Tank restart question

bavass · Mar 2, 2013

I am planning on replacing my old live rock that is infested with Xenia and take out DSB and replace it with 1". I am wondering if any body has done this? I was thinking of getting the rock and curing/cycling in a brute trashcan with a heater, etc... Once the new rock is cycled can I pull out all live stock, and corals drain the tank, take out the rock, DSB. Put in new rock, new 1" sand bed and then fill the tank with new saltwater and add livestock back without a cycle or an ammonia spike. I really hate the idea of taking anything to my local pet store they are not very good with saltwater. Fish they can keep but thats it. I thought about trading them for store credit but to be honest I really don't want to give up my BTA and my clown. They are still trying to figure out why SPS wont grow in a 120g DT with a 36" Marineland Reef LED

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Reef4Life · Mar 2, 2013

I have done this before but in my 45 it did give me a little algae spike and you don't have to take any live stock out of the tank and I recommend cycling the live sand with the live rock and keep as much of the old water from the tank as possible

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Reef4Life · Mar 2, 2013

And check your water parameters routinely make sure to keep nitrate nitrites and phosphates low

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Reef4Life · Mar 2, 2013

What I did was I got a phosphate reacter from bulk reef supply cost like 50 bucks and ran it with rowaphos and it lowered my phosphates in a day I never had to worry about phosphates ever again

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fragmatic · Mar 2, 2013

bavass said:
I am planning on replacing my old live rock that is infested with Xenia and take out DSB and replace it with 1". I am wondering if any body has done this? I was thinking of getting the rock and curing/cycling in a brute trashcan with a heater, etc... Once the new rock is cycled can I pull out all live stock, and corals drain the tank, take out the rock, DSB. Put in new rock, new 1" sand bed and then fill the tank with new saltwater and add livestock back without a cycle or an ammonia spike. I really hate the idea of taking anything to my local pet store they are not very good with saltwater. Fish they can keep but thats it. I thought about trading them for store credit but to be honest I really don't want to give up my BTA and my clown. They are still trying to figure out why SPS wont grow in a 120g DT with a 36" Marineland Reef LED
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I think the key is to be sure your new LR is truly cycled and living. If you have a sump, isolate it and keep the water in it. If possible I'd pump most of the water out into another brute, remove the ole LR, rescue any want to keep coral into the brute with tank water, and then catch the fish putting them into the brute with their water and coral. Then do the old sand removal. Don't stress the fish any more than you must. At that point you can really clean the tank. Install new sand, or completely wash the old sand, knowing the disturbing you will be doing to the old sand is going to make it dangerous to the live stock. Place the new rock (wow that is expensive) and then add the old water AND the new water from the cured live rock about half and half (kind of like doing a water change).. then endure the resultant sand cloud and slight bloom. ..when the water clears install coral (remember to keep them heated in the mean time). .... yep. why not.

Reef4Life · Mar 2, 2013

Aha yup u basically got the idea lol your right you do have to make shure that rock is fully cured and even buying a small 20 gallon tank and putting all live stock in there if that is enough and quickly do the transfer but I think your idea will work to good luck lol

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bavass · Mar 2, 2013

By truly cycled you mean zero nitrites? Or something else?

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bavass · Mar 2, 2013

Reef4Life said:
What I did was I got a phosphate reacter from bulk reef supply cost like 50 bucks and ran it with rowaphos and it lowered my phosphates in a day I never had to worry about phosphates ever again

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I actually have a Phosban Recator and HC GFO from BRS

bavass · Mar 2, 2013

fragmatic said:
I think the key is to be sure your new LR is truly cycled and living. If you have a sump, isolate it and keep the water in it. If possible I'd pump most of the water out into another brute, remove the ole LR, rescue any want to keep coral into the brute with tank water, and then catch the fish putting them into the brute with their water and coral. Then do the old sand removal. Don't stress the fish any more than you must. At that point you can really clean the tank. Install new sand, or completely wash the old sand, knowing the disturbing you will be doing to the old sand is going to make it dangerous to the live stock. Place the new rock (wow that is expensive) and then add the old water AND the new water from the cured live rock about half and half (kind of like doing a water change).. then endure the resultant sand cloud and slight bloom. ..when the water clears install coral (remember to keep them heated in the mean time). .... yep. why not.

Sand is to cheap to worry about going with the old, I am going to go with all new sand about an inch worth

bavass · Mar 2, 2013

Reef4Life said:
I have done this before but in my 45 it did give me a little algae spike and you don't have to take any live stock out of the tank and I recommend cycling the live sand with the live rock and keep as much of the old water from the tank as possible

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I was thinking about that to!

fragmatic · Mar 2, 2013

bavass said:
By truly cycled you mean zero nitrites? Or something else?

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Meaning the tank (brute) is table and holding in good tests. No spikes.

bavass · May 1, 2013

Any thing I should be doing to help insure success with SPS this time while I am
waiting on the algae part of the cycle to die off? I do have more snails from
Reefs2go.com coming in today. I should add that I have a ton of purple coraline
algae spots all over sump walls, rock and powerheads. Along with have a CUC I
have started dosing Alk and Calcium to get balanced out. Not a lot just whats
needed to keep ALk between 8-8.5 dKh and Calcium at 450

Chrisz · May 1, 2013

What light fixture do you have?

bavass · May 1, 2013

48" Nova Extreme Pro 6x54w HO T5 all ATI bulbs

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Chrisz · May 1, 2013

That should do it no problem, how long do your sps last? And what are your tank parameters?

bavass · May 1, 2013

haven't put any SPS back in tank Temperature: 78
Salinity: 1.026
Ammonia, NH4: 0
Nitrate, NO3:
1.5
Nitrite, NO2: 0
pH: 8.2
Alkalinity, KH: 8.06
Calcium, Ca:
430
Phosphate, PO4: 0
Magnesium, Mg: 1500

for date: April 29, 2013

Chrisz · May 1, 2013

You should not have any issue with your water, I have worse water parameters than that and have no problem.

One thing I have noticed every time I have upgraded to a new tank and have done what you are talking about it seems to take a year before everything in the tank balances out. The parameters seem to be perfect but something happens to the system after being set up for a year, kind of weird.