new user help me please :)

[craigcarlon]

hi all, im a new user and ive joined because forums are allways the best place for info and help for past experiance...
today i have bought my mrs a tank for her birthday which i will be picking up tomorrow, it's a second hand tank and it comes filled with water, quite a lot of live rock and a couple of corals too (pulsing xenia & gonipora) and also plenty of live sand.. when i pick the tank up and everything included and get home with it, is it going to be a case of putting it all back in with the water and leaving it to settle? i was thinking, put it all together and take the water to be tested at my local fish shop and go from there maybe? like i said im new so dont be too harsh ha
thanks in advance

 

[SeahorseKeeper]

Hi, welcome to r2r!!!! You will want to have some fresh saltwater mixed up at home this way you can do some water changes if there is a spike in ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. I would also replace the sand with fresh sand. You can seed the new sand with a cup or two of the old sand. The reason for this is that the old sand will get stirred and can potentially cause a spike in ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. It would be safer to just start fresh. I also would recommend getting your own test kits (the titration kind not the strips). This way you can test the water for yourself and know where your levels are.

What size tank are you getting?

Good luck with the build!!!!!!!!

 

[peter505]

Welcome to R2R! We don't bite here. I agree the sand bed should be changed and get your water tested. If everything is good, go from there.

 

[craigcarlon]

thankyou both... so do i keep the water and the live rock? or do i ditch the water too? or can i keep enough water to keep the live rock alive and add more water from home? i just thought i could take the water and get them to test while i was there to more than likely buy whatever stuff i need ie test kits.. i have loads too ask but i cant remember now ha..

tank is 4' x 2' x 2' .. not sure on how many litres though

thanks again

 

[SeahorseKeeper]

You can keep the live rock and some of the water. I would just have some water prepped to do water changes to combat high ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. You can have the LFS test the water, but I recommend getting test kits so you can test the water when the LFS is closed.

 

[craigcarlon]

ok cheers, ill deffo get the test kit needed tomorrow
how do i know when the water is ready to add coral? how long ish? i was told 6-8 week?

 

[uall8up]

Welcome to R2R!!! Ask as many questions as you want, we are here to help!

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

Welcome to R2R!

We appreciate your membership!

Thanks for joining and please make sure and post often!

 

[SeahorseKeeper]

Each tank is different. The tank you are getting seems like it is established and the cycle that you are going to have is most likely going to be small. I would add some fish first once ammonia and nitrite are zero and nitrate is under 20 (ideally close to zero). Then, I would wait a few weeks and make sure the water parameters are stable and add some easy corals.

 

[Aquaph8]

Hi Craig, 6 to 8 weeks is a general rule for time to cycle a tank. Sometimes its shorter sometimes its longer. Whats important is that your tank is reading zero ammonia and nitrites. Add livestock slowly and allow your tank to get used to its new bio load before adding more. Patience is one of your best tools in this hobby. Good luck, thats a nice sized tank you have there.

 

[SPSkeeper]

like i said im new so dont be too harsh ha

You have nothing to worry about on this forum. This is a great family friendly atmosphere created by the wonderful people who visit it daily. In all honesty, it's becoming one of my favorite sites to visit Definitely listen to the good advice people give here, they truly care and want to help newbies and actually welcome them, unlike other places... ~ Cheers and good luck!

 

[craigcarlon]

I must say I'm amazed at how helpfull and inviting people are on this forum, nothing like the usual forum I'm used to lol (gtiroc) thanks for everyone's help and advice, I'm sure you will be seeing plenty posts from me in the ne'er future Looking for help I will take into account everyone's advice and more than likely learn from my mistakes lol
Cheers everyone!!!!!