Brand new to salt water.

[Bryant stinson]

Hey all.

I just got my first salt water tank up about 3 days ago. I was wondering about how long the cycle period last. I've been getting different answers. I have a 55 gallon tank with about 20 pounds of live rock 60 pounds of live sand. I have my temperature set to 80 degrees.

Also I was curious about clean up crew. How much is good for a 55 gallon. People keep giving me different answers on that one too. Is it good to add the clean up crew before adding fish and coral. Should I add all my coral before adding fish. I don't wanna raise any levels. All the help is appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[jsker]

Welcome to R2R

1 per gallon of various clean up crew. Yes it is good to add the crew before corals and fish.
Yes hardy corals before fish

 

[Reeferdood]

^^^^
And.......

 

[Dennis McGrath]

Welcome to R2R !!!
Also, you might want to add some more live rock. You've got a lot of sand, but most recommend at least 1 pound /gallon of live rock.

 

[mich2599]

I have a 50 gal with 1 conch, 4 snails, & 12 hermits.

 

[SPR1968]

Welcome to R2R!

 

[hwntunda]

 

[Reefer Deez]

Hello and welcome to R2R it's a pleasure to have you here with us

 

[pugcrush]

Welcome to R2R!

Yes, add CUC before fish/coral. Only add enough as you go; then add more as needed IMO. If there's no food source for them, they'll end up dying. So no need for 30 snails/30 hermits. Do just a few each as a trial run towards the end of the cycle. If you have really good live rock (lots of life), then you should already see the small signs of life which is the best sign (pods, mini brittle stars, or even stomatella snails/limpets). That's FREE CUC which I target for since they're self sustaining.

I also add a coral frag or two first before any fish. If levels are in check and CUC are doing well, it's a green light for fish (even then it's usually 2 months after the tank has been up for me - I like all the small signs of life to flourish before fish).

That's about the short version. Just read, read, and read. So much info here on R2R for sure!

 

[Kyl]

IMO the best thing a new entrant to salt can watch is the BRS 160 series on youtube. Yes, it is a lot of time, but that covers almost every single thing about our tanks, how they function and how to 'stop the house burning down', so to speak.


All the episodes are explained, so you can always jump forward / back.

Good luck, and welcome to the most addicting hobby I've come across!

 

[reef lover]

Welcome to r2r!!

 

[Gobi-Wan]

IMO the best thing a new entrant to salt can watch is the BRS 160 series on youtube. Yes, it is a lot of time, but that covers almost every single thing about our tanks, how they function and how to 'stop the house burning down', so to speak.


All the episodes are explained, so you can always jump forward / back.

Good luck, and welcome to the most addicting hobby I've come across!

+1 I love BRS channel and the 160 build videos. They do a great job of explaining different popular methods for each segment, while also explaining why they prefer the method they're using. As a new reefer myself I can say the toughest thing on forums is that people will tell you their preferred method in one sentence as if that's the only option. Then you get someone else's opinion the same way and end up confused because they're contradictory. You just have to teach yourself the biological processes and figure out what works best for your setup and goals.

 

[hdsoftail1065]

Welcome to R2R and Congrats on your first saltwater tank!!!

 

[jgann]

Congrats on the tank, it's gonna be awesome! Can't recommend the BRS videos enough - great info. I've also learned that I tend to go low on the CUC count and when I do it really shows in the tank. When you've got the right amount things actually look way better (thus that whole cleanup thing).

 

[Crabs McJones]

Welcome to R2R!

Part of the reason you keep getting different answers on how long a cycle lasts is because everyone's experience is different. Depended on a bunch of different variables, it could take 3 weeks, it could take 6 weeks, there isn't really a "set time"

 

[beaslbob]

welcome to reefing.

FWIW I recommend you have a macro algae refugium. Which can just be a simple tank partition

my .02

 

[Rich Cooper]

Welcome and BRS has a great series on setting up new tanks and advice for people new to saltwater. The cycling process can be 4-8 weeks its nature so only so much you can tamper with to change the course of time when it comes to growing bacteria.