Hep Cat Rockin' The 10 Gallon

[exodave]

Opinions Please!

On a run yesterday in the new neighborhood in Koreatown, jogged into the LFS at the end of the street and got inspired. So I've got a setup going on a 10g reeftank, just want to make sure I'm good to go. Despite my readings here, I pretty much let the nice, helpful man sell me whatever he thought was best. Here's what I bought; pick at them at your pleasure:

-Penguin Biowheel 200
-2 ea. 9" 18 watt lamps. (Actinic 03 Blue and 10,000K daylight)
-I believe a 50 watt heater
-14lb red sea salt to mix with tap water and conditioner
-1 oz. nitrifying bacteria
-20lb. live sand
-5 lb. live rock
-4 damsels
-thermometer
-hydrometer
-Spirulina Aquarium Flake Food

I mixed some saltwater to rinse the sand with, added the sand to the bottom with the LR, mixed more water, added to the aquarium, conditioned the water, rinsed the filter media in the tank, fired up the heater, filter, and light. Temp was a little less than 80, heater set for 77. I floated the damsels for 30min, then let them loose.

Now, the LFS told me that after a few weeks I should be good to add some more LR, coral, a clownfish, an anemone, etc. I just have to lower the temp slowly a few degrees before adding the coral. I assume at this point he will have already sold me a test kit of some kind, but for now he thought this was unnecessary.

Thoughts on anything else I may consider buying: hardware, software, livestock, or otherwise?

Last concern: will I need a powerhead? The current seems to be pretty strong around the base of my rock and the damsels seem to be fighting it.

I'll snap a few pics as soon as the haze clears.



Cheers,
Dave

[exodave]

A few hours after starting the biofilter, still a lil hazy, but improving fast.

[dobejazz]

Welcome to TRT and reef keeping !

The advice from the LFS seems a bit suspect, It's really not recommended to cycle a tank with fish and certainly not adding them the same day.

I'm curious why he told you to lower the temp to add corals. How much lower did he say?

[tims]

Originally Posted by exodave

Opinions Please!

-Penguin Biowheel 200 the bio wheel part is usless for your type of tank
-2 ea. 9" 18 watt lamps. (Actinic 03 Blue and 10,000K daylight)
-I believe a 50 watt heater
-14lb red sea salt to mix with tap water and conditioner if you can use RO water instead of tap water you will be better off, if not you will be fighting various algae problems.
-1 oz. nitrifying bacteria not needed, the die off from the live rock will do this
-20lb. live sandnot needed, reg. sand woudl have been fine
-5 lb. live rock if you are going to add more live rock , do it now, waiting until later will cause a full or mini cycle
-4 damsels just take them back. they are not needed for the cycle. and in the long run if they live thruogh the cycle they will be very mean on any other fish you get
-thermometer
-hydrometer which type? if it is the floating/ swing arm, they are not very accurate.. not bad for a quick measurment but not the greatest to use
-Spirulina Aquarium Flake Food

I mixed some saltwater to rinse the sand with, added the sand to the bottom with the LR, mixed more water, added to the aquarium, conditioned the water, rinsed the filter media in the tank, fired up the heater, filter, and light. Temp was a little less than 80, heater set for 77. I floated the damsels for 30min, then let them loose.

Now, the LFS told me that after a few weeks I should be good to add some more LR, coral, a clownfish, an anemone, etc. I just have to lower the temp slowly a few degrees before adding the coral. I assume at this point he will have already sold me a test kit of some kind, but for now he thought this was unnecessary.GEt a test kit on your own, add the LR now, once your tank has fully cycled then add corals ( slowly) this system will not be able to handle an anemone. research the corals you are goingot get, that will tell you what temps they like.

Thoughts on anything else I may consider buying: hardware, software, livestock, or otherwise?

Last concern: will I need a powerhead? The current seems to be pretty strong around the base of my rock and the damsels seem to be fighting it.

I'll snap a few pics as soon as the haze clears.



Cheers,
Dave

Dave you can see the reponse to each thing in the red( used it to stand out for better reading)

i agree with somethings you picked up, but a lot of it not too good.

[hng]

Originally Posted by exodave

Despite my readings here, I pretty much let the nice, helpful man sell me whatever he thought was best.

Dave, he may have been nice, but he wasn't all that helpful. I'm afraid his setup advice was pretty bad. Although it may work, it's unnecessarily cruel to the fish and you ended up with lots of equipment that you don't or won't need.

[exodave]

Ouch! Ok, so my first question is: Is it going to be worth the extra effort for me to dump it and start over with RO water? Has this sand been harmed in any way by this water? Also, I suppose I'll can the wheel part of the filter and order a test kit and a better hydrometer online somewhere. Regardless I'm going back down the street tomorrow for some more LR... and possibly to return my new family. They ARE a little on the grumpy side aren't they?

Also, just out of curiosity, are there any invertebrates I might consider adding while this thing cycles?


