A Beginner

[irishguy]

Hey folks.
I'm looking for abit of advice.
I have a fresh water aquarium and i'm lookig to swap to marine and i want to do a most natural job i can.
I'm only going to have a couple of small fish maybe 3. but i wanna get live rock, coral and anoname and i wanna have hermit carbs to keep the tank clean.
i plan to take lots of prep time to get this together and i just need to know a couple of things.
First. is it true that if i get enough live rock and a good water flow that i won't need a fliter?
and second in what order should i add everything inand how long would be the optimal time before adding the next item.
Thank you in advane to anyone who could help me out.

 

[soldefender]

With very frequent water changes you could go no filter but IMO it would be best done by expert with lots of experience. Some animals a few snails and hermits can be added second day. The first fish maybe 4 to 6 weeks. Corals I would wait till tank parameters stable for at least 2 months.

 

[irishguy]

So should i add fish before the coral? because i was gonna do it the other way around.

 

[CarlaW]

Wecome to RF, glad to have you!!!

First off, depending on the Live Rock that you get, it could take 4-6 weeks just to cycle your tank. Once all your levels, (amm, nitrite, nitrate), get to 0, then it's time to start adding critters. I would go with some snails and a few hermits first to help clean up your tank.
Are you going to have an overflow and sump? Let us know how you plan to get this thing set up and then the help will flow like rain!!!

 

[irishguy]

Well to be honest i'm not exactly sure of the lay out thats why i'm on here, to get the best option's.
I have a smallest tank, 90cmx40x50. so i wanna do it right.
I had planned on just a couple of fish, critters live rock coral,
I'm not rushing to get the fish in and i'm happy to wait a few months till everything it perfect.
so like i said before i was wondering the best order and time frame to add things and what equipment i should get.

 

[NaH2O]

Its true that with enough live rock and not too big of a bioload - the live rock would serve as your biological filter. Skimmers are really important, IMO. If I have done all the conversions right - your tank works out to ~48 gallons, so you would need about 48 pounds of liverock, which is ~22 kgs? Eeek - sorry if I'm off. Also, either powerheads in the tank for circulation/flow or some type of closed loop. Does the tank have any holes drilled where you can take plumbing into a sump, or will all equipment be in the tank itself?

 

[irishguy]

The equipment will be in the tank so thats why i want as little as possible.

 

[NaH2O]

AquaC makes a nice hang on the tank skimmer. AquaC Remora and Remora Pro. Heater, powerheads, lights, test kits a hydrometer or refractometer are your basic pieces of equipment. Were you planning on having a substrate, like sand in the tank? If so, then I would cure the rock in a separate vessel. Once the rock is done curing and the tank is cycled, you'll be all set to introduce your clean up crew (snails and crabs). Your lighting will depend on the corals you want to keep. Do you have any books yet on marine aquariums? I really like The Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Bob Fenner.

 

[irishguy]

Thanks a million for this Nikki it's a great help.
just one last question then i'll stop annoying you i promise.
i was planning on having sand in the tank, so with the sand i need to cure the rock somewhere else do i?

 

[NaH2O]

The only reason I say to cure it in a separate vessel (at least for part of the process) is because of the crud that comes off the rock during the curing process. If you can be diligent about siphoning up the stuff then its fine - just so its not rotting away on the sand. I just remember with my rock how much detritus and die-off there was. If you do cure it in the tank, give the rocks a good cleaning prior to putting in the tank. Dig out any dead sponges with a screw driver....you'll know where they are by the smell. Use a wire brush or stiff brush on other areas of the rock that resemble decaying material. The great thing about using uncured rock for cycling the tank, is you can aquascape with the tank dry, and not be in a hurry to get the rock wet. I spent a great amount of time piecing together my rock and it just sat out on a tarp until the piece was put to use.

Sorry to babble on....hope this helps!

 

[Jiddy]

IrishGuy, you sound like me two weeks ago, welcome to the hobby and you found a great site. I second Nikki's suggestion of, The Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Bob Fenner, i got it off Amazon.com for like 30bucks used and it was very useful, another good book is the, THE MARINE AQUARIUM by Robert Paletta, ive asked the same question you have and come up with a list of stuff im gettin personally, if you want copy shoot me a PM, heres some advice, dont get frustrated on lights (lol) its the tough part so far! HTH -Jidz