New to this site!

FastandCurious · Aug 1, 2020

hey all,
Ive just started my first saltwater baby and I'm excited to see what she turns into. Ive had freshwater tanks in the past but it's been a while and saltwater is sooo different! I'm almost finished my cycling and adding fish soon. Any advice for a reef tank virgin? Lol I'll any and all help I can get. Thanks!!

Peace River · Aug 1, 2020

You may want to check out this R2R article to help you get started:

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium Introduction The marine environment is one of the most complex systems on the planet. The aquarium you are about to set up is only a tiny sliver of the vast ocean, but it is nowhere near simple. This task is going to take patience, a...

www.reef2reef.com

Robertellis30 · Aug 1, 2020

Best advice. Take everything slow! Don’t rush it.

Crashnt24 · Aug 1, 2020

It's a nice looking tank so far! My best advice is to not put anything you wouldn't want long term in your tank. Don't buy test run ugly paly's just to see if they will live. Don't buy a test run damsel to see if he lives. Things are hard to remove and can become invasive. So take your time and plan everything you want in your tank.

I didn't do this and ended up throwing away half my rocks because they were covered in palys and xenia. I also had a stubborn damsel that I could never catch.

WIReefer · Aug 1, 2020

Welcome to R2R!!!

NashobaTek · Aug 1, 2020

Welcome to the team! Remember that saltwater reefs take time to mature and grow.

sixty_reefer · Aug 1, 2020

Welcome to r2r

Flippers4pups · Aug 1, 2020

Absolutely go slow. I would add a couple fish once your cycled completely. You still have to go through the "ugly" stage.

Best advice I can give with a completely sterile tank is to add a couple pieces of live rock to your dry rock for some biodiversity. Rock from the ocean shipped to you or some from a LFS. Helps immensely with microfauna and bacterial strains you need. Better than bottled bacteria that you can add to your tank.

The link @Peace River posted is a great read!

Great advice by everyone!

Pistondog · Aug 1, 2020

welcome back
Yes things are different, many resources at your fingertips.
Share your journey!

Nburg's Reef · Aug 1, 2020

With what looks like all dry rock and no live rock, I’d wait a good 2-4 months before adding corals. I’d add your fish and let them get established and let the rock mature then try some easy corals.

Welcome, you’ll enjoy this side much more than freshwater.

Jeto2004 · Aug 1, 2020

Welcome to R2R! Sound advice given already so will not add anything.

jay06705 · Aug 1, 2020

Welcome to R2R! Tank is off to a good start.

FastandCurious · Aug 1, 2020

Crashnt24 said:
It's a nice looking tank so far! My best advice is to not put anything you wouldn't want long term in your tank. Don't buy test run ugly paly's just to see if they will live. Don't buy a test run damsel to see if he lives. Things are hard to remove and can become invasive. So take your time and plan everything you want in your tank.

I didn't do this and ended up throwing away half my rocks because they were covered in palys and xenia. I also had a stubborn damsel that I could never catch.

Thanks! Yea I at first heard good things about damsels being great first fish additions but the more I read the more I realized that they are not the best fish, are territorial and can be real di*ks lol. I have a pretty good idea of what I want: pair of clowns (of course lol), Royal gamma, bengai, a benny, a Gobi and some cleaners. My 2 stars that I want to add I heard need a few more months of waiting for a more established tank: a green Mandarin and a copperband butterfly. But we'll see how it goes! Any other suggestions? I'm open and flexible to some changes =)

FastandCurious · Aug 1, 2020

Peace River said:
You may want to check out this R2R article to help you get started:

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium Introduction The marine environment is one of the most complex systems on the planet. The aquarium you are about to set up is only a tiny sliver of the vast ocean, but it is nowhere near simple. This task is going to take patience, a...

www.reef2reef.com

Ok thanks!

vetteguy53081 · Aug 1, 2020

Tank looks really nice

FastandCurious · Aug 1, 2020

Robertellis30 said:
Best advice. Take everything slow! Don’t rush it.

Thanks!

FastandCurious · Aug 1, 2020

Flippers4pups said:
Absolutely go slow. I would add a couple fish once your cycled completely. You still have to go through the "ugly" stage.

Best advice I can give with a completely sterile tank is to add a couple pieces of live rock to your dry rock for some biodiversity. Rock from the ocean shipped to you or some from a LFS. Helps immensely with microfauna and bacterial strains you need. Better than bottled bacteria that you can add to your tank.

The link @Peace River posted is a great read!

Great advice by everyone!

Thanks! I did live rock and live sand and luckily I have a pretty great salt water Aquatics store relatively close by that's helped a lot with my millions of questions lol and from whom I bought my tank that did the install. But there's so much I'm still learning. But since we've all been stuck home for the most part now I thought this might be a good time to start this bc I've been trying to for almost 2 yrs now. 'Thank god for the internet' --has been my motto for the past 2 weeks lol

Sebastiancrab · Aug 1, 2020

Welcome to the fun and challenge! On the damsels, I have had success so far with a very small yellow tail that I put in last in my 29 gallon. I have two clowns and a royal gramma also. He is so beautiful! Let your other fish get well established first if you want one. But you may end up taking him back for an exchange if he does decide to be the boss of the whole tank.