[MattieFingaz]

Hello everyone and thanks in advance for any quidance you can offer.

I am in my first few days of a basic tank setup I'm using a mixed substrate of about 50% live sand and 50% crushed coral. I think I'll have problems and a lot of work ahead of me in the future, but I really like the way it looks.

Now to the question...I added the CC first and then the sand. I wet the sand and hand scooped most of the 30 pounds into the bottom...(75G tank BTW) It's been about 48 hours and I've got about 4 inches of visibility. I added the salt first and dissovled it in buckets first.

Will this go away or did I mess up too badly? Should I leave the filter and/or power head on during this process?

Thanks so much and you have my promise I'll keep asking questions as this process progresses and hopefully be able to be able to pass on what I learn in the future.

Have a great day!

Mattie

[dr reefinski]

what kind of tank are you planning to do? reef or fish only.what kind of filtration other than sand do you plan to use?and what kind of lighting are you using?this will get us started,and i will do my best to help.please give all the info you can think of.

[MattieFingaz]

First of all thank you Dr Reefinski for a response and your desire to help. It really is appreciated.

FOWLR is my plan for a start, I will eventually incorporate coral in a reef tank but I'm extremely patient. I've got about 15#'s of base rock that I've constructed a cave with using aquarium safe epoxy that I'll be putting in once the epoxy has cured for several days. The LFS has tons of live rock to choose from that I'll be putting in shortly as well. Probably another 15-20# to start with.

As far as filtration, currently I only have an Emperor 400 BioWheel and once I get the cloudy thing taken care of and start the cycling process I'll go with a protein skimmer. My learning curve will dictate the final outcome here.

Lighting is still early in the game I only have a single 40W 5000k bulb and know that this won't be good and it's very temporary. I'll at least double that during the cycling process and increase it as I grow and convert to having a full reef setup ((I'm looking about a year out)).

I have a powerhead that's pushing 400GPH and look to double to triple that as the process goes. Rectangular tank, 75 Gallon...approx. 48x18x18, didn't use a tape measure so I may be an inch off here or there.

My specific gravity is currently at 1.025 and I haven't even tested any other levels at this point since my biggest concern is the fact that the tank with water and substrate is just SO cloudy..((I'm a semi-pro videographer so I'll start filming the growth and post a link to the progress over future posts....If that's OK with the host.))

Again, I'm really glad I found this forum and "lurked" for a couple days before I decided to post. Everyone seems genuinely concerned about other people being successful in this hobby.

For those that are afraid to ask questions because you feel "stupid"...I'll ask them all and if you'd like to ask a question and don't feel comfortable...Please IM me and I'll be happy to ask on your behalf.


Mattie

[volitan_fa]

Make sure the power heads are pointed away from the substrate so they don't stir it up more and leave your filter running. It will clear up in a few days. This happens to almost everyone when they first start.

Make sure you get your lighting in the 10,000K spectrum or above. Good luck!

[dr reefinski]

volitan is right ,you want to make sure your powerhead is not stirring up your substrate to much,it is best to make sure you have a lot of movement on the water surface,this will help oxygenate the water,wich you will find is very important in the longrun.even with the powerhead pointed away from the substrate you will probably find that the sand is being circulated do to waves bouncing off the aquarium wall & such,i would put the baserock in as soon as possible. The live rock should also be put in as soon as possible as this would be a very valueable part of your filtration.
If your starting a fish only aquarim, the sandbed with live rock and the protein skimmer will probably be sufficent. I would cycle the tank for about a month, with the lights on a timer. Once your nitrogen cycle is complete I would do about a 3 gallon water change per week. You'll find that it's easier and more efficent to have salt water already made up and cylcling in a separate container with power head and heater. Salt water is very costic, it needs to be made 48 hours prior to introducing it to your tank. You'll find that having it already made up and at the right tempature and salinity will prevent your tank inhabitants from being stressed. That's it for now, I'm probably talking too much.

[MattieFingaz]

Not talking too much at all...I'm soaking it up like a sponge..I added about 5 more pounds of base rock and about 11 pounds of live today. Stirred up stuff again but now that I know it will go away I'm not worried.

I read a thread about using a shrimp to start the cycling process so I dropped one of those in there today too.

We'll see how it goes.

Again,

Thanks for the time you guys are taking to help.

Mattie

[dr reefinski]

speaking of shrimp,after the tank is safe to install inhabitants i would put a couple of peppermint shrimp and a cleaner shrimp.the peppermint shrimp are great for aptaisia control,while the cleaner shrimp will be most valuable to your fish.

[MattieFingaz]

Hey Dr. Reefinski...you mentioned earlier I should have my water ready to do a 3 gallon water change once a week...what are your thoughts on buying marine water from LFS and using that? It's about $10 for 5 gallons and it comes in a nice container similar to a water cooler at work. I don't have a seperate tank yet and wouldn't mind spending a couple of $$ a week to start off with until I'm settled in with this.

I'll know enough to help others with their first week of setup soon thanks to you guys.

Mattie

[dr reefinski]

if you can afford to buy it and and have the time,sure why not. i actually use a 30 or 40 gallon rubbermaid container to make my water in ,i put a couple of small powerheads and a heater then i just leave it till i need it.whatever works best and is the easiest for you

[grneyes3x]

I am very new to salt water so I might not know what I am talking about. I used the same substratre that you have at the beginning of my tank. I learned later that the sand will go to the bottom leaving the cc on top. If fish only tank this is fine, but if you are planning on corals, zoos,etc. you might want to research about the crush coral. My understanding again that the nitrates will build up in the pockets of the cc and will release itself in time creating tank failure. I romoved mine and used only live sand. Before you get to far into the cycle please get more opinions about this

[DEWAYNE]

to the noob, the water changes are still and always will be a debate among the fine folks in this hobby. I kep a FOWLR tank for 12 years, just started a reef build less than 2 months ago. I have had a 20g. tank and never did so many water changes. the salt mix(s) that are on the market now will substain alot of trace elements, and other vital mins. in the water way better. I am not telling you to change your water on que, just find what works best for your tank. I have said that, and will tell you that a water change IMO, is vital for new tank setup after cycling, and believe me every tank will cycle at its own pace. I will also add, the crushed coral is a great way to go, when I do a water change 3-4 months, I always vacum and stir substrate, some folks have an opinion about that(in thier own right).......it has worked fine for me. I started my reef build, and still have not done a water change..........are the corals staying open.......yes, and they are growing, my mushrooms are nearly twice as big since the first day of introduction. I have no MH or T5 lighting, most of what I have came from a tank with MH, all I am saying is make this hobby fun and enjoyable. I have pics. posted of my reef, check it out.