BOBBY BOLIVIA

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new jersey
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Hello everyone, yesterday I finally finished hooking up all the plumbing, and filling up the tank, there was a minor leak in the sump, but i fixed it, my question is what do i do next? and do i need to keep the lights running? i don't have any livestock, not even sand. how long before i can add the sand and rocks? P.S. I added 90ml of stress coat+
 

georgelc86

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Throggs Neck, BX
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Hey Bobby, this is the time to add your sand and rocks to allow the whole tank to cycle and the rock to cure. The stress coat isn't really needed especially if you have your skimmer running right now because the skimmer will just pull it right out of the water column. Add your rock and sand, shut the lights down and wait about three to 5 weeks and check your basic parameters occasionally, ammonia nitrites and nitrates being your big three to test for. During this time you should look into setting up a QT tank for your new fishes, inverts and corals. good luck buddy
 

KathyC

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Do you have a rodi unit for this tank?
Why did you add 90 ml of Stresscoat??

The first thing I'd do is drain the tank and get the Stresscoat out of there. You might want to consider wiping down the inside of the tank and then rinising it again with tap water before finally filling it.
Stresscoat is primarily used for FW tanks. It makes skimmers foam like there is no tomorrow...

If you don't have a rodi unit, I would first invest in one of those before you go any further and load up your sand or rock with phosphates from tap water.

When you are ready to start filling the tank, your base rock should go on the very bottom of the tank so that your entire aquascape is supported from the bottom up and will always remain stable. Many marine creatures like to burrow under rock and can eventually compromise your rocks balance.

Before I go on & on about how to add the sand (without creating a sand storm)..do you have your live rock yet?
 

BOBBY BOLIVIA

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new jersey
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no i dont have any rocks or sand, also what are the consequences that the stress coat presents? also I dont have an rodi nor do I have a skimmer, the person that i bought my equipment from told me to add the stress coat to remove the chlorine from the tap water
 

georgelc86

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In my opinion and from experience there is no harm to the tank, just that the skimmer will produce a lot of foam until the stress coat is removed. You don't need to add stress coat to water since chlorine evaporates from water overnight. Also the purchase and use of an RODI unit as suggested will remove all of the harmful chemicals from tap water thus removing the need to use stresscoat or any other additives.
 

KathyC

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Barnum Island
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If you start a tank off using tap water you will having many ongoing issues with Phosphates (= algae). That is probably the single largest reason that folks end up giving up the hobby.
Ideally, you want to get a rodi unit to make all of the water you will be using in your tank and get off to a good start.
It is one of the best investments you can make in the hobby!

Stresscoat is used in the FW side of the hobby to remove chlorine (and chloramines though we don't have any in our water locally)from tap water. It is not necessary nor used in a reef tank as the rodi unit removes all of the impurities from the tap water. It also makes skimmers foam..like crazy. You also added a huge amount of stresscoat to the tank (therefore my suggestion to remove the water & wipe down the tank). That dose would be appropriate for a 180g FW tank :(
 

KathyC

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I don't want you to get overly concerned about it, but it would be better to remove it. Just drain all of the water and wipe off the surfaces you can reach, and then rinse the tank again with tap water. That will help minimize the amount you added.

Ideally you want to have the sand and live rock in hand in order to begin the cycle on your tank. If you add more sand and more rock after the initial cycle of the tank, you very possibly have an additional cycle, that could be large depending on how much additional LS & LR you add.

What other equipment do you have? :)
 

KathyC

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Barnum Island
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i just have the sump, lights, heater, grounding cable, and two thermometers, I need a skimmer, the ro/di sys, and power heads.... and sand and rocks.:eek:

Sounds like you are off to a great start!! :)

IMO..ther next step is posting a 'Want to Buy' thread and looking for a rodi unit.
Also keep your eye on the For Sale threads for the other things you need, items such as those come up all the time!

..and keep reading!! There are some really great 'Stickies' geared toward new reefers. Use the 'Forums' tab on the blue bar on the Home Page and open each individual forum from that list and you'll find the Stickies :)

Can you tell us more about your lighting and what you hope to keep in your tank? (coral & fish wise)
 

alistair

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Location
Florida, NY
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Bobby,
Where you located? Maybe you could get an experienced reefer to visit and help you with setup.
I may have missed it, but is this a reef or fish only?
You also said you do not have a skimmer? .... while you don't need one now, i think most people would agree that you will need one within a few months.
 

BOBBY BOLIVIA

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new jersey
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the lights are 48" blue and white biax bulbs, I really dont know much about them, I plan to havea hippo tang, 2 clowns, a hawkfish, a blenny, a jaw fish, a cowfish, a yellow tang, a queen angel or emperor, some soft corals like anemones for the clowns, feather duster, 1 or 2 sea urchins, frogspawn, a starfish, and a cleaning crew,but first i need to check the compatability of the fish, and I need too look deeper into my lights to see if it;ll support the corals. I want arount 80lbs of LR and bout 2' sand bed, I also plan to get 2 koralia 3, and I might make my own phosban reactor.
 

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