New 180G tank

[umar]

Hey guys im new to this.
Just bought 180G tank with sump and everything. mixed the water about 3 days ago. should I start putting some fish in it or not yet? And can someone please tell me what i should be doing cause i have no idea what i should be doing. Thanks

 

[thirty6]

Dont add fish
Buy a book and read or check out this site and others for proper start. The start up of your tank is important and could save you ton of money if done properly.
Tell us about what you have to start with. Ask all the questions you want, someone here will have the answers, you may not like em, but youll get em

 

[umar]

Thanks for the advice

 

[thirty6]

What equip do you have or still need to get?
Starting with the water, are you using rodi for water or tap? The Ro water will make a world of difference for the tank.
Base your reading on what you would like to keep/ maintain. 180 is a great size tank, good luck with it

 

[FocusReefing]

I also have a 180G its now on its 2nd month of cycling. Do not rush it or you will be sorry in the short run. Let it cycle. Probably should've waited to add water before knowing what to do next... DO NOT ADD FISH! untill you are confident as to what your next steps are. The best thing in this hobby is to plan ahead because issues can arise and worsen fast without a plan. Good luck.

 

[SirReefalot]

As a newbie myself with still tons to learn.... one quality piece of advice I can give you is quarantine everything! Quarantine Fish, dip and quarantine corals pretty much anything your going to add to you tank quarantine! Will save you tons of money and headaches! So if you don't have a basic small tank you can set up as a QT I would highly recommend purchasing one! Good luck with the tank! Look forward to some pics! HAPPY REEFING!!

 

[allenjj]

You have already done a good thing by coming here to begin the learning process. The best advice I have ever been given in this hobby is to not rush out and get things, but to take your time, learn and plan as a first step. That said rushing into getting fish can be disastrous if you have not adequately planned for how to operate the tank. Even with lots of planning things sometimes go wrong, but the chance of errors which kill your precious creatures is minimized. There are a number of posts here as well as some good youtube videos on how to set up a salt water tank. If your not going to get a book and go through it, at least take some time and watch the videos as they can help to give you the basics of not just setting up the system, but most importantly how to operate it so that the living creatures not only live but thrive. Best wishes and welcome to this amazing hobby.
John

 

[edd]

welcome, did you add live rock and live sand?
you should do some reading and research, then ask questions. first i would read about cycling and maintaining your tank.

 

[umar]

Hey guys thanks so much for the help. I did use the ro filter and i added the crush corals as for the sandbed. checked the saltwater everything seems to be fine. I have a protien skimer, two blower two sets of t5 lights. Is there anything else that i need?

 

[allenjj]

Equipment Needed for your Tank

Depending on what you plan on keeping in the tank, two circulating pumps, gfo reactor, carbon reactor and possibly calcium reactor.

 

[umar]

im planing on keeping corals and tangs clown tiggers and a few other type of fish

 

[chris koci]

Welcome to MR Umar and good luck with your new tank, i dont think Trigger fish are coral safe might be wrong but do your research before buying or adding anything to your tank

 

[chris koci]

by the way nice start up tank!!! lol

 

[umar]

thanks chris. so I do have two return pumps but i dont have the gfo reactor or any other reactors. is that a problem?

 

[allenjj]

Creature Compatibility

Triggers are not reef safe with corals unless you have a VERY large tank and even then its problematic. You should learn about the habitat of any type of fish and corals that you wish to try to be sure that they are compatible.

im planing on keeping corals and tangs clown tiggers and a few other type of fish

 

[TommyP]

Hi, Umar. Did you add live rock to your tank yet? You need to have some sort of die off in the tank so it can cycle. "ghost feeding" or if you use live rock that will help. I used some live Rock and a raw uncooked shrimp in fishnet stocking from the grocery store. Wait until you go through the nitrogen cycle, then you're tank is ready for fish.

There's a lot to read like everyone said. Patience in this hobby will go far. If I only listened myself, money, loss and headaches would of been saved.

You seem to have it down pat so far. Baby steps are good..

 

[umar]

my tank is 6ft long is that big enough to keep pinktail tigger? no tom i didn't add any live rock yet I was thinking that i should add a few live rocks tomorrow morning or something to see how they do. Also to buy some demsel fish to see how they do. I bought the marine fishes book and been reading up on that. thanks guys for All the help I really appreciate it

 

[TommyP]

Don't add any fish In the tank yet until its fully cycled. Read up on that part first. May take 6-8 weeks or so. Mine cycled in less than 2 weeks with the method I said

 

[umar]

alright i will do that thank you

 

[Bigbpro916]

Keep it simple when it comes to reef keeping! Good lighting, water movement, skimmer, refugium, and live rock!