When filling in a tank, what is the best course of action

[Capslock]

So I will be operating my first salt-water aquarium (at least one that I will have full reign over) and the very first stage i.e. filling the tank is a bit intimidating.

The problem is logistics but first, I will have a 46 gallon tank.

I will go over what I think I should be doing first, please correct anything if I am wrong.

First I will need sand. Get some live sand but for the most part 'dead' sand will work.
Then get cured live rock, Ive read you should have .5 to 2 lbs per gallon of water. How much would be a good number to start with? 10 pounds? surely I shouldnt get it all at once plus finances wouldnt support that. If I get a little bit then I should use it as a foundation for future rock.
Salt supply and tap water. Ive read that I should know what is in my tap water. Will this matter much before I put water in the tank if I dont expect to put any living thing except for live rock / sand in the tank for a couple months?

I imagine the sump should be ready to go before i start filling in the tank.

The tank is going to be about 25 feet from the nearest (and only) sink. What is the best course of action to fill the tank with salt water? A couple of buckets; more importantly what is the best way in your opinion for me to fill the tank. I am sure just dumping the water in would be a bad idea, plus it would ruin the setup of sand and rock.

any thoughts?

 

[ChrisRD]

If you intend for the tank to be a reef, I recommend investing in a basic RO or RO/DI unit up front. IMO pure source water is one of the more important elements of a successful reef tank.

As for the amount of rock - if you go with one of the less dense Pacific varities like Fiji, Marshall, Kaelini, etc. 0.5 to 1 pounds per gallon is plenty. If you like a lot of rock, you can go more, but it's certainly not necessary from a filtration standpoint. The Florida aquaculture stuff is denser than the Pacific rocks, so it would take a bit more weight per gallon to get the same look with that stuff.

To get started, get the tank and sump all setup and plumbed and then fill the system with pure water like RO/DI (you might actually want to do a test fill with tapwater first to check for leaks - then drain it down). You can then get the water up to temp and add the salt. Give it a day for temps and SG to stabilize - then you can add the rock. Throw a bunch of powerheads in to get strong circulation and invest in a good skimmer.

Personally, I would wait on adding sand (if you plan to). The new rock will shed detritus and decaying crud for a while and IME it's easier to syphon this stuff out of a bare bottom tank rather than have it end-up all over your nice new sand. After a few weeks, once the shedding slows down, you can add sand.

JMO and a few thoughts to get you started...

 

[Arie]

Interesting thoughts Chris,

Never would have considered the debris from the rock for the first few weeks, I'll have to keep that in mind when I set my tank up. (it's still sitting in my garage though, might take me a while)

I also wonder what your opinion on skimmers is. Would I be better off to save up and get a bigger/better sump than I'd imagine that I'll need (55 gall. long tank with a 20 gall sump/refugium) or should something small start me in the right direction?

(I'm ultimately looking to have a reef tank with only 2 or 3 fish at most)

Thanks ahead for any help

 

[ChrisRD]

2 or 3 fish in a system that size is a light bioload, but I bet over time you end-up with more than that. :wink:

For a basic sump a 20 gallon should be fine. If you want to do a sump/fuge I'd go with whatever you can fit in the stand. A 30 gallon (the 3' version) would be nice. Your choice will be somewhat influenced by whether or not you're going with a submersible or external return pump (if external, you need to leave room for that in the stand).

As for skimmers - there's a lot of stuff out there these days, but mostly you get what you pay for (ie. the really cheap stuff is usually junk). If you're on a budget, Octopus skimmers are tough to beat for the money. A DAS EX-1 would be nice for that size setup too. Check around for a used ASM, Euro-Reef, etc. as you can sometimes find some real deals.

 

[Capslock]

I didnt know that RO equipment existed for home use? I cant imagine the size since this equipment I would expect to be found in a lab.

I live in an apartment with not much room to store large equipment.

