and 20lbs of liverock. i guess im just trying to skip a whole cycle process again. open to all suggestions

TropicalNorth · Jun 8, 2009

The sand and rock would probably help a bit with the cycle, but the water wouldn't really do much. The beneficial bacteria is on the rock and sand, there isn't much in the water.

I would still wait a bit after setting the tank up, and putting the new live rock in, before adding any fish or other critters. Even with cured rock you may get a little mini cycle or something may come up. Its always a good idea to run a new set-up for a few weeks, even if you think its cycled biological, just to make sure the water parameters are staying stable (like ph, kh, temp etc) and that all the equipment is running smoothly. Just my opinion.

The set-up looks nice. What are your plans for the tank stocking wise?

bigbadlenox · Jun 10, 2009

just a few shots from my phone of some corals fish and inverts that will get transferred over when the new tank is ready. the kenya tree started a couple years ago from a frag like 1'' tall lol now the thing is huge and just spreading like wild fire i just give the frags away!!! i bought the toadstool from the local petco before they shutdown and its grown good for me too. the striped damsel i bought from the lfs when i first cycled the tank :wall: cause that was the way the lfs told me to. wish i would have found this site before hand so i didnt have to put him through that. this time im using the raw shrimp method lol. cant wait to get a more colorful selection of corals and fish.

bigbadlenox · Jun 15, 2009

what is the best way to transfer my old sand from the old tank over to the new tank? anything i should do to it before i put into the new tank? i got about a 2-3 inch sand bottom in the main tank but no sand in the sump yet. if i should put it in the sump which compartment would be best?

fsn77 · Jun 15, 2009

I would add whatever new sand you're going to put into the 55g, then add the sand from your 12g on top of it. If you feel that you need to rinse / clean the sand in your 12g, I'd suggest using old tank water from your 12g to rinse out any detritus.

In the sump pictured above, I wouldn't put sand anywhere in it. There's really no place for it, as there's only a chamber for the skimmer and the return pump.

bigbadlenox · Jun 21, 2009

few weeks in got everything transferred over everyone is happy and alive. water parameters are right on and all equipment working a1. have a few more pics from my phone. the rock is arranged as a strip down the center of the tank so the fish can swim in the front or hide in the back if they want. the mushroom is all the way on the left by his self now cause im getting more rock and havent decided where to put him yet. the last pic my lfs has alot of that branchy type rock and i planned on making the whole right side just stacked with that type rock.