Too much live rock in new tank?

C

Cygnus

AC Members
Dec 15, 2003
27
0
0
54
Texas
Visit site
Hello all, I'm just getting setup, this is what I have done so far in the last few days.

Tank is 55 gallon.
Put in 120 lbs (4") of pure argonite sand (no southdown in Tx, had to pay the big bucks for Caribsea )
Filled tank with RO + Instant Ocean water, SG = 1.024 let it sit over night
Received 90 lbs shipment of Live Rock from MarineDepotLive.com
Put it in the tank to start cycle.
Turned on all powerheads, and AquaC Remora skimmer.
Turned on Coralife 130 W Power Compacts, 50/50 and Actinic.

To me it looks like too much live rock. Are my fish going to have enough room to swim?

I want to keep a couple of clowns, a foxface, coral beauty, and a good cleanup crew.

Water is still a little cloudy since I added the Live Rock.

Front View
pic2.jpg


Side View
pic1.jpg
 
I don't think that is too much lr. As long as you have plenty of caves and swimming room you will be fine. Remember lr is the best filtration for your tank. It is hard to aquascape a 55 isn't it. The width of that size tank makes it hard not to have the 'wall' effect.
Be sure to check out the requirements on the foxface. aka rabbit face. IMO they should be kept in no less than a 75.
 
I've read mixed opinions about that. Really I'm just trying to get it through the two week break-in period that supposedly makes it quieter. It's not real loud even now, but my wife thinks it is, so the sooner it quiets down the better. :)
 
Run the skimmer - the tanks got a population of bacteria now anyway thanks to the live rock. Keep the skimmer going as much as you can to keep anything else thats still alive, alive.
 
I agree, you need the skimmer running. My 2 tanks are in the living room and I can't stand noise. After awhile, I didn't even notice the noise anymore.
 
might want to throw a little carbon into your filter or where ever as well. it will help remove the yellow color from your water.
hth
chris
 
Good idea Max, I will do that. It looks good from the front but still yellow from the side.

As far as the skimmer goes, call me another impressed AquaC Remora owner. It was pulling out junk within an hour of being turned on. My Ammonia and Nitrites seem to be getting a little lower each day too. Can't wait to get a clean up crew so at least there will be something besides rock to look at :) Although there are some leafy plants (macro algea maybe?) that are growing noticeably each day.

Also, I have since re-aquascaped to give even more swimming room and caves for the future fishes.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom