Reef Tank or Divorce - Last Chance

[AquaBiomics]

Welcome!

Its still early in your new tank's life, plenty of time to start off strong. The single best thing you can do is get some quality live rock or live sand (not the stuff off the shelf in the pet store) into your tank, then wait 2 weeks.

 

[Barrett]

I used the Red Sea reef mature kit on three tanks now and really like it, just follow the exact directions included in the kit and take your time.

 

[Bapeluso]

Welcome... a little tip, to help save your marriage... very important to remember... never tell your wife how much things really cost!

And if they dont allow you to not tell them the price, then use the womens algorithm of how many guys theyve slept with. Take the actual number, divided by 2, then subtract a few more.

 

[Grigs]

Thanks. Binged watched the 52 weeks of reefing and all these videos over the last several days. Cant find if the dry rock & sand + Seed will give me the same effect as buying live rock & sand. If not will the red sea mature pro + dry rock and sand get me there?

You just have to be patient. Patient as in Job (the biblical Job, not the one where you work). Particularly starting off with dry rock, as I have, be prepared to let it cycle for 6-8 weeks before adding anything except bacteria and some ammonia to feed it. Lights out for the first 3 months, then start tending to your chemistry. I just added Coraline in a bottle from Helix last month to a tank I started in Nov, and already have growth. The tank is nice and stable. It will go through UGLY phases... green... brown... maybe red... then will clear up and life will be good. When folks say nothing good happens fast in reefing, they mean nothing good happens today, tomorrow, or the next day.... lol.

Good luck with your new setup. I'd check out the WWC/BRS method and give that a shot. If you only have one more chance to make this work, you may as well make it last as long as possible!

The BRS/WWC Hybrid 4-month SPS tank cycle - The BRS/WWC System Ep12 - BRStv

Today Ryan explains how we plan to cycle our BRS/WWC Hybrid System tanks and, as much as it hurts to wait, why a 4-month cycle is probably the most stable and simple way to create a stunning SPS dominant tank! #BRSWWC #reefingmethods Need a tank cycle starter kit? This week you can WIN one...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[Coral Reef Keepers]

Welcome to R2R!!

 

[4FordFamily]

Welcome home, you will love it here!

I'd say that divorce is cheaper than a reef tank but that's not true, always

Kidding of course! Let's see some tank pics!

 

[Stlrfan88]

i mean what kind of algae we talking like a diatom bloom or like full on gha i feel like you shoulda just rode it out urchins can do some serious work to algae my longspine can pull up coralline and just keep it simple and slow all i run is a hob filter and hob skimmer on my 55 that is very heavy stocked and other than cleaning the glass the rocks stay algae free with some snails a urchin and diamond goby sifting my sand

full on diatom bloom, hair algae and cyano all at once or close to all at once. poor advise lead to 'the only option is to tear it down, bleach everything, and start again' Had a full clean up crew of snails, shrimp, crabs, some big ugly slug looking thing and a goby...all fell victom to an unfortunate demise with in a month or so. I fully think poor advise and a mix of who knows what chemical that was recommended wise was the cause. could be wrong but that is my story and I am sticking to it.

 

[Stlrfan88]

I’d be looking for a different fish store. Chemically treating a tank is absolute last resort. Almost every new tank nuisance such as algae blooms etc. can be managed in other ways. Everything when first starting a tank matters. You are trying to bring a balance to it and that takes time. Literally years...however, I am assuming you had your lights on too long or too powerful too early in the game. Along with populating the tank with livestock too soon...and that is OK. Anyone in this hobby that started off and said they didn’t do otherwise would probably be lying.
Start off slow with lighting. Don’t ramp it up to 100% and have it on for 8 hours. Being you are starting everything dry you are right to add bacteria because otherwise there is nothing to help start the cycle. However, use caution when starting to add fish. You may see in a week your water parameters look decent. Once you pull the plug and add fish that can change in a matter of a day...have a huge ammonia spike and you are doing 50% water changes trying to get the ammonia out.
Just understand too that you are going to experience algae and other “new” tank syndromes. With time they pass. Post pictures of the tank when a problem starts and people on reef2reef will give great insight with how to help and their experiences.
Also, my wife for a long time rolled her eyes and wanted the tank out of the house every time algae or something unsightly would happen with the tank. Just like the tank itself it took time but now I see her passing the tank admiring it. It isn’t her hobby but she appreciates it now. The tank is a centerpiece.

