Newbie with 2nd hand tank

emmaleegrech · Jun 27, 2013

Hi,
Ive just bought a Fluval 200l tank that has been running for 4 years. I'm going to be transporting it (hour distance) and setting it up straight away. I was told to get new sand as the sand that is already in the tank is a bit purply, as i'm going to also get corals and fish with it, i was told that i should keep most of the water that is in the tank and just add new ro water with salt like doing a water change. Is this correct? How long should i wait after putting in the egg crates, rock, sand and water and putting the tank on before putting in the corals and the fish? pls bear in mind that the corals and fish will be in a container so dont really want them dying on me. Any tips?
Please help!

Thanks in advance,
Emma

alvintran · Jun 27, 2013

I'm a beginner myself, but I think that by siphoning out the sand and replacing it, you're releasing the toxic gases and stuff in the sand bed into the water column, so I think you should dump the old water out and fill the tank up with new water completely. And if the rocks and stuff are already cycled and have been cured, I wouldn't see why you can't put them in right away.
Just a tip, disinfect equipments like powerheads, heaters and pump in bleach or vinegar before you put them in the tank. And I think it is your best interest to quarantine the fish for a few weeks to see if they have any issues since once you put them in the tank, good luck catching them out!

good luck!

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SeahorseKeeper · Jun 27, 2013

alvintran said:
I'm a beginner myself, but I think that by siphoning out the sand and replacing it, you're releasing the toxic gases and stuff in the sand bed into the water column, so I think you should dump the old water out and fill the tank up with new water completely. And if the rocks and stuff are already cycled and have been cured, I wouldn't see why you can't put them in right away.
Just a tip, disinfect equipments like powerheads, heaters and pump in bleach or vinegar before you put them in the tank. And I think it is your best interest to quarantine the fish for a few weeks to see if they have any issues since once you put them in the tank, good luck catching them out!
good luck!

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

I agree with this for the most part. I recommend cleaning the equipment with vinegar not bleach. Bleach is chlorine which can have negative effects on the tank inhabitants if it is not cleaned properly. Also, I would start with mostly new water. Most of the beneficial bacteria is located on the porous surfaces in our tanks, not the water column. I would strongly recommend having a large amount of fresh saltwater made before the move takes place and for the first two weeks after the move. Be sure to have test kits on hand to monitor the water quality. I recommend using the titration type as opposed to the strips. The strips can be very wrong.

alvintran · Jun 27, 2013

SeahorseKeeper said:
I agree with this for the most part. I recommend cleaning the equipment with vinegar not bleach. Bleach is chlorine which can have negative effects on the tank inhabitants if it is not cleaned properly. Also, I would start with mostly new water. Most of the beneficial bacteria is located on the porous surfaces in our tanks, not the water column. I would strongly recommend having a large amount of fresh saltwater made before the move takes place and for the first two weeks after the move. Be sure to have test kits on hand to monitor the water quality. I recommend using the titration type as opposed to the strips. The strips can be very wrong.

I originally came from freshwater so I'm used to using bleach.

and yep, if you do bleach, rinse it VERY well.

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emmaleegrech · Jun 28, 2013

Thanks

So you recommend on putting new water completely? I was told to keep some of the old water in order to not 'shock' the fish by changing their environment completely :-/ and the guy I'm buying it from also said to not clean the equipment but he has already told me some other stuff which is inaccurate so I'm gonna take your advice and clean everything well with vinegar beforehand, after cleaning with vinegar should I rinse with ro water? And he told me not to clean the filters out for a few months 'to help it mature' should I clean them too or go with his advice? Thanks,
Emma

DSP · Jun 28, 2013

Yes clean all the equipment and rinse with ro.I would use half the water thats already in the tank and add half freshly mixed saltwater.He said dont rinse the filters?What filters does the tank come with?If theres any kind of filter pads you wanna keep them clean otherwise they can collect gunk and end up becoming a nitrate factory,You dont need filter pads for bio media in saltwater tanks,The liverock is your biological filtration that has all the benificial bacteria on it..The only time you would use filter pads would be for mechanical filtration.