In 4th week of New tank...Questions....

[lunchie]

We decided to set up a 75 gallon tank. We are working with a LFS that has been quite helpful so far and we seem to really trust them. However, there is just so much information out there that it is all a bit overwhelming...Here ar a couple of my questions:

1. (Don't laugh) :badgrin: What is a SUMP?
2. Algae (brown mostly) is now starting to appear all over the tank, what invertebrates are the best to first introduce?)
3. When do you add a protein skimmer?

I will start there because I left most of my information at home. Right now we only have 2 Black Mollies, 2 Blue Damsels, and 1 Chromis. All are readings are in normal range (well they were but we test again Sat).

Any and all input is greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

[mojoreef]

Hiya Lunchie and welcome to Reef Frontiers.
Let me see if I can help a bit. A sump is basically a second tank located below the main tank. Most folks use them so they can hide all thier equipment in thm and not the display, it also adds water volume to the over all system which helps in keeping parameters more stable.
Algae blooms are pretty standard after the intical cycle, basically your tank is bouncing between the algae/bacteria population. You can get some snails (astrea) they usually do a good job. But again its normal. You can add the Protien skimmer right now, it will help in the export of nutrients in your system and help with that algae.


hope it help


MIke

 

[lunchie]

How important is it to have a sump? We did do a lot of research and talked to quite a few people and the discussion of a sump never came up...If we need to make adjustments I would rather do it now instead before we are too far into it. Also, we used crushed coral and shells for the bottom but now I have read where that is not good what is your take on that? Should we do live sand instead? Or maybe do half the tank in sand and half with what we already have? We do have about 50 pounds of live rock in the tank that seems to be doing quite well also.

Thanks for your inputs...I definitely have a lot to learn and now am concerned that we moved to quickly...

 

[NaH2O]

Welcome to Reef Frontiers!!!

The importance of a sump is really dependant on the individual. There are plenty of hobbyists that do not use a sump. It is nice to have added water volume, and a place to store heaters, and such, but isn't a necessity.

Here are a few links about sumps:

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sumps, Part I

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sumps, Part II

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sumps, Part III

How does a sump work?

Sump Design

As far as the crushed coral goes - most tend to think it traps too much waste and detritus, and leads to potential nitrate issues. If you decide to keep it, then you will have to be diligent about siphoning up collected waste. If you add sand on top, eventually the sand will settle below the crushed coral, and the larger particles will come to the surface, and you will have to do the same type of maintenance. It is really up to you. Here are a couple of threads from our Great Threads forum:

Let's Talk About ~Aquarium Husbandry~
Let's Talk About ~Filtration Concepts~

As mojoreef stated, adding the protein skimmer now, will really help you export some nutrients. Are you using RO/DI water or tap?

New tanks can be exciting and frustrating....believe me I know. Do you know what types of corals and fish you want to keep?

 

[lunchie]

I can see where the sump would be very helpful as far as visual appeal and I will definitely visit the links you provided. Thank you

As for the crushed coral, my major concern is I read that it can be harmful (because of jagged edges and such) to your fish and invertebrates and I more concerned with that then upkeep. I chose the crushed coral because I thought visually it looked better than sand. Now I am learning I should have based my decision on other criteria. I know I couldn't put sand on top of the CC but can you do a tank with half live sand on one side of the tank and CC on the other side? Also, what would be the repercussions if any of adding live sand at this point of the cycling stage?

We are using tap water. We will have to look into getting a protein skimmer this weekend.

As for the fish we want, I have a list at home and will reply later this evening. We have decided to stay away from coral because we have read about how hard it is to keep. We went with live rock instead.

Thanks

 

[lunchie]

Pictures of tank so far and other information

Any and all input is greatly appreciated. Here are some more questions I had.

1. Can you have an airstone in a SW tank?
2. When you add fish or invertebrates how should they be acclimated? We have read about the drip method or traditional method meaning just let the bag soak and then add them.
3. I have visited a lot of online stores offering shipping of SWF and Invertebrates. I would truly like some input on this topic...LFS compared to Online Shopping...

