Couple questions...
- Thread starter dub*c
- Start date
hah, the shrimp does get gross.
my ammonia levels peaked at 1.0ppm for one day then went back down again... so yours may not go too high either.
what are your nitrite and nitrate levels? You should be testing for those now too.
Here is a thread that has helped me tremendously with keeping dKH, Alk, Ph, & Ca inline...
Another thing for you to remember is this...the solution to pollution is dilution...if your nitrITES, nitrATES, Ammonia, Ph, Ca, dKH, Alk, Phosphates, or any water parameters are too high...water change, water change, water change...saltwater aquariums are very delicate and the slightest little thing can set them off...i.e. room deoderizers, cleaning solutions, perfume, etc. sprayed near tank, granted I am not saying if you spray some febreeze on the sofa it's going to crash your tank, it's just something to be aware of when you are cleaning, I learned the hard way...with all of the hints I am giving you...
Always have enough aged saltwater to do a 50% water change at any given time. You should age the saltwater for at least 48 hours before adding it to the tank (after you have fish, inverts, etc. inital setup does not matter cause you are going to spike your params anyway) because the saltwater (RO + Salt) can have a mini cycle (i.e. create ammonia, etc.). I learned this the hard way. I have a 40something gallon Rubbermaid Brute trash can that I keep filled up with saltwater (with a lid, you can cut a small niche for the cords so you can seal the lid) and you will need to keep the water agitated (I have a maxi 900, heater, air diffuser wand {oxygenates the water})...you don't think of silly things that can happen where you would need to do a massive water change like friend spilling drink into tank, forgetting you put lotion on and sticking you had in the tank to move a coral that was knocked over, fish dieing under a rock and you didn't notice untill it was too late (ammonia spiked through the roof!). If something happens that warrants a large water change the temp, ph, salinity must be identical to tank water, well...with the temp you can stray a few degrees either way...not much!
Pick up some POWDER FREE latex gloves too. You don't want to touch a bristle worm when re scaping the tank after you figure out what you want to do.
As everyone here has said...choose your equipment well, spend a little extra money on a good protien skimmer (if you are going to use one...I recommend it..it pulls bad bacteria out of the water column)...I got the red sea HOB prizim skimmer for my 1st tank...PITA...get a good one...ask here about skimmers...I am sure you will get help. See if someone is selling a used one...another thing to remember when aquascaping you will have to pull out your powerheads monthly (eventually) for cleaning...don't make them too hard to get out...I know they are ugly...but it's a beast moving rock every month to get to them..and you run the risk of stirring up phosphates, nitrATES,etc. in the sand bed by moving a lot of rocks...good luck!!!!
Above all, nothing good happens fast in saltwater tanks...but boy on the other hand...the bad stuff will sneak up on you like lightning!!!
BUY a RO unit...you can get one on Ebay for much cheaper than in stores or other online stores...I LOVE This one and it is virtualy identical to the Typhoon III I was going to spend twice as much on....
http://cgi.ebay.com/RO6102DINT-Aquarium-Reef-110GPD-RO-2DI-water-filtration_W0QQitemZ120105242185QQihZ002QQcategoryZ46310QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem
I hope I haven't scared you too much, I just figured you may benefit from MY bad descisions and mistakes...it'll save you some $$$
Another thing for you to remember is this...the solution to pollution is dilution...if your nitrITES, nitrATES, Ammonia, Ph, Ca, dKH, Alk, Phosphates, or any water parameters are too high...water change, water change, water change...saltwater aquariums are very delicate and the slightest little thing can set them off...i.e. room deoderizers, cleaning solutions, perfume, etc. sprayed near tank, granted I am not saying if you spray some febreeze on the sofa it's going to crash your tank, it's just something to be aware of when you are cleaning, I learned the hard way...with all of the hints I am giving you...
Always have enough aged saltwater to do a 50% water change at any given time. You should age the saltwater for at least 48 hours before adding it to the tank (after you have fish, inverts, etc. inital setup does not matter cause you are going to spike your params anyway) because the saltwater (RO + Salt) can have a mini cycle (i.e. create ammonia, etc.). I learned this the hard way. I have a 40something gallon Rubbermaid Brute trash can that I keep filled up with saltwater (with a lid, you can cut a small niche for the cords so you can seal the lid) and you will need to keep the water agitated (I have a maxi 900, heater, air diffuser wand {oxygenates the water})...you don't think of silly things that can happen where you would need to do a massive water change like friend spilling drink into tank, forgetting you put lotion on and sticking you had in the tank to move a coral that was knocked over, fish dieing under a rock and you didn't notice untill it was too late (ammonia spiked through the roof!). If something happens that warrants a large water change the temp, ph, salinity must be identical to tank water, well...with the temp you can stray a few degrees either way...not much!
Pick up some POWDER FREE latex gloves too. You don't want to touch a bristle worm when re scaping the tank after you figure out what you want to do.
As everyone here has said...choose your equipment well, spend a little extra money on a good protien skimmer (if you are going to use one...I recommend it..it pulls bad bacteria out of the water column)...I got the red sea HOB prizim skimmer for my 1st tank...PITA...get a good one...ask here about skimmers...I am sure you will get help. See if someone is selling a used one...another thing to remember when aquascaping you will have to pull out your powerheads monthly (eventually) for cleaning...don't make them too hard to get out...I know they are ugly...but it's a beast moving rock every month to get to them..and you run the risk of stirring up phosphates, nitrATES,etc. in the sand bed by moving a lot of rocks...good luck!!!!
Above all, nothing good happens fast in saltwater tanks...but boy on the other hand...the bad stuff will sneak up on you like lightning!!!
BUY a RO unit...you can get one on Ebay for much cheaper than in stores or other online stores...I LOVE This one and it is virtualy identical to the Typhoon III I was going to spend twice as much on....
http://cgi.ebay.com/RO6102DINT-Aquarium-Reef-110GPD-RO-2DI-water-filtration_W0QQitemZ120105242185QQihZ002QQcategoryZ46310QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem
I hope I haven't scared you too much, I just figured you may benefit from MY bad descisions and mistakes...it'll save you some $$$
The above poster listed some good advise. I actually have that exact same RO/DI unit. I got it also from ebay. It's wicked slow but its a great great product.
I don't have an emergency 50% water change purely because I live in an apartment and can't really have a garbage can of saltwater in my closet. You do what you can. heheheh. But if you can have it, its a good idea for sure. I wish I had one.
Ok, let us know your nitrite and nitrate results when you get them.
You don't really have to turn the light on until your cycle is def complete and you start adding a clean up crew. (hermits, snails, etc) They will have enough to eat off your live rock until algae starts to grow once you have the lights on. Trust me, it doesn't take long for algae to grow, so enjoy your tank while its crystal clean. You can of course turn on your light to have a look around, but I wouldn't leave it on for any period of time. I wouldn't turn the light on until your ammonia and nitrite are 0 and you do a 50% water change to get your nitrates under 10.
okay, hmmm... ammonia is 0.2ppm. If that's going downwards towards zero, then its good.
What are your Nitrite and Nitrate levels at this point? You should absolutely be getting readings on those.
your ammonia should be decreasing as those other levels rise and then fall to zero as well. well, except nitrate which you'll have to do water changes to lower.
