Completely New to Saltwater Aquarium.. please help!

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@Vixen498150

......................................Welcome!!
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Ecoscape Reef Rock
Vixen498150 said:
I’m going to be honest on this one but I’ve only used the HOB’s with the filter pads, I’m very old school and after doing so much research about salt water tanks I’m learning more about sumps and different types of filter with different filter media and I am so lost (one of the reasons I joined r2r lol what kind of filter media does Tidal use and what kind of maintenance is there to it
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The Tidal comes with a large basket you just pull out with all your media choices inside, the maintenance is very easy. There is a filter pad for mechanical filtration(debris and such), you just rinse this off. Then there's a bag of Matrix(a media to grow additional nitrifying bacteria, like little rocks), no maintenance there just adds additional filtration. Then you add your own; whether it be simple carbon, or some type of resin or a chemipure product which are very popular. You can use a media bag and fill your own or a bag of chemipure and just replace when necessary. I guess the only pita because it is an upflow filter is you have to pull the basket out, place your matrix and chemipure or whatever to the side, to get to the filter pad to rinse. You should do this once a week but I never did, but do what I say and not what do.

There are also hob refugiums and macro algae reactors you can add as well. You can have the most awesome fowlr or reef with all hob equipment, it's just how you put it together. The benefits of a sump is that you won't see the intake tubes and heaters and pumps and such in your display, it's all in the sump. An AIO(all in one) is also a great starter tank, but you would looking at a 40-45g at the largest.
 
lion king said:
The Tidal comes with a large basket you just pull out with all your media choices inside, the maintenance is very easy. There is a filter pad for mechanical filtration(debris and such), you just rinse this off. Then there's a bag of Matrix(a media to grow additional nitrifying bacteria, like little rocks), no maintenance there just adds additional filtration. Then you add your own; whether it be simple carbon, or some type of resin or a chemipure product which are very popular. You can use a media bag and fill your own or a bag of chemipure and just replace when necessary. I guess the only pita because it is an upflow filter is you have to pull the basket out, place your matrix and chemipure or whatever to the side, to get to the filter pad to rinse. You should do this once a week but I never did, but do what I say and not what do.

There are also hob refugiums and macro algae reactors you can add as well. You can have the most awesome fowlr or reef with all hob equipment, it's just how you put it together. The benefits of a sump is that you won't see the intake tubes and heaters and pumps and such in your display, it's all in the sump. An AIO(all in one) is also a great starter tank, but you would looking at a 40-45g at the largest.
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Hmmmm... I might need you and Big G to help me weigh out my odds. I have always used biowheels, even in my 75 g Malawi tank I have been using them after a canister incident that flooded my house. But my LFS is privately owned and is a huge Seachem fanatic so right now they have the Tidal on sale. From what I have gathered from the cons and pros of both filters is that Marineland uses carbon filter pads and from the product description I am assuming the Tidal only has foam filter pads with no carbon just a rinse and clean ordeal am I correct?
I am buying the rest of my equipment tomorrow but I wanted to be 100% confident and not have to go back and forth
 
Deltec
bw777 said:
you can probably get better lighting for the same
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Any recommendations? I just really like the idea that I can control everything by using my iPhone and even though I don’t have corals I can still put everything on a light cycle to reduce stress
 
Vixen498150 said:
Hmmmm... I might need you and Big G to help me weigh out my odds. I have always used biowheels, even in my 75 g Malawi tank I have been using them after a canister incident that flooded my house. But my LFS is privately owned and is a huge Seachem fanatic so right now they have the Tidal on sale. From what I have gathered from the cons and pros of both filters is that Marineland uses carbon filter pads and from the product description I am assuming the Tidal only has foam filter pads with no carbon just a rinse and clean ordeal am I correct?
I am buying the rest of my equipment tomorrow but I wanted to be 100% confident and not have to go back and forth
Click to expand...

Right there is no specific inserts to buy and replace for the tidal, all you will be doing is rinsing the filter pad. You can buy a canister of carbon for cheap that will last you months, and just refill a media bag when spent. Or throw in a bag of chemipure and replace every few months. Even with the biowheel you should be rinsing the pads, I used one of those like 30 years ago, I really do mean 30 years. I did like it, today we tend to pull everything out and customize the basket with our own stuff, and not really use the inserts that come with. We make our own media baskets and some companies make them for specific filters and tanks, here's an example:https://intankaquatics.com/aquaclear-110-media-basket/
That way we can stack the things we like to use.
 
AS
lion king said:
Right there is no specific inserts to buy and replace for the tidal, all you will be doing is rinsing the filter pad. You can buy a canister of carbon for cheap that will last you months, and just refill a media bag when spent. Or throw in a bag of chemipure and replace every few months. Even with the biowheel you should be rinsing the pads, I used one of those like 30 years ago, I really do mean 30 years. I did like it, today we tend to pull everything out and customize the basket with our own stuff, and not really use the inserts that come with. We make our own media baskets and some companies make them for specific filters and tanks, here's an example:https://intankaquatics.com/aquaclear-110-media-basket/
That way we can stack the things we like to use.
Click to expand...
So if I use a bag of chemipure every few months or a filter pad that has pelleted carbon either way I am adding carbon to my filter media. Is Carbon beneficial in a saltwater tank?
 
Deltec
SPR1968 said:
Welcome to R2R it’s great to have you with us!