Here is the list of fish we are considering:
1. Ocellaris Anemonefish
2. Scott's Fairy Wrasse
3. Sixline Wrasse
4. Rainford's Goby
5. Sharknose Goby
6. Whitecheek Surgeonfish
7. Brown Tang
8. Either a Blackspotted Puffer or a Spiny Puffer

Already in the tank are: 2 Black Mollies, 2 Blue Damselfish, and 1 Sunshine Chromis

That is it for now I think...Thank you all for your time.

 

[Maxx]

Hi Lunchie....
you're getting some good advice from Nikki and Mike here, but I see some problems with your stocking list.

1. Ocellaris Anemonefish (no problem)
2. Scott's Fairy Wrasse (good fish, a little more delicate than the 6 line)
3. Sixline Wrasse (no problem)
4. Rainford's Goby (very tough, needs mature tank. I'd reccomend this fish only for experienced keepers)
5. Sharknose Goby ( dont know anything about this fish...got a scientific name or a pic?)
6. Whitecheek Surgeonfish (better choice than a Powder Brown tang, but very similar in appearance and the two are often mislabeled. These fish require a larger tank to live in and would not be a good choice for your tank.)
7. Brown Tang (need more info tahn brown tang...most likely same reccomendations as the above tang....needs larger tank to live. Please post pics or a scientific name of this fish to be sure.)
8. Either a Blackspotted Puffer or a Spiny Puffer, (Puffers love shrimp and crabs as food. They can be aggressive towards other tank mates. I wouild not reccomend them for a reef tank.)

You can use the Fish ID forum here on RF to give me the scientific names of the tang and the goby.
Nick

 

[mojoreef]

Yes you can run an airstone in a SW tank, but it tends to fogg out the tank if its to much.
Thier are benefits to buying from a LFS and benefits from buying local. With LFS you usually pay more (overhead) but you get to see and inspect the animal which is good. Online stores tend to be cheaper and usually have a more diverse selection, but you cant inspect. Having a good relationship with either is always the best.

How big is this tank Lunchie??

Mike

 

[bradreef]

75 mike. as far as skimmers go, most of them are made to go into a sump. The only skimmer I would be comfortable with hanging on the side of a 75 gallon would be a Remora from AquaC. There might be others.

 

[NaH2O]

As far as the crushed coral goes - I wouldn't worry about it being too abrasive on inhabitants. At least I haven't run across that yet. If you are using tap water, be sure to find out what additives your water company puts into the water. There may be phosphates, silicates, etc. that will fuel algae growth. You can purchase RO/DI water from some LFS, or look into a RO/DI unit. You will save yourself some potential grief. Also, you can test the TDS (total dissolved solids) of your tap water and see how bad it is. My water prior to the RO/DI unit is almost 500, and after the unit it is 0. Some people with low TDS (like 30s range) in their tap water can get away with using tap in their tank.

As per acclimation, I would ask what the store you purchased from requires for their live guarantee. If they don't have a guarantee, then go with the drip method. Also, try not to get any of the store's water into your tank.

Brad made a good suggestion with the AquaC. I have experience with an AquaC Remora on a 75 gallon, but would rather have had the Remora Pro.

Hope this helps!

 

[lunchie]

Thanks everyone for your inputs. Where can I get more info on the a RO/DI unit?

Here are the scientific names of the fish: From A Pocket Expert Guide Marine Fishes

1. Sharknose Goby is: Gobiosoma evelynae
2. Brown Tank is: Zebrasoma scopas


I really love the whitecheek Surgeonfish...I thought the 75 gallon was big enough...Can you all recommend some fish that can go together well and that are suitable for a 75 gallon tank...I still have a long way to go before I can put in fish...but I am trying to plan, plan, plan...

As stated before, we are in the 4th week. In fact tomorrow is four weeks exactly. I will be testing in the morning all of the levels...wish me luck. We are developing quite a bit of algea growth in the last week. It is mostly reddish brown in color but from what I have read this is all the normal cycle. We are hoping to introduce a few snails and crabs this weekend if our LFS got them in.


