Beginner with a new tank.

[jyec]

Hello everyone!

Im very new the the marine aquarium world and just had a few quick questions!

My tank currently has no fish and was just its its 'getting started' phase.
Its a little cloudy, and I was wondering if this was normal?

Also its smells quite strong, I would liken the smell the a rock pool at the beach..
Should it smell like that or should it just smell salty?

Thank you

 

[ritter6788]

Welcome!

Yes your tank is cycling so the cloudiness and smell is normal depending on how your tank was set up. Give it time to cycle and make sure to test for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates.

 

[Cooper32803]

Welcome to r2r!! The cloudiness could be some sand being stirred up (if you have sand)? If you do have fine sand, have you checked your powerheads to make sure they aren't pointing to a spot on the sandbed? If it isn't sand then it could be an algae bloom which would mean that you are nearing your nitrogen cycles end. There might be other reasons, but I am still a newbie myself so maybe some of the more seasoned reffers have more ideas... I dunno about the smell, mine never really smelled until I started cleaning the skimmer collection cup... YUCK! lol Best of luck with your new tank!!

 

[jyec]

Thanks for your help
Is it best to get it tested at a fish store or DIY?

The tank is just 23 litre's (6 gallons), 2 pieces of live rock and about an inch of coral sand.

 

[Cooper32803]

Id say test it yourself and keep track of your results. Then if anything seems a little weird, have your LFS test your water. The home test kits can go bad. I have had two giving me false results before and found that they just went bad...

 

[jyec]

Thanks for the help!

Sorry to be a pain but just two more questions,
Is it good to have snails and other small critters appearing?

And also is a salt level of 1.025-26 perfect?

 

[Blufgan]

Well the snails and other things are just hitch hikers on the live rock. I will say keep an eye out for mantis shrimp because they can decimate a tank. I have a peacock mantis in its own tank and it will kill anything. Your SG seems to on the mark I keep mine a little higher but thats me. Welcome to the awesome world of Marine aquariums.

 

[jyec]

Oh perfect!

Also, is it best to introduce the ground feeding additions first, then the fish, then a while later the coral?

Sorry to be a pain, just want the best out of my aquarium.

 

[_Alex_]

What are you plans for fish?? Because you can not put a whole lot in a 6 gallon. I would suggest staying with fish whose Max size stays under 2". If go to liveaquaria.com they have a nano fish section that gives lots of info on the fish. Also just to put this out there, bigger tanks are more stable than small ones so it doesn't take much to change things in your small one. Get a dKH , calcium, and magnesium test kits. Those are the big three to test for, compare your results to a Lfs or another reefers tests kits.

 

[uall8up]

Welcome to R2R!!! Congrats on your new addiction. lol

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

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[Blufgan]

You can introduce snails hermits and other things first but need to have a sufficent amount of detritus to eat so I would suggest to add a fish first then a few days later as said you are a bit limited to how many fish can be added might I suggest a Yasha Haze Goby they are a awesome fish plus you can pair them with a pistol shrimp I have one in a 2 gal tank on my desk at work. I would put on in my 600gal but i'd probably never