You would be 200% correct. Lights wide open, live rock, sand, 3-4 fish at time, corals of all types all with in 2-3 weeks of setting up the tank...apparently doomed from the start. New Tank New Day.

Will have plenty of questions about the lights when the time comes. Kessel AP700 and no idea what the correct settings should be. apparently not wide open 12 hours a day

I give my wife a hard time but she does want to have the tank as much as I want to. It is/will be a center piece in our large den where we entertain quite a bit. Went as far to align the tank with the back window at the pool deck to the hot tub so we can see the tank from the hot tub...yep I am a 100% Type 'A'.

She is actually the one doing the aquascaping of the rock.

 

[Stlrfan88]

I would say definitely get an Apex with wet floor sensors and all the float valves you need to cut water off. No floods keeps the wife happy.

Yep. already got them. thanks

 

[Stlrfan88]

Personally I think all the trouble your having is a direct result of you being a fan of the wrong football team. Just sayin . But seriously. no chemicals. i know they look like an easy fix but its like domino's. Like everyone else is saying take it slow. just when you think you going slow enough...slow down some more. Nothing good happens quickly in this hobby. I started a year ago with a Pet store kit tank. no sump no skimmer no fancy lights and have learned a lot. This forum is an amazing resource and you will get differing opinions. Do what works for you.
216 CLE

that took longer than I thought it would (STLRFAN) but congrats on being the first. don't tell me your a ravens fan..... I will have to block you. ;Woot

 

[buck27]

Welcome to R2R!

Just some advice which has likely been mentioned already.....

Patients is the key in this hobby and drastic knee jerk reactions can be devastating so take your time with everything from the cycle to changing lighting intensity as the animals in this hobby do not (in my experience) react immediately to changes but do so over the course of a day or two or even a week.

Set up the tank with the water, rock, and sand with the sump and leave it alone and let it run and cycle (I am going to do a 4 month cycle). I personally feel that chemicals can be dangerous to use depending on what you are using. I myself use nitrifying bacteria like Dr. Tim's or Prodibio but I also throw a raw shrimp from the grocery store in the tank too.

I do not run a skimmer during the cycle until I see the parameters come into a favorable reading and even then, if I don't need the skimmer then I don't run it. I do set up my refugium at the end of the cycle though. I also do not plan to run my lights until into the 2nd or 3rd month of the cycle process for the 4 month cycle and I have even considered not running them at all until the 4th month.

Once the cycle is complete, slowly add a fish a or two but not a lot at one time and make sure to take your time with the addition of corals, I like to wait 6 to 8 months before adding corals and even longer before adding SPS. Make sure you have a good clean up crew. I like a few turbo snails, asterina snails, sand sifting starfish, serpent starfish, sally lightfoot crab, coral banded shrimp.

I have found that in this hobby the simplest method is often best for me. below is my regular activities on my 30 gallon cube that is packed with corals.

Feed the fish once a day (only 4 fish in the tank) 2 clowns, yellow diamond goby, lawnmower blenny.
Once a week I add some amino acids (acro power) for my SPS and target feed my LPS corals with reef roids
I clean my glass 2 or so times a week, do a 10% water change on Saturday and test my parameters before and after
change my carbon and GFO every month or so, or when needed. sometimes I don't even run it.
Once in awhile I will do water testing mid week to see where I am in terms of uptake on things like Cal, Alk and Mg.
Stability is the key, keep the Cal, Alk, Mg in check with consistent salinity and you should be fine prior to adding corals.

Hope this helps.

 

[Stang67]

that took longer than I thought it would (STLRFAN) but congrats on being the first. don't tell me your a ravens fan..... I will have to block you. ;Woot

Nope not the Ravens we really don't have a legit team here in Cleveland so I prefer Baseball and Nascar. good luck with the tank and dont be afraid to ask questions here. 99.9% of the people are super awesome. And yes START A TANK BUILD THREAD as well then you can easily keep track of what your doing and the issues you have and can track your progress.

 

[LiveWire]

Welcome to the REEF!! I know a few guys that have been divorced because their spouse was not so supportive or did not share the same passion for their hobby. I have been there myself and decided that the reef tank had to stay.
;Smuggrin

 

[Stlrfan88]

You just have to be patient. Patient as in Job (the biblical Job, not the one where you work). Particularly starting off with dry rock, as I have, be prepared to let it cycle for 6-8 weeks before adding anything except bacteria and some ammonia to feed it. Lights out for the first 3 months, then start tending to your chemistry. I just added Coraline in a bottle from Helix last month to a tank I started in Nov, and already have growth. The tank is nice and stable. It will go through UGLY phases... green... brown... maybe red... then will clear up and life will be good. When folks say nothing good happens fast in reefing, they mean nothing good happens today, tomorrow, or the next day.... lol.