SUMP -- I am beginning to think we really need to look into getting a sump. What size would we need for a 75g tank?

As for acclimation, our LFS store has been awesome. They told us to soak the bag in our tank for 20 minutes then to net the fish and add them. They would replace any we lost for up to 3 days. They also require a water sample from us before they will sell to us. They really have been quite good but we were hearing differing things from others and started to worry so I found this site WHICH IS AWESOME! to bounce off of. Thanks for your input.

I am also considering adding more live rock. Right now we only have 50 pds and after exploring this site it has really given me some ideas...I am driving my husband crazy...

Thanks again all of you for your inputs and please don't hesitate to give inputs on the pictures of the tank. Thanks...

 

[Maxx]

I had an amazingly thoughtful, insightful, intelligent post all typed up that would ahve made everyone who read incredibly smart....and then my computer hiccuped and deleted it...now we're all hosed.....

Anyway...
Scopas tang...should be fine in your 75. Tangs, espcially Zebrasoma and Acanthurus tangs, (Scopas and Gold rim for example) are agressive and territorial. So add them last. I would avoid the Gold rim/white cheeked since the Acanthurus tangs are veryu susceptible to ich...in fact the term Ich Magnet comes to mind. Not that they cant be kept...they are just a difficult fish with high water quality requirements, and if you had a choice between the two, I'd go with the Scopas over the Gold Rim for level of care required.
Shark nosed gobie...dont know, never kept one. It looks like a neon gobie, so level of care should be similar...but I cant be certain. If you have Scott Michael's book, I would go with what he says, the man is very knowledgable.

Sumps, bigger is better, go with a minimum of a 20 gallon IMO, 30 long being better than that.
I dont really like your LFS store's reccomendations for acclimation. Here's what I do:
Float critter in bag in tank for 30 minutes. This equalizes temp between tank and bag. Open bag and pour critter and bag water into bucket. Take normal airline tubing and tie 2-3 knots in it. Put one end of tubing in your tank, (Where it wont fall out) and suck on the other end, (create a siphon) tighten or loosen the knots so the flow of water from the tubing is about 2 drips per second. Leave critter in bucket for at least an hour (Fish only...and longer is better). If the bucket gets too full, scoop water out of it, and discard it. DO NOT LET ANY WATER FROM ANYONE ELSES TANK INTO YOUR'S, UNLESS YOU KNOW THIER SYSTEM IS IN PERFECT HEALTH!!! You may not need to be so rabid, but I have avoided alot of nasties by being that paranoid.
If you are acclimating inverts....they need much longer time to acclimate to salinity and Ph changes than most fish do....minimum of 3 hours IMO....4 being better. Obviously, you will need to slow down the drip rate for this length of time....down to 1 drop per second or 1 drop every 2 seconds...means tight little knots....(Or you could also use a Kalwasser/IV drip line to really fine tune it).

HTH,
Nick

 

[NaH2O]

lunchie - here is a link on Why use RO/DI water? You should be able to find units for sale from some of our sponsors. I also think ebay is an option to purchase RO/DI units, however, I have no personal experience with it, but know that some hobbyists use them. Check out your local fish store, too....they may sell the water if you aren't ready to purchase a unit.

We have decided to stay away from coral because we have read about how hard it is to keep. We went with live rock instead.

There are corals that are very easy to keep. Many of the soft corals don't require much in excess care, such as mushrooms. When you start talking SPS corals, they require a little more care, in the way of higher water quality and calcium/alk needs. If you look around and see some corals you think you may like, then ask about their requirements, and hopefully, we can offer some good advice.

In regards to adding more live rock - that is really up to you. The standard "rule" is 1 - 2 pounds per gallon, but I would stay more around the one pound. Sometimes, too much rock can hinder flow. Also, it all depends on how you want your tank to look and what is visually appealing to you.

Also, I agree with Nick's advice on acclimation. Good post Nick....now we just need to get you to save your posts as you go along, so we don't get hosed again (lol - has happened to me on too many occasions).