Brand new to this, starting fresh, need help...

[paul barker]

RODI UNITS ARE CHEAP NOW 100 GAL A DAY GOOD FOR YOUR TANK SIZE

 

[reef lover]

Which he' learning......let' not jump all over him...
My suggestion after a heater is research....and a ot of it...will cause less headache along the way..
The search button at the top of this forum will be your best friend.

 

[Hawkeye16]

Awesome, thanks guys, I appreciate all the input

 

[Chrisfish]

Welcome to R2R first off and I really like your aqua scape. With that being said , you’ve got some awesome advice here and yes a heater is a must and I would also get a thermometer ( not the cheap one that you stick to the side of the tank). I’m sure I’ll get blasted for this but I used distilled water that I bought from my local grocery store to do my water changes and top offs when my water level became to low. Just an option until you can determine if you can buy SW from a LFS and/or purchase a RO/DI unit. Don’t be afraid to ask questions as no question is a bad one. Good luck and take things slow. I’m looking forward to seeing more of your tank.

 

[Hawkeye16]

Welcome to R2R first off and I really like your aqua scape. With that being said , you’ve got some awesome advice here and yes a heater is a must and I would also get a thermometer ( not the cheap one that you stick to the side of the tank). I’m sure I’ll get blasted for this but I used distilled water that I bought from my local grocery store to do my water changes and top offs when my water level became to low. Just an option until you can determine if you can buy SW from a LFS and/or purchase a RO/DI unit. Don’t be afraid to ask questions as no question is a bad one. Good luck and take things slow. I’m looking forward to seeing more of your tank.

Thanks Chris, I appreciate that. Just thought I'd also post an update. I got the heater in the tank, set at 78 degrees. I put in one cap full of Prime into the water. I have 1 powerhead in the tank now. Salinity tested at 1.026 last night. In the middle of the night around 1am, I smelled a faint burning-rubber type of smell. Searched the tank, the plugs, the outlets and cant figure out what it is. Would this possibly be from the heater or from the Prime being added to the water? Nothing that I can see was burning or melting so I have no idea.

 

[JBKReef]

Thats interesting. I dont think either of those things should cause a problem.

Did you by any chance plug the heater into an outlet with way too many things going into it?

Aquariums draw a lot of power and once things all get plugged in the outlet might be overloaded.

What @Chrisfish said above is a great idea for a temporary solution. The clowns can hang out for awhile using just distilled water as your base till you get cleaner water.

If you had corals right now I would advise against it, but with just having two hearty fish you can get things set up appropriately and rocking and rolling.

It's best to get things right out of the gate than get 6 months down the road and the issues compound from there.

Hope everything else goes smoothly!

 

[Palyzoa]

Sounds like your on the right path now, lots of good folks here with great advice so far. Like @JBKReef said, The BRS 160 videos are great and will give you allot of info and different ideas on starting and maintaining a reef tank.

 

[beaslbob]

I recommend you add macro algae (best in a refugium which can be just a simple partition).
my .02

 

[KPollard1986]

Thanks Chris, I appreciate that. Just thought I'd also post an update. I got the heater in the tank, set at 78 degrees. I put in one cap full of Prime into the water. I have 1 powerhead in the tank now. Salinity tested at 1.026 last night. In the middle of the night around 1am, I smelled a faint burning-rubber type of smell. Searched the tank, the plugs, the outlets and cant figure out what it is. Would this possibly be from the heater or from the Prime being added to the water? Nothing that I can see was burning or melting so I have no idea.

Is the smell coming from inside your tank? Check and make sure your heater is in the water to the acceptable water line. If it is not fully submersible, the water should be up to the top cap of the heater. That would be the only thing I can think of to create the smell if the plugs are all ok.

 

[Hawkeye16]

Is the smell coming from inside your tank? Check and make sure your heater is in the water to the acceptable water line. If it is not fully submersible, the water should be up to the top cap of the heater. That would be the only thing I can think of to create the smell if the plugs are all ok.