Good luck with your new setup. I'd check out the WWC/BRS method and give that a shot. If you only have one more chance to make this work, you may as well make it last as long as possible!

The BRS/WWC Hybrid 4-month SPS tank cycle - The BRS/WWC System Ep12 - BRStv

Today Ryan explains how we plan to cycle our BRS/WWC Hybrid System tanks and, as much as it hurts to wait, why a 4-month cycle is probably the most stable and simple way to create a stunning SPS dominant tank! #BRSWWC #reefingmethods Need a tank cycle starter kit? This week you can WIN one...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

Thanks. I have seen it suggested to add nothing for 3 months / lights out (like you have stated + on BRS 5 minute videos) but i have also read/seen where adding a couple clown fish after the first couple of weeks to help with the cycle. Thoughts here? You have read my story so definetly no rush to add fish.

I debated on adding the coraline (not now but later) and read mixed reviews. looks like it worked for you. any other thoughts on adding it?

 

[Grigs]

Thanks. I have seen it suggested to add nothing for 3 months / lights out (like you have stated + on BRS 5 minute videos) but i have also read/seen where adding a couple clown fish after the first couple of weeks to help with the cycle. Thoughts here? You have read my story so definetly no rush to add fish.

I debated on adding the coraline (not now but later) and read mixed reviews. looks like it worked for you. any other thoughts on adding it?

For SURE add the clowns after the rock has cycled for a couple of weeks! They will help with building your bacteria population. You just don't want to run lights or try to add corals early. When you hit the green stage you will want to add Clean Up Crew. I QT them for 30 days, so it would be a good idea to order some from reefcleaners.org between 2-4 weeks so they'll be ready when algae finds you at the 6-8 week mark. I'd wait on the coraline until my parameters stabilized.

 

[DeniseAndy]

Welcome!! You are already getting lots of mixed advice. This happens as we all have our methods. Not one method is per say correct or better than another.

I will admit, I have not set up a tank cold for almost 14 years. All tanks I have set up since my 210g have been using rocks from my sump to avoid the cycle in a new tank.

However, back when I did a cold set up, I let it sit for 3-4 months without any livestock. I made sure to cycle with food put in every so often. I would not risk a fishes life for such a process. Oh, lights out! This avoids unwanted algae from blooming. Can even black out with garbage bags for cycle. Looks great for company too. Then, I began with some inverts (not corals), and first fish.

Now, with fish, you need to make sure you add them correctly. They have territorial issues, compatibility issues, etc. Same with inverts and corals.

Sit with the wife and find out what she wants to see in the tank. Some of her favorite corals or fish or inverts. Find out what you like. Then, the set up becomes much easier to decide how to arrange rock, carbon or no, temperatures, lighting, flow, etc.

We are here for you. Good luck!

 

[KyOsIBa515]

Thanks. I have seen it suggested to add nothing for 3 months / lights out (like you have stated + on BRS 5 minute videos) but i have also read/seen where adding a couple clown fish after the first couple of weeks to help with the cycle. Thoughts here? You have read my story so definetly no rush to add fish.

I debated on adding the coraline (not now but later) and read mixed reviews. looks like it worked for you. any other thoughts on adding it?

Clowns are a quintessential fish to start and help cycle tanks. They are hardy and usually docile. However, they can become real territorial. My blace ice clowns are terrors. I cannot put my hand near the back of the tank to clean without getting lit up.
Supplementing coraline needs to be done carefully. 1 you need to wait a few months of dealing with nuisance algae and importing and exporting nutrients naturally before adding another to throw the tank off. 2, if you use something like purple-up that acts as a ph buffer so you have to keep an eye on ph and phosphates. Most want you to not skim while using them. Your skimmer can go haywire.

 

[Stlrfan88]

Put the Build thread (90 Gallon Phoenix) out there today. Not sure its in the right place but I put it under Member tanks. if it needs to go someplace else please let me know. thanks

 

[NowGlazeIT]

Put the Build thread (90 Gallon Phoenix) out there today. Not sure its in the right place but I put it under Member tanks. if it needs to go someplace else please let me know. thanks

You nailed it

 

[fishguy242]

hi guess by now you know you came to the right place open24-7
advice live rock,clowns,skimmer ,and have fun,
welcome to the reef going to love it here,happy reefing