I am going through an initial look for RO equipment and I see some for quite a price. Do you have any recommended RO equipement that I can go ahead and check out?

I imagine you recommend this to me because it would be the most efficient way to remove any harmful substances in the tap water without the fuss of trying to figure out what is in the tap that i need to remove.

 

[metalac]

I didnt know that RO equipment existed for home use? I cant imagine the size since this equipment I would expect to be found in a lab.

I live in an apartment with not much room to store large equipment.

I am going through an initial look for RO equipment and I see some for quite a price. Do you have any recommended RO equipement that I can go ahead and check out?

I imagine you recommend this to me because it would be the most efficient way to remove any harmful substances in the tap water without the fuss of trying to figure out what is in the tap that i need to remove.

Here's the unit I have: http://www.purewaterclub.com/catalog/pr ... ucts_id=81

For $95 with replacement filters it's pretty sweet. It's also very small. It fits under my sink.

 

[Capslock]

the most trouble of the idea of an RO filter is I have faucets that I dont believe have threads on teh inside. I can check when I am home but they are stainless faucets from ikea.

How does one hook something like this up? Does it attach directly to the water supply? I live in a apartment so I cant make modifications to the water lines.

 

[metalac]

the most trouble of the idea of an RO filter is I have faucets that I dont believe have threads on teh inside. I can check when I am home but they are stainless faucets from ikea.

How does one hook something like this up? Does it attach directly to the water supply? I live in a apartment so I cant make modifications to the water lines.

I live in an apartment style building, but it's all condos, so I can do mods to my water supply line, as long as it's inside my unit. All I did was I taped into the cold water line. Maybe you can install a T of some sort? Talk to your landlord and see what the real deal is. Just so you know you'll need a "waste" line as well in addition to the feed line.

 

[ChrisRD]

There are a few ways to hook them up. You can hook them directly into the water lines that feed one of your faucets, use a faucet adapter (you usually have to unscrew the aerator fitting), feed them from your washer/dryer hookups, etc.

As for vendors, here are a few with good prices:
http://www.twopartsolution.com/
http://www.buckeyefieldsupply.com/
http://www.purelyh2o.com/
http://www.airwaterice.com/

 

[Capslock]

Chris,

Thank you, I THINK I understand you but I don't know much about plumbing other that what a Pipe wrench is and what shut off valves are (if thats even what they are called).


If you don't mind, read over what I am saying and see if I know what I am talking about.

Under my sink is the water line that goes to the faucet. It has one of them twisty things that you can use to shut off that particular line (the line that goes to the toilet usually has this too)

The line from there goes up into the faucet. The faucets end, the part where the water comes out, has some sort of filter or something on there and no indication of threads.

Now with both cold water and hot water, the faucet lines are connected at that twisty thing on the top. The dishwasher is connected to the hot water twisty thing at the bottom and it also has its own twisty thing.



So, am I going to have to get a twisty thing for the cold water line that allows me to connect another line on the bottom similar to the dishwasher but instead for the RO? Id like to avoid this option
Could I attach the RO just above that twisty valve and have the sinks faucet attach to that at the top? and if I did that, is that a bad idea? I dont know if RO filters just run or has a shut off valve?

The aerator. Where would this thing be? Is the aerator the thing that looks liek a filter at the end of my faucet? If so that might be a problem

 

[PezJunkie]

Yes, the aerator is the little screen thing that is screwed on to the end of the faucet.

As for the under the sink hookups... If your sink is connected with flexible lines/hoses, then all you need is a "T" fitting that will essentially split the water line and allow you to run your RO unit off the cold water supply for your sink. If there are hard lines (i.e. copper pipe) running to the sink, then this isn't really an option.

 

[Capslock]

Pez,

I do in fact have flexible tubing coming off of the line where the shut-off valve is.

Ok so thats promising. Now just a few more questions to top this off.