Yeah it was definitely the heater not being low enough in the water

 

[KPollard1986]

Yeah it was definitely the heater not being low enough in the water

Good thing you caught it because that thing can "pop" if it overheats and the glass will break and electrocute your inhabitants. Not to mention melt the top of the heater and potentially start a fire! Good luck to you and look forward to seeing more of your tank!

 

[Rscott]

glad you got the heater
Any updated pics?

How are the clowns doing?

 

[reefertank]

Looks like everyone has given you good advice. Mine is to take your time, the biggest problem rookies do is rush. I am guilty as well so don't feel bad, just remember that nothing happens quickly in a reef tank. Well nothing good, and tell the guy at your lfs he is a moron for rushing you.

 

[Hawkeye16]

glad you got the heater
Any updated pics?

How are the clowns doing?

Everything seems to be in order. The clowns seem great, very lively little guys. Heres a couple pics

 

[Rscott]

Everything seems to be in order. The clowns seem great, very lively little guys. Heres a couple pics

I do like the aqua scape. If you did not glue or stake the rock together with Acrylic pipes becareful for cave in. Make sure everything is realy secure in there. Mr clown does not like earth quakes while he is sleeping

 

[Hawkeye16]

So I know I'm a ways away but I'm just wondering what some of the best eventual fish options will be for me. Again, its a 50g tank and I'm wondering what the difference in fish options and quantity would be if I did this as a FOWLR tank or do corals and anemones? And in your opinion how do I know at what point I can introduce a new fish to the tank. Thanks

 

[rockstarta78]

Welcome to R2R! Congratulations on your new setup. This hobby is very rewarding, but it will test your patience. With that being said, there were some really good advice that were given. Since you are still going through nitrogen cycle, IMHO I'd wait at least 3 to 6 months before adding any more fish. My reasoning for that is, you want to make sure your tank can handle the bioload. Clownfish eats a lot, and when they eat a lot........well they poop a lot too. With your setup being new, I think it'd be better if you let your tank mature a little bit, get the beneficial bacteria population thriving before adding more fish.

It typically takes somewhere between 4 to 6 weeks to cycle a tank. There is no exact rule for the timeframe. That's my experience for a nitrogen cycle. Some tanks can cycle faster (depending on type of rock sand etc etc) some can take longer. Since you have some live rocks in there, I am hoping you'd be done with your cycle pretty quick. For next 3-4 weeks I'd check for ammonia on daily basis. Ammonia is detrimental to your fish, and I can tell you like your clowns. (Btw, really liking the fact that you got 2 different types of clown). Once you feel like your tank can handle a bigger bio load you could add Firefish, a shrimp and a goby pair, royal gramma, mccosker flasher wrasse or any reef-safe smaller wrasses. blennies, I wouldn't put more then 6-7 fishes in total.

Also create a husbandry schedule. Meaning top off your water everyday. At some point you'd want to invest in an auto top off. But like everyone else said, I'd get an RODI unit before anything else. At the end of the day your water quality is what makes all the difference. Tap water is big no-no. But don't worry about that right now, worst that's going to happen is you are going to get a bad algae outbreak. Your tank will go through an ugly phase even with the RODI water. so have patience, enjoy the hobby, ask as many questions as you'd like above everything else BREATH

 

[Hawkeye16]

Also, am I going to have a problem with the 2 clowns with one being a black Saddleback and the other a normal Ocellaris?

 

[Del’s Reef]

With two different clowns, no. Shouldn’t have a problem. There’s a lot of real estate for them to claim.
Now that you’re reading more, and I just glanced through the posts, the BRS160 was mentioned. They also have the series about how to set up a reef tank that they did before the 160 (10 episodes or something like that) that may help even more. Without a sump, you may look at some hang on equipment, which they cover. And when you progress, your current tank won’t go to waste..... it’ll become your frag or quarantine/hospital tank, so it’ll never be wasted.

I don’t think it was stated, but make sure your top offs are fresh water, not mixed salt water. Salt water will be for water changes.

Welcome to the hobby.... it’s a heck of a drug, and will be both stressful and amazingly therapeutic.

 

[paul barker]

Not if you put them in the tank at the same time but they are mean fish so be careful what you put in the tank after