starting up a new tank

tims · 08-18-2003, 12:06 PM

hi all, i am going to be starting new (old) tank, it is a 90 oceanic tank with a trinkle system, i have not used it in sevearl years now. i plan on going with a nice reef for it. after reading about the use of sand and the pros and cons i was wondering what everyone thinks is the best substrate, i had used it as a fo a few years ago, it is clean ( no CU) i was thinking about a snowfake eel down the line to add to it. But that is still up in the air.
thanks
tims

rogerthmyers · 08-18-2003, 01:41 PM

Are you wanting to cycle your tank quickly or a regular cycle?

tims · 08-18-2003, 01:44 PM

i was thinking of going a lillte faster then normal, i have a much smaller mini reef going now that is doing really well. i thought about using some of the water and substrate to help it off.

rogerthmyers · 08-18-2003, 02:31 PM

How about getting some live sand and using that?

tims · 08-18-2003, 03:26 PM

Live sand? i have never used sand before and was thinking about a small thin level for the base since i will be using the trinkle and bio balls, i still have a lot more reading to do yet, i am in no rush to get it up and running (fully stocked). after reading all of the DSB threads i am not sure if using sand or deep sand would be nice or just a head acke down the road.
tims

rogerthmyers · 08-18-2003, 04:36 PM

I've been doing this for a little over 5yrs now, I wouldn't use a deep sand bed, but I would use sand, it's more natural, you'll have algae out breaks, and you can't syphon the sand, but you can do other things to clean the sb, or keep a good clean up crew...it really depends on wether you like keeping up with your tank or you don't like doing alot of maintenance...

tims · 08-18-2003, 05:56 PM

great, i do like the look of sand for a base, i myself am a sort of keep a clean but dirty tank if you understand my meaning. i do like the look of algae and other nature growing things, but do not want things out of control or not seen.
thanks for your advice now and in the future. rest asure i will be picking your brain from time to time. thanks again.
this will be my first sand tank.
tims

squid · 08-19-2003, 11:52 AM

If you are planning on doing a reef, I would not use the bio-balls. NO bio balls in a reef set up.

You might want to do a search on TRT and read the threads

ruhspolostar · 08-25-2003, 12:57 AM

I've read in several places that curred liverock speeds up cycling conciderably, my tank is cycling w/ curred liverock, its been 1 week and a half, going really, really well, will be ready to add new species soon!!!

squid · 08-25-2003, 01:02 AM

ruhspolostar, take your time,...give things time to settle down, bacteria to grow. Don't make the mistake of getting in a hurry and the next thing you know you have problems. Just be patient JMO

MiddletonMark · 08-25-2003, 07:40 AM

I'd look into what you want to do with the bio-balls.

I have an Oceanic with a trickle ... and removed the bio-balls about 6 weeks into things, when they cycle was long over [rock was cycled from FishOnly tank ... so no Amm/Nitrite part of cycle ever happened].... anyway - bioballs will pick up a lot of detritus, leading to increased NItrate levels. My nitrates were 10-20mg/l until I got all my bioballs removed .... then dropped to 1-5 mg/l where they're at now depending on how recently I changed the water.

I put some LR instead of the bio-balls, figure it does the full Amm->NItrite->Nitrate->N gas cycle there where the bio-balls only get things to Nitrate and that's it.

As Lise said, go slow at first, especially in a reef tank. You don't want to start with things even a bit out of balance, it's easy to fill up the tank with things you don't want down the road.

But way to ask questions and research here - it'll help a lot.

What kind of lights on it?
What kind of skimmer?
How much water flow?

These 3 are pretty big reef-tank issues, IMO ... worth research before you get something. [too expensive to have to replace soon]

tims · 08-25-2003, 09:39 AM

well i guess i can hang the bio balls from the christmass tree then, i will have to look at the hood and lights to see what they are i have not had it up and running in several years now.

Buzz_Hog · 08-25-2003, 09:43 AM

If you are planning on a nice reef setup, you'll need to scratch the snowflake eel... He'll make a snack of your cleanup crew.

tims · 08-25-2003, 11:55 AM

opps never even thought about that. he would have had a really nice dinner.

ReefDave · 08-25-2003, 01:22 PM

and expensive too. Tim, much applause for asking questions. For every question you ask, usually you will come away with 5 or 10 more than you started with...this is normal, don't be overwhelmed. Take your time and enjoy.

I would agree with everyone on the bio-balls, Live rock IMO is the only way to go for both looks and filtration. Do some reading on which skimmer you want to use. The skimmer, probably more than any other piece of equipment, is what first time reefers end up chucking out money for more than once. Make sure you read reviews over every single skimmer you consider. Do searchs on every board you can find about that skimmer before you buy...you just might get lucky and be one of the few that only buys this once!

Also, if you PROMISE not to get you tank up and running in the next 3-4 months, then you might be able to get in on the "Jay and Dave" tank race......Just kidding.. its a really long story..really.....really.......loooonnnnng....in fact Im not convinced it will ever end..

Dave