New tank setup, 55 Gallon

[jleschorn]

Reefgurus,

I'm new to the hobby, trying to setup a good solid tank to help teach my kids about reefs and basic marine biology.

So, here is the list...

- 55 Gallon "Standard" Sized aquarium
- 4 MaxiJet 1200 Power Heads and a Wavemaker
(Essentially I have two sets of two running on a 1 minute timer to create a robust, chaotic flow of water in the tank. Two of the power heads are injecting room air into the tank.)
- A plenum with both sand and crushed coral. (Currently about 1.5 - 2.0 Inches deep, plus the "deadspace" with water at about 1.0 inch deep. Please don't flame me for this, I know you guys are DSB fans.)
- A CPR Backpack Reef Ready Skimmer. (Actually working on winning an ebay auction as we speak.)
- I have plumbed the tank for a pump and chiller. (Chillers are freaking expensive, my tank is at about 78 Degrees without lighting, with the pumps running, I live in AZ, we use air all of the time in the summer. PLEASE ADVISE on inexpensive ways to lower the tank temp. I know about fans...)
- 260 Watt 48 inch CF (Compact Flourescent) light fixture and bulbs. 2x 12k Daylight Bulbs and 2x Actinic Bulbs all 65 Watts each. (This lends itself to about 4.7 Watts/Gallon, might be a bit under the desired 5 Watts/Gallon, but remember this is my first attempt and will gladly add more lighting, within reason, over time.)

A few more details, right now nothing is "alive" in the tank, I filled it with tap water, to test and set the pumps and well, b/c I am very excited about this. I will likely be moving in the next 30 days, so I think the actual reef setup will wait, but I would like to use the time to "activate" my sand. So a procedure for this would be wonderfully useful.

Please send any and all comments and good natured advice, I will take everything said very seriously and I am hoping with your help I can complete the setup and have a really nice reef tank for my kids enlightenment and my enjoyment.

Thank You Very Much,

John Leschorn

 

[metalac]

are you going to get live rock?

 

[FinalPhaze987]

Go to a LFS with an established reef and see if they will give or sell you some sand from their tank...if it is a display tank chances are they wont, but if it is a tank that they sell corals out of im sure they will have no problem with doing so...a pound or two will do...you want the most bacterial biodiversity you can get...

Live rock is also something you want to get...

 

[mr_X]

i wouldn't use the crushed coral. it's detrimental IME. it will trap alot of detritus, and over time, looks rather unsightly. i would go with a sugar sized substrate, either DSB, or shallow.

there are no inexpensive ways to cool a tank, besides fans. however, i don't think those compact flourescents are going to heat the tank up that much.

what do you mean "activate your sand"?
i would wait to do anything until you have moved, and yes, a substantial amount of live rock will be a necessary purchase. if you want live sand, get some from a local reefer, or you can purchase live sand in sealed packages from LFS. where are you located? i am getting rid of my substrate in my 125. it's a sand/crushed coral mix, which is why i suggested against it, but you can sift it and remove the cc. i purchased mine as live sand about a year ago.

as far as the mj's injecting air into the tank- i wouldn't do this either. gas exchange is done through the surface, and also with your skimmer. putting air bubbles in the tank is going to be unsightly.

 

[jleschorn]

Yes, I do intend on purchasing a substancial amount of live rock, how much would you reccommend?

Interesting on the coral bed, I never considered that it could be a detrius trap? Will having so called cleanup crews help? Burrowing animals? etc.... That stuff was damn expensive also.

I always thought the air bubbles would be good for the system, I can easily turn them off, so no big deal.

As for making my sand come alive, if I add just a few pounds of live sand fom the LFS or possibly from another aquarist either could work? If anyone wants to help with the the cause, I live in Phoenix, AZ. Heck I'll send you a few bucks via paypal to ship it.

 

[mr_X]

well, the more live rock you have, the better your tank will filter.
here, check this out-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_rock
as for how much, some say 1 pound per gallon. i say, put as much as you can fit in your tank and it still be pleasing to the eye, and also have room so that flow is not inhibited. choose the most porous pieces.

cleanup crews will help the cc bed, but i still recommend against it. you'll need to vaccuum it. if you choose to keep burrowing animals who live off of the stuff in the sand bed, you'll need something a bit on the deep side so they don't starve. and , you'll not want to vaccuum it, because you'll be vaccuuming out their food.

yes, a few pounds from a local reefer will seed your sand bed.
i guess i could send you some of my substrate, but it won't be for a couple more weeks, until i break down the tank. i don"t want to stir up that bed until necessary. i'm wondering what i can use as a container....a big jar maybe.. :?

 

[Arie]

Out of curiosity... live rock is fantastic, but I've heard horror stories as to hitchhikers that went along for a ride from one tank to another. Is there a way to look for 'good' live rock? I don't know where I'm planning to get mine (as my tank is still not set up) but do I need to seclude everything, including LR and LS?

-Please forgive my being a newbieness, don't mean to irritate, just investigate

-Arie

 

[mr_X]

well, there are far more good hitch hikers than bad. secondly, if you do it right, you'll have the live rock in the tank a month before anything else goes in there, so in that time you can watch for any unwelcome guests, and remove them with little trouble. from what i have read, the mantis shrimp, and other unwanted predators seem to be more plentiful on florida rock than other types.

if you purchased the rock from a local reefer, who was breaking down his tank (this seems to be quite common), the odds of getting unwanted predators should be slim.

