Brand Newbie with a few questions.......

VT rules · 02-02-2006, 05:00 AM

I'm in the process of setting up my first tank ever and of course I have a million questions. Some things are starting to come together but I need a little clarification/advice with some others. My tank is a 55 gallon setup and the goal is FOWLR. I've been lurking a little while so I know a little of the terminology but for the most part am VERY green.

1) I have quite a bit of the SouthLand argonite sand that i was going to use for my substrate. Should I buy some live sand and mix the two in order to get it the curing process started easier/quicker? I understand anywhere from a 1-2inch depth would be okay.

2) Is it okay to mix the intial water in small batches, I really don't want to have to do a giant bin of it.

3) Live Rock.......First, I just returned from Mexico and brought back some washed up pieces of the reef that we were near. Very cool looking rocks that I would like to add to the tank. Is this okay to do, use them as base rock? Does 30-40 lbs of actual live rock sound okay for this size tank? The only other filtration I am going to use is a protein skimmer. Should I add the rock immediately after the sand and water?
I also had brought back some fan looking things that washed up and would like to include them in the tank, they have been washed but are still a little pungent. Okay to use?

4) Protein Skimmer.....what is a good one that is a reasonable price. I see a lot on EBay but some seem really expensive and some really cheap. I must go moderate at this point in the game.

5) Lastly, should I keep the lights cycling throughout the curing process or leave them off?

I will end there for the time being. Sorry to berate with all of these questions but there is a lot to learn and there are so many experts on these boards.

Thanks in advance for all the help!

Frizza · 02-02-2006, 05:25 AM

I'm fairly new to this as well but there are loads of people on here who will give you (and myself!) some great advice. My tank has just finished cycling and I now have a pair of clowns that are doing well!

I think the normal for live rock is 1lb per gallon, however I have a little less than that at the moment.

I setup my tank by filling the tank with RO water (got this from my LFS), heating it up and then adding the salt mix. As you have nothing in the tank at this stage it is not a problem to do your mixing in the tank, however you should not do this once you have any livestock in the tank. Once the SG is at the desired level I then added my live rock. I already had cured live rock and as yours isn't cured you might want to check for some decent methods in achieving this.

I then turned everything on, e.g. the filter, skimmer and set the lights to come on for around 10-12 hours per day.

As far as the skimmer, I have a red sea prizm and I would stay away from it. It is a pain to get running properly, always needs tweaking and is noisy! I heard that the remora skimmers (by aqua c) are great. Unfortunately for me, Aqua C products are a pain to get in the UK...bummer!

Quick note, you mentioned that you are only going to have a skimmer for filtration, you really need to invest in a filter of some description. Someone I am sure will correct me but I would of thought that this is essential!

Good luck!

kb.bear · 02-02-2006, 05:56 AM

skimmer is all you need

telman2010 · 02-02-2006, 08:36 AM

I'm with K.B. on this one. I don't beleive that a filter is necessary if you've got a good skimmer.

fishflyer · 02-02-2006, 11:19 AM

I set up my 55 gal a year ago and started with 50lbs of sand and added about 20 lbs of live sand to seed it. Eventually it all becomes live. It makes the sand bed about 2-3 inches deep which is working well. I would also mix the salt with RO water in the tank while its empty. I think you could add the rock you have with no problem. I have aprox. 40 lbs. LR. The skimmer is really the most important! I also started with a prism skimmer in my first tank (15gal) and it was OK

It was a little loud and always had to be adjusted. I am curently runnung a knock off Coralife skimmer that works much better but have been looking at upgrading. I am thinking Aqua C, ASM, or MRC. There is a lot of info and feed back here about skimmers to research. The problem is these things can really cost you; BUT if you skimp on this (like me

) you will find yourself looking for your third skimmer a year into it. For a FOWLR tank you might do well with a Aqua C Remora hang on tank if you have no sump. Many people recommend them here. Once you get it all together fire it up and let it cycle. You can run your lights but I would only run them for a few hours a day or not at all so as not to promote algae growth. Let us know how it goes

mirosh · 02-02-2006, 11:28 AM

Hey Glenn, this is Mike, the guy who sold you the tank! Good luck with the 55, I loved it, and I'm sure it will serve you well. Enjoy it, and please keep posting here...these guys are very informative and are a great help!

-Mike

rickzter · 02-02-2006, 11:48 AM

If it's pungent, it's dead. Dont add it as it will introduce more ammonia. As for the LR you picked up, as long as there is no death on it, I would say dump it in! 1-2in sand bed seems pretty low, 2-3in would be way cooler looking and somewhat more beneficial for a FOWLR.

You can keep the lights on as you cycle, I did.

fishflyer · 02-02-2006, 02:02 PM

Ya...Nothing like lighting a new system once you get it all up and running.
I thought my tank looked so cool with just water in it

VT rules · 02-03-2006, 04:24 AM

Thanks for all the great information! It has been quite helpful. It may be a month or so before I can really get going but I will update my progress or lack thereof.

VT rules · 02-03-2006, 09:52 AM

I'm a little confused about the live rock. I think I have spent too much time reading on the internet. Do I want to buy live rock fully cured from a place like Premium Aquatics and place that in the tank as soon as I get my water and sand in? I have read not to do that because it will kill the rock since the tank is still cycling and I have read to do that because it will help the tank cycle. Which is it?

I don't want to drop a bunch of $$$ on the rock only to have it die off on me or to screw up the water cycling process.

The Fiji rock looked really nice to me when I was checking it out the day.

Thanks!