What is that thin white stuff called that you put on the threads of the lines to make it water tight? Is that a form of calk? You see this stuff in pool lines, faucets, tubs, etc.

Do RO filters have a shutoff valve so I can just keep the RO filter under the sink (possibly mounted) or does it just keep running until the water stops flowing into it? If the latter I think I would get a shut off valve to install it.

 

[mr_X]

you will definitely need a shut off valve before the R.O.
the supplier you choose will have the correct fittings for your needs, and so will home depot.
the stuff to seal the threads you mention is teflon tape. there is also stuff that comes in a pen...sort of like a crayon. it's called plasto-joint stik:
http://www.laco.com/ProductDetails121.aspx
i like this stuff alot better than teflon tape. if you can't find this stuff at home depot, try a pool supply store.

 

[Capslock]

Thanks for all the help so far everyone.

I picked up my tank yesterday with a sump.

The RO filter I purchased (I took metalac recommendation) will be coming in this coming Wednesday.

With that said tomorrow I will be starting to pick up supplies.
Thermostats, protein skimmer, a pump, etc.

A few questions though.

When it comes to live rock and sand...
Can I buy live rock tomorrow, 4 days before I can start filling the tank? I imagine live rock sits in a store for awhile before purchase but idk. If this is a bad idea I will wait.

When I have live rock would 'dead' sand be alright then? I imagine the live rocks inhabitants would spread to the sand, correct assumption?

When adding the sand and the live rock. This would be done as I fill in the tank with salt water, or should I wait until the salt water settles before adding the live rock and sand? as i understand it the latter isn't necessary.

 

[PezJunkie]

When it comes to live rock and sand...
Can I buy live rock tomorrow, 4 days before I can start filling the tank? I imagine live rock sits in a store for awhile before purchase but idk. If this is a bad idea I will wait.

Where are you going to keep it for 4 days while you fill the tank? It needs to stay wet, or in 4 days it will be dead/dying rock.

When I have live rock would 'dead' sand be alright then? I imagine the live rocks inhabitants would spread to the sand, correct assumption?

Sort of... some stuff will live in both places, but there are a lot of things that live in sand that don't live on rocks & vice versa. This also would depend on your definition of "live sand". If you're talking about the bagged stuff that CaribSea & other sell, then it's only "live" because it has beneficial bacteria living in it. IMO, good live sand with lots of critters in it can't be produced just by adding live rock.

When adding the sand and the live rock. This would be done as I fill in the tank with salt water, or should I wait until the salt water settles before adding the live rock and sand? as i understand it the latter isn't necessary.

Sand is easier to put in before the water... then when you fill the tank, put a plate on the sand and pour your water onto that. This will keep the sand from getting washed away where you're pouring and will help keep the water from clouding so much.

 

[metalac]

If you buy live rock in advance then it would be a good idea to put it a rubbermaid bucket, add some water and put a powerhead to circulate and a heater, this would start the curing and keep the rock live and healthy.

As far as live sand it's pretty common to mix in live and "dead" sand. What people do is grab a cup or two of sand from an established tank and then add it to their new tanks, this starts the bacterial process.

 

[Capslock]

Excellent Pez and thank you.

I figured rock needed to be wet but i wasn't exactly sure so I just needed confirmation (like how some plants can come back to life just by adding water)

Ive read that too about the plate thing, I will keep this in mind.

Few more questions:

Ive read that I might want to have different types of sand grains for filtration purposes? I will have a sump so is this really necessary?

Most importantly:
Ive seen alot of photos of aquariums and rock.
Would you suggest I buy rock in stages? like 10 pounds a week till I reach what I would like? or all at once?

What is the best way to move rock around once its in the tank in case I would like to change the look before I add livestock? I would think just using my hands would release alot of stuff into the water that I wouldnt want in there?

Im not exactly sure how to cure rock, is it done in salt water? do i cure sand? i will read more on this. Ive read different opinions but, do I cure rock thats already said to be cured?