 

[Kerchakone]

I live in Mesa, Az and my tank doesn't go over 76 degrees. I keep the air at 80ish. No chiller. Open top with 80 watts PC. Lights have a fan on them (doesn't affect tank temp) and the one powerhead I have ripples the surface. Thats it. No need for a chiller here. I'm more worried about winter! I don't like to heat my place and I don't own a heater for the tank.

 

[jleschorn]

Kerchakone,

That's interesting, the only measure I have at the moment is a crummy stick on therm. I think I will purchase a digital.

Is your tank a reef tank? Would you be willing to trade some live sand for basic sand or possibly put some of my "un-alive" substrate in your tank for a month?

I appreciate all of the feedback and advice. I will post pics as soon as I have something worthy to take a picture of.

John

 

[Kerchakone]

I have a small 12 gallon coral tank and it's just over a month old. I'm not sure if anyone wants anything out of my new tank. And with it being so small I'm not sure if I have much to give or take! ...stupid nanotanks...

Where do you live? Have you been to aquarium arts in mesa? They are pretty good and have given me freebie stuff. See if they can give you a handfull of one of their coral tanks. They have cured and uncured live rock there too for 5 dollars a pound and it looks good. (mines all green and purple and red now.) You could get some of that to help liven up the sand as well.

 

[jleschorn]

Kerchakone,

Well I am actually in the process of moving to the east valley. Thanks for the info, Aquatic Arts. I will visit them when I have the chance.

$5/lb locally for live rock is pretty good. Once I have relocated I will probably purchase from them.

Have any of you purchased FRAGs from www.garf.org or any other location? Do you know of local groups that trade?

Thanks,

John

 

[Kerchakone]

Have any of you purchased FRAGs from www.garf.org or any other location? Do you know of local groups that trade?

No and no. I probably should look into other locals, but I haven't.

I've bought from liveaquaria and what they sent was very good. And they came with A LOT of good hitchhikers. On one rock with a coral on it I got 7+feather dusters, I also got a crab, a snail, a bristle star and a bristle worm.... and I got a free coral cause the one they sent me was about to split.

 

[jleschorn]

Well it looks like I am not moving any time soon, I have received my lighting and my protein skimmer.

At the moment I am still running fresh water in the tank, will pick up salt this weekend, I have also eliminated most of the coral in the system and replaced it with play sand. I am thinking that I would like to put in a couple of hardy fish, my kids want clown fish, are they hardy enough for a new system?

So my question is to you guys, what can I do for the best initial success? I don't want to buy the Clown fish to have them die in a day or so... Also what type of hardy coral do you recommend for them to "nest" in? I am not wanting the hassle of a anenome...

I appreciate your expertise and help, thank you.

 

[Kerchakone]

I've heard they like anything from polyps and mushrooms to powerheads and filters.

My clowns are currently hosting my powerhead.... yeah. weird. I'm going to get some frogspawn, hammer, and toadstool mushroom corals and hope that they move into one of those until my tank is old enough for an anemone.

I also didn't add any fish or crabs/snails until my tank cycled, but clowns are typically very hardy.

 

[jleschorn]

Ok, so I understand the whole tank cycling thing, with getting the proper levels of bacteria in the substrate.

Will it kill two Clown Fish if I put them in right after adding some live rock or sand? I will not be loading the tank initially, I would rather work slowly and steadily to build up the bio-mass in the system.

Is their a better method?

I am thinking, add a live rock, the Clowns (All with a protein skimmer). Wait a couple of weeks, add some benificial detrius eaters, such as blue legged crabs and snails. Then a couple of weeks later buy some aquacultured rock (from Garf.org) to add to the system with a few hardy corals frags.

I do not have a heater/chiller yet, but keep my house at 74 degrees year round, live in AZ. It seems the tank is sticking at 76-80 degrees, that seems stable...

Thoughts? Is this a bad idea? Please let me know.

Thanks,

John

 

[mr_X]

i would add all the live rock you plan to have at once. cycle it, then add livestock. it's the best way. otherwise, you are needlessly stressing your inhabitants for no reason other than impatience.
my tank stays at about 80 degrees most of the day, and about 78 at night. nothing has shown signs of stress as of yet.

 

[jleschorn]

OK, So I only intend to add a single live rock to the mix, then I will purchase non-live rock (aragocrete from garf.org) and add it.

So my plan is such:
1. Add live sand and rock to the tank. (Let it cycle, how long?)
2. Add two Clownfish to the tank. (Allow it to continue to stabilize for 2-4 weeks.)
3. Add a "cleanup" crew and some coral frags.

 

[mr_X]

1. you should wait until your test kits read zero (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate)
i wouldn't purchase non-live rock. i'd buy all live rock. you are taking up space that valuable live rock could fill. it will take a long time before that dead rock will be useful for anything more than decoration.
i cannot stress enough the value of live rock. it can be the difference between an interesting and rewarding hobby, and a high maintenance, stressful experience. (that and a good protein skimmer of course :wink: )

2. after a month or so, i think it's safe to add fish, as long as your test kits say so :wink:

3. you can add a cleanup crew the same time you add fish if you like.
the corals, depending on what corals you are speaking of, might take a bit longer to safely add. beginner stuff like xenia, zoos, palys, mushrooms, can be added early on.