New to SaltWater

[myyellas2k]

So I jumped into getting a salt water tank.
I have had a 20gallon fresh water about 10 + years ago when I was living home.

never had a saltwater tank, but LOVE how they look and all.

I recently (Sunday) purchased a 54 gallon corner tank.
have the Fluval FX4 pump, fritz RPM and 2 bags of 20lb arag Caribbean black alive sand

currently waiting on the tank to start cycling and adding some live rock in the future

I have very little knowledge of this "hobby" other then my 3 y/o daughter finds the tank boring ( and it is ) and my wife find it lifeless...... to which it is.

I'm just going to be sucking up as much knowledge as I can possibly do.. and take my time doing so.

Thanks for listening to me rant

 

[DeniseAndy]

Welcome and good luck! Lots of good information, but can get very confusing too. Are you using a product to get the bacteria population going? If you only have sand, you will need some rock (dead or cured) to get some good bacteria pop build up. Live rock is great too, but can harbor lots of unwanted pests, so be careful.

Know what corals you are going to want? fish? inverts? Planning ahead is always better than impulse buying in this hobby for you and the animals sake.

 

[Crabs McJones]

Welcome to R2R!! Check out the stickied threads on the top of this forum, lots of information for someone whose first starting out!

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/the-supreme-guide-to-setting-up-a-saltwater-reef-aquarium.138750/
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/cycling-an-aquarium.306554/
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/beginners-guide-to-acclimation-and-quarantine.304980/

These threads have saved me on multiple occasions

 

[noahreefer]

Welcome to the salty side!!! You’ve come to the right place!! My advice to you is don’t rush things!! Take things slow and before you make the purchase of a coral or fish make know it’s specific requirements and needs. Also I prefer stability over parameters(to an obvious extent) there is much much more but these are some of the rules that I try to go by. But above all make this fun your intent is to do this for your enjoyment

 

[reef lover]

Welcome to the salt life!! Lots of good info here and feel free to ask anything!!

 

[myyellas2k]

I mainly bought it, since I have a boat on the jersey shore, and around 5 months out of the year I get cranky with no salt water around me.
problem "solved"


but much appreciated with the info so far

 

[mjlash22]

Welcome!

Be aware that depending on what type of rock you decide to put into your tank, it may need to re-cycle. Most live rock will go through a die-off cycle which will spike ammonia in your tank, and you wouldn't want that to happen if you already have livestock in the tank at that time. You could pre-cure the rock, but even then you still risk spiking some of the levels. Best to cycle the tank all at once with the sand and rock in at the same time IMO.

 

[sneub]

Welcome aboard!

 

[TheNano]

Welcome! Ask lots of questions and tons of help here.

 

[myyellas2k]

Ok little update I guess- my ammonia spiked yesterday somewhere between .25-.50
Today it’s back down to 0 and my nitrite is around .50

Other then that - my one Tomato clown is doing awesome.
No heavy breathing and loving the power head and behind the intake cover

Just waiting on the infamous algae now I guess

 

[sweendog87]

Have you got a small quarantine tank that a use if you see spike in ammonia or nitrites It can be fatal to your clown and I would get Rock into the tank during the cycle otherwise you will have to cycle again and take all livestock out

 

[Instigate]

Have you got a small quarantine tank that a use if you see spike in ammonia or nitrites It can be fatal to your clown and I would get Rock into the tank during the cycle otherwise you will have to cycle again and take all livestock out

Nitrites are not toxic to marine fish in the ammounts found durring cycle.

 

[myyellas2k]

Have you got a small quarantine tank that a use if you see spike in ammonia or nitrites It can be fatal to your clown and I would get Rock into the tank during the cycle otherwise you will have to cycle again and take all livestock out

I have around 12lb of live rock in the tank, since the first week.
I also have a small 10g QT for starting and adding other fish etc

2 weeks in and counting.

 

[sweendog87]

Yeah sorry thats the freshwater still in me lol
If your ammonia is already down you are likely close to finishing your cycle once your nitrites and ammonia are 0 do a 25% water change and you should be done

 

[Chrisfish]

Welcome to R2R