You might find the following article useful as well:

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/the-supreme-guide-to-setting-up-a-saltwater-reef-aquarium.138750/

And we need lots of pictures on here!
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I am a wee bit overwhelmed this morning. And I hope I am doing everything correctly. The LFS told me to scrub the rocks with a toothbrush after soaking to ensure I get any debris off . She said to vacuum and do 50% water changes Weekly for the month the tank cycles and then when the Nitrites and Ammonia read 0 do another 50% water change and then check the PH 24 hours later before adding anything to the tank. Is there anything I am missing with these instructions?
 
Big G said:
Really like your choice of the Emperor 400 biowheel. Have used them for years with great results for both fresh and saltwater. Primarily use it in my saltwater QT setup when a very aggressive filter is needed for lots or large fish in QT. Have found that the mfg pads to be a bit expensive though. I've been buying bulk filter media on Amazon and cutting it to fit and have had very good results. Really liked their smaller Emperor 250? But alas it has been discontinued. Argh. In the media container on the biowheel, consider using Fluval BioMax or Seachem Matrix as bio media. Both work great. Especially if you pre-seed (soak) the media in a bowl with Dr. Tim's/BioSpira, Turbo Boost, Turbo Boost 900, etc., for a couple of days before placing into the filter unit. When done pour the liquid into the tank. Best of luck on your new tank. Merry Christmas :)
Also a big fan of AquaClear filters. Some of them you may get a bit of noise coming from the impeller. Get a tube of Food Grade Silcone, and wipe a thin coat on the magnet on the impeller. Too much and it won't spin. This really helps to "seat" the impeller when first starting up a new filter. Really like them though. I have several of them for my QTs. In them I use a mesh bag for the bio media. Works great.
Welcome to R2R!
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Hi! Can you speak more as to what and why you soak your filter pads with? I have a skilter 400 for my 30 gallon tank and change out my floss when it gets too dirty. Is there something else I should be adding? You are incredibly helpful, thanks from a newbie!
 
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JenMiamiMom said:
Hi! Can you speak more as to what and why you soak your filter pads with? I have a skilter 400 for my 30 gallon tank and change out my floss when it gets too dirty. Is there something else I should be adding? You are incredibly helpful, thanks from a newbie!
Click to expand...
Soaking the filter pads and filter media (like Seachem Matrix, Fluval BioMax, etc.) when starting up a new tank or quarantine tank or hospital tank, helps the "good" bacteria to get a head start in colonizing. The good bacteria "eat" ammonia, nitrites, etc. and help the cycling of the aquarium to a stable condition capable of keeping your fish healthy. I usually soak the pads and or media for 24-48 hours in a bowl prior to putting into the aquarium filter. The liquid that remains in the bowl can be poured into the aquarium to help colonize the tank with the good bacteria. There are lots of good bio "seeding" products available: BioSpira, Dr. Tim's, Turbo Start, Turbo 900, Seachem Stability, etc.
Once the tank is up and running and the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate cycle has completed, and you just want to clean the filter and its pads, media, etc., its easy. When doing a water change, make a bit extra, like a gallon or so. Use the extra to rinse the pads and filter medias. I just kinda squeeze, shake, wiggle the pads and the media (its usually in a mesh bag) until satisfied they are clean enough. Then return to the tank. This way the helpful bacteria are still there to do their job.
Another way to do this if you have a sump setup for your display tank is to float your extra/replacement filter pads, media bags with media, etc. in the sump for at least 30 days or so. Then just swap them out with your dirty ones from your tank. Clean the dirty ones, dry them and then place them back into the sump to be used again during the next cleaning after soaking in the sump for 30 days.
Hope this helps a bit. Merry Christmas :)
 
Welcome to R2R! I see you are doing a lot of research and I see great things coming for you in this hobby!

Vixen498150 said:
I am a wee bit overwhelmed this morning. And I hope I am doing everything correctly. The LFS told me to scrub the rocks with a toothbrush after soaking to ensure I get any debris off . She said to vacuum and do 50% water changes Weekly for the month the tank cycles and then when the Nitrites and Ammonia read 0 do another 50% water change and then check the PH 24 hours later before adding anything to the tank. Is there anything I am missing with these instructions?
Click to expand...

So about the rock, it depends on the type of rock. If it is say pukani or fiji rock or other rock with a lot of organic material, then a pre-soak pick and post soak toothbrush scrub aren't a bad thing. If its say marcos reef saver dry rock, there's generally no scrubbing/picking required. Some folks soak their rock in fresh water first, then soak in heated and circulated (with a small powerhead) saltwater second. Others soak it in heated and circulated saltwater right away and still others just put their rock work in the tank and soak it there while they cycle. You'll very quickly learn that in saltwater there is more than one way to run a reef and what works for me may not work for you. You just have to pick the method that matches your madness :)

Here's how I do things, so feel free to either try it or pick pieces of it that fit into your method :)

Since I use marcos reef saver dry rock, I put it in the tank and have it soak there while I do my cycle. I add my bacteria culture (I've used Dr Tims and Biospira. Both are great) to my tank and then 12 hours later I add an ammonia source. Ive done the ghost feeding method, single table shrimp in a pantyhose stocking method and ammonium chloride method. They all work, however I have found that I prefer ammonium chloride. So with the ammonium chloride, I follow the instructions and begin daily testing closely watching my ammonia and nitrites at first, and then nitrates later on. I don't do any water changes during the cycle unless my nitrites approach 5ppm. If they surpass 5ppm, it will stall the cycle. When my tanks cycle is complete, I do a large 50+ percent water change to lower nitrates and I call it good for my clean up crew and go from there.

I hope this helps and I look forward to your future build thread!
 
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