What will I need to do to get best quality?

Welcome to 3reef.

If you do not have a value for nitrate or nitrite, your tank is not even closed to cycled IMO.

You should watch those values very carefully and do a water change if the ammonia level increases and soft cycle the tank or take the clown fish back to the LFS.

Test for ammonia can be very inaccurate, but regardless it's best to not expose fish, inverts or corals to ammonia.

 

What type of substrate are you using? It looks like blue painted gravel.

 

I have run a canister filter on my tank for 16 months with no problems. its a 125 gallon LPS dominated tank. I dont have a sump because there isn't any room under the tank for it. so I opted for a top of the line skimmer (HOB style) and an Eheim canister.

Canisters aren't as evil as everyone says they are. They're just way more upkeep involved in keeping them clean and efficient. If you don't mind spending an hour on Sunday once a month taking them apart and cleaning them then go for it. If you neglect it then it will become an obsolete nitrate trap.

 

good catch. it looks like the stuff you put into a goldfish tank.

 

It has cycled, everything had numbers but have gone to 0 (except ammonia) I got everything from a 3yr+ tank and asked a few local LFS people that I know have SW tanks and they said that along with "Stability" (says it will cycle a new tank in 7 days but I doubt that) should at least open the possibility for hardy fish.

I don't have the bag anymore but it is black and white sand.

 

Good, black/white sand will be fine. We were worried it could be a different substrate.

The LFS told you to buy "stability" from them?

 

Keep in mind just because you are at 0 on your levels, the tank is nowhere near stable. Do not confuse an initial cycle with maturity. Bacteria grow and multiply to fit the bioload at the time. Every time you add a fish or make a change the bioload changes and bacteria must catch up. If you are depending on bottled products for a quick cycle you are setting yourself up for failure. ONLY BAD THINGS HAPPEN QUICKLY in this hobby, ALL GOOD THINGS TAKE TIME. I cannot stress this enough thus the Caps. Take your time and let the tank mature properly. If you are in a hurry you are in the wrong hobby and will soon be disillusioned and unhappy and probably get out of the hobby. It just does not work quickly. Give everything the proper amount of time to develop on its own, no miracle potions or bottled snake oil will make it better or faster and it will certainly no be as stable or robust, I will guarantee you that and I'm sure others will join me on this.

Using used water does nothing for you except possible transfer bad things from the previous system to yours. Colonizing bacteria are not free swimming, they inhabit the rocks and substrate. Always start with new saltwater so you don't add ich and other bad stuff from someone elses system to yours.

 

No it's not cycled.

If you are not exporting the nitrates through water changes, aggressive skimming or numerous other methods you should have a nitrate level, in a new tank. Especially since you are most likely feeding those fish.

Keep in mind the LFS is a business, and that telling you that the tank is cycled leads to you stocking it faster, which leads to the demise of fish,inverts and corals, which you then go and replace. Not all LFS are like that but it goes with the territory.

To better understand the Nitrogen Cycle you should google it and research it, rather than taking someones word for it. It's your investment, so research will go along ways in protecting it and increasing your chances of success.

 

i agree there are some very advanced canisters out there that can test your water and everything, id say some of the very pricey ones can be as good if not better than a sump. also just dont add anything else. the clowns will be fine as they are in the damsel family and can handle those params but anything else would be dead. just hold it out for a month or so then you can test your water to see if you could add more stuff.

 

I do know that, the guy I talk to is very knowledgeable and is one of the few people I know that will tell you if you don't need something, or if something isn't necessary at the moment, he actually makes you bring a sample to him to buy fish.

I agree, but I read up on it and it is good to add to keep things running smoothly, I don't believe the '7 days to add fish' statement except that everything I had was from an established tank and the added bacteria from it quickly lowered everything, I waited a while after that, had my water tested and asked about how long until I can add a hardy 'cycle fish' to make sure everything was fine. I wouldn't ever rely on 1 statement for facts and I don't trust it was the Stability alone, but I believe it helped.