Hi all,
I've got my drilled 200-gallon tank and stand on order. And I've got someone making me a 40-gallon sump. I'll set up my RO/DI system next week, and I have a 50-gallon wheeled HDPE can for mixing. So my FOWLR tank is starting to become a real thing. I have three FW tanks, but this will be my first venture into saltwater.
As I prepare for setting everything up and cycling, I have some completely dumb questions:
1. I plan to do ~40-gallon water changes using my 50-gallon container. But for the initial filling of the tank and sump (240 gallons in all), can/should I just mix my very first batch of saltwater in the fish tank itself? If I were to use my 50-gallon container and let the water mix for a day per batch, it would take me a week just to fill my tank with water.
2. I plan to cycle my tank by curing my live rock in the above-mentioned water. Is there a right way (and thus some wrong ways) of stacking/placing/attaching the live rock in the tank? I know you want to avoid lots of solid, dead spaces in order to maximize flow and create hiding spaces. What else?
3. Can I put my dry aragonite sand into the tank before the rock, or should I cure the rock in a tank with nothing but water? (If I can put the sand in first, when does the sand come in relative to the salt? First mix saltwater, then add rinsed sand, allow to settle/clear, then rock?)
4. Should I add anything (trace minerals, etc.) to the RO/DI water, other than Instant Ocean, to create water that makes my live rock happy? What about once there are fish in an established tank?
Thanks, guys.
I've got my drilled 200-gallon tank and stand on order. And I've got someone making me a 40-gallon sump. I'll set up my RO/DI system next week, and I have a 50-gallon wheeled HDPE can for mixing. So my FOWLR tank is starting to become a real thing. I have three FW tanks, but this will be my first venture into saltwater.
As I prepare for setting everything up and cycling, I have some completely dumb questions:
1. I plan to do ~40-gallon water changes using my 50-gallon container. But for the initial filling of the tank and sump (240 gallons in all), can/should I just mix my very first batch of saltwater in the fish tank itself? If I were to use my 50-gallon container and let the water mix for a day per batch, it would take me a week just to fill my tank with water.
2. I plan to cycle my tank by curing my live rock in the above-mentioned water. Is there a right way (and thus some wrong ways) of stacking/placing/attaching the live rock in the tank? I know you want to avoid lots of solid, dead spaces in order to maximize flow and create hiding spaces. What else?
3. Can I put my dry aragonite sand into the tank before the rock, or should I cure the rock in a tank with nothing but water? (If I can put the sand in first, when does the sand come in relative to the salt? First mix saltwater, then add rinsed sand, allow to settle/clear, then rock?)
4. Should I add anything (trace minerals, etc.) to the RO/DI water, other than Instant Ocean, to create water that makes my live rock happy? What about once there are fish in an established tank?
Thanks, guys.