How To Configure Media Caddie

[Flyangler33]

Hello All,

Brand new to the hobby and starting my first tank. I have been rummaging through a metric ton of information online over the past few months and took the dive last week. I went with an IM Fusion Pro 2 50gal AIO for my first setup. My tank has been cycling for about a week now and things seem to be going ok. Have a couple of questions I am trying to get ahead of the game on:

1. How/what to configure the filtration chamber caddies with? I just have it set with the default small bag of carbon, gfo, and the cotton filter balls at the top. Was curious if there are some preferred configurations for a beginner tank?

2. Flow - In regards to flow, I have 1 vortech mp 10 set up, should I pick up a second head, watching BRS's video they recommended having one on each end of the tank pointing toward one another creating some turbulence. Is it preferred to run 2?

3. Should I be doing water changes while the tank is cycling? If so, should they be smaller changes 10% or less?

Any other tips for a fresh reefer are always welcome!

Thank you,

 

[Ron Reefman]

Hello All,

Brand new to the hobby and starting my first tank. I have been rummaging through a metric ton of information online over the past few months and took the dive last week. I went with an IM Fusion Pro 2 50gal AIO for my first setup. My tank has been cycling for about a week now and things seem to be going ok. Have a couple of questions I am trying to get ahead of the game on:

1. How/what to configure the filtration chamber caddies with? I just have it set with the default small bag of carbon, gfo, and the cotton filter balls at the top. Was curious if there are some preferred configurations for a beginner tank?

2. Flow - In regards to flow, I have 1 vortech mp 10 set up, should I pick up a second head, watching BRS's video they recommended having one on each end of the tank pointing toward one another creating some turbulence. Is it preferred to run 2?

Welcome to the hobby!

First things first... calm down, keep reading, be patient and take your time.

Background on me. I'm a member of the Reef Squad here at R2R. I've been in the hobby for 20+ years. I've moved from very big tanks to now having two 40g aio tanks. They have been running for just over a year now.

1. How/what to configure the filtration chamber caddies with?

You will be fine with that you are doing. In fact, it's more than enough. I run my aio tanks with just a filter sock and some filter media just behind the weir (to catch the big stuff so I don't have to clean the filter sock so often). No GFO, no carbon. Now one of my tanks has NO FISH but LOTS of LPS &SPS corals. So less detritus with no fish eating or pooping! The other tank only has 2 clowns and a lot of other 'local' (Florida Keys & Gulf of Mexico) stock that I collect myself. So, still very little food and very little fish poop.

2. Flow - In regards to flow, I have 1 vortech mp 10 set up, should I pick up a second head, watching BRS's video they recommended having one on each end of the tank pointing toward one another creating some turbulence. Is it preferred to run 2?

One should be fine for now. Once your tank is getting closer to full with livestock you might add a 2nd one. I run one slightly bigger wavemaker and that's more than enough water movement. Also, aiming the wavemaker so it disturbs the water surface helps oxygenate the water.

3. Should I be doing water changes while the tank is cycling? If so, should they be smaller changes 10% or less?

No! You should have no, or very, very little livestock in a tank that is cycling. No need to do water changes until you are at or near the end. DO NOT RUSH the cycle. Be patient. There is an old saying in this hobby... "Nothing good happens quickly in a saltwater aquarium!" Take that very seriously.

When the time comes to start doing water changes (at the end of the cycle) do a big one first (50%). Then let things settle for another week before you SLOWLY start to introduce any livestock.

Once things are running and you have some livestock, consider doing either small (5-10g) every 2 to 4 weeks, or bigger (20-25g) every 4 to 8 weeks. I do less because I have less fish, so my water stays 'healthy' longer. I do a 20g change every 2 to 3 months.

 

[Flyangler33]

First things first... calm down, keep reading, be patient and take your time.

Background on me. I'm a member of the Reef Squad here at R2R. I've been in the hobby for 20+ years. I've moved from very big tanks to now having two 40g aio tanks. They have been running for just over a year now.

1. How/what to configure the filtration chamber caddies with?

You will be fine with that you are doing. In fact, it's more than enough. I run my aio tanks with just a filter sock and some filter media just behind the weir (to catch the big stuff so I don't have to clean the filter sock so often). No GFO, no carbon. Now one of my tanks has NO FISH but LOTS of LPS &SPS corals. So less detritus with no fish eating or pooping! The other tank only has 2 clowns and a lot of other 'local' (Florida Keys & Gulf of Mexico) stock that I collect myself. So, still very little food and very little fish poop.

2. Flow - In regards to flow, I have 1 vortech mp 10 set up, should I pick up a second head, watching BRS's video they recommended having one on each end of the tank pointing toward one another creating some turbulence. Is it preferred to run 2?

One should be fine for now. Once your tank is getting closer to full with livestock you might add a 2nd one. I run one slightly bigger wavemaker and that's more than enough water movement. Also, aiming the wavemaker so it disturbs the water surface helps oxygenate the water.

3. Should I be doing water changes while the tank is cycling? If so, should they be smaller changes 10% or less?

No! You should have no, or very, very little livestock in a tank that is cycling. No need to do water changes until you are at or near the end. DO NOT RUSH the cycle. Be patient. There is an old saying in this hobby... "Nothing good happens quickly in a saltwater aquarium!" Take that very seriously.

When the time comes to start doing water changes (at the end of the cycle) do a big one first (50%). Then let things settle for another week before you SLOWLY start to introduce any livestock.

Once things are running and you have some livestock, consider doing either small (5-10g) every 2 to 4 weeks, or bigger (20-25g) every 4 to 8 weeks. I do less because I have less fish, so my water stays 'healthy' longer. I do a 20g change every 2 to 3 months.

Thanks a ton Ron I really appreciate all the feedback! No worries, just trying to prep myself for whats to come. I was watching some things on BRS's youtube yesterday, they recommended running the tank even after adding livestock with no lights for roughly 4 months. What are your thoughts/experiences on this?

 

[Ron Reefman]

Thanks a ton Ron I really appreciate all the feedback! No worries, just trying to prep myself for whats to come. I was watching some things on BRS's youtube yesterday, they recommended running the tank even after adding livestock with no lights for roughly 4 months. What are your thoughts/experiences on this?

If the livestock is CUC and fish, no lights isn't a big issue. But I wouldn't do it. Just run the lights at a lower setting and a shorter time frame. Maybe just the few hours you are home and watching the tank?

If you are adding almost any coral, you want to run lights and you want them at the recommended PAR for at least 4 to 6 hours. As I understand it, the zooxanthellae inside the coral takes about an hour of quality light to get the photosynthesis process started. Then it can only do photosynthesis for 4 to 6 hours and then shuts down. This is a genetic thing and not based on how much or how long you run your lights. They have been subjected to this amount of light by the sun for eons.

I started my 40g aio with some anemones and corals that were from a previous tank. They went in after a few weeks of cycling the tank. Just remember, I had no fish! I ran my lights with the PAR they needed (I have a PAR meter) and I had just one algae bloom that lasted for a few weeks. I pulled algae out every other day until it stopped growing.

I hope this helps.