Thanks for the attention, errabody!
Dave

[dobejazz]

Originally Posted by exodave

Ouch! Ok, so my first question is: Is it going to be worth the extra effort for me to dump it and start over with RO water? Has this sand been harmed in any way by this water? Also, I suppose I'll can the wheel part of the filter and order a test kit and a better hydrometer online somewhere. Regardless I'm going back down the street tomorrow for some more LR... and possibly to return my new family. They ARE a little on the grumpy side aren't they?

Also, just out of curiosity, are there any invertebrates I might consider adding while this thing cycles?


Thanks for the attention, errabody!
Dave

I wouldn't add any live stock for 3-4 weeks depending on how "cured" your live rock is - Inverts are very sensitive to ammonia & nitrites whick you will see as your tank cycles

[exodave]

Righto, so my last question is: should I remove the filter media AND the wheel from the biofilter?

I just looked down at the 69 cent gallon of water I'm drinking and it says reverse osmosis. Guess I'll just use this with water changes from now on. Now I guess its time to just sit back and go over photos and bios I plan to take of potential "friends" from the LFS for a few weeks. Kinda like an absurd dating service. wonder if they have any virgos.

[hng]

Probably a bunch of Pisces, maybe a few Virgos.

Yes, the RO water (drinking water) is commonly used by people with nano tanks who don't have their own filter. Over time, it's still less expensive and more convenient to have your own filter, but in the short run, it's a great way to get inexpensive good quality water. I would return the fish as you suggested, until the tank had completed it's cycle (probably 3-4 weeks). Some more live rock would also be a good idea. The tank will cycle on it's own with the live rock and sand in there. You can keep the sand, I doubt any harm has come to it. Good luck!

[Loverotties]

No! if your buying it by the gallon ,get Distilled(which is the same as RO/DI. RO still can have some nitrate and is good to drink but bad for reefs!,the DI takes the rest of pollutants in the water for the reef ,but takes the taste out for us to drink.If you go to by a filter ,buy a RO/DI filter.

[exodave]

meh... I'll get another gallon and test it once my kits arrive. For *****s and giggles. It's like $1.50 for 3 gallons at my grocery store, so if I can use this stuff I'll feel like I've accomplished something.

OK, so after much reading on this site, I've removed all the filter media from the biowheel pump, and have decided to leave this setup as-is instead of using a power head (for now) because of the nice almost mini-sump it makes to add carbon or other things I might decide to use later on.

Also added another chunk of cured LR, making a total 10lbs.

Also picked up a net for the futile Keystone Cops-like damsel chase-to-come, but they appear to be doing so well, I'm considering waiting until things start looking a little grody during the cycle, and just try to donate them back to the LFS (which is literally 6 houses down from me). It's worth the $12 to me to have something to look at for a few days.


I took a camera along this time and snapped shots of everything they have. I've been mulling them over, and have a preliminary draft pick lined up.

First up after the tank cycles is the clean-up crew: 2-3 hermit crabs, 2-3 astreas. Then, later, MAYBE a camel, peppermint or some other kind of shrimp.

Next, 2 or 3 corals over the course of up to 6 months. My LFS has flowerpot, bubble, button and cabbage coral, which all interest me, but we'll see what's available when the time comes.

When I think I'm satisfied with how everything is coming along, I'll inquire about an anemone/clown pair which have already hosted. I noticed this store has some together in a tank. I figure I want to try to add the most sensitive animals last, and I expect I'll have more than enough challenges trying to handle everything before this, so this is a bit of a pipe dream.

So thats the plan. I know some of you are shaking your heads. Thats cool, opinions are welcomed! Unfortunately for me, as an artist, I tend to like to learn the hard way. But please, if this is all going to blow up in my face, let me know. Plus, part of the point in all this is to combat the banality of the office job I just accepted at Disney Studios, so if things don't get interesting, this'll all be for nothing. However, in the unlikely event things go smoothly, I'll still have my writing.

Thanks again, homies, this website is the Fonz! This internet thing is crazy.

[dobejazz]

Did you get any test kits? what are your water parameters ?

RO/DI filtered drinking water is fine as long as you buy the bottled not from the machine. I used it for about a year in my 24g tank until I added a bigger tank and my own RO/DI unit

Stay away from camel shrimp they are not safe with corals

[exodave]

PH - 7.8
Ammonia - 0.15 ppm
Nitrite - 0.25 ppm
Nitrate - 5.0 ppm

[exodave]

Today's results:

PH - 7.8
Ammonia - 0 ppm
Nitrite - 0 ppm
Nitrate - 5.0 ppm

In the midst of a diatom bloom this week.

Should I fix the PH with this API Buffer Max Marine stuff, or will this be solved with a water change, or by itself?


Dave

[dobejazz]

Originally Posted by exodave

Today's results:

PH - 7.8
Ammonia - 0 ppm
Nitrite - 0 ppm
Nitrate - 5.0 ppm

In the midst of a diatom bloom this week.

Should I fix the PH with this API Buffer Max Marine stuff, or will this be solved with a water change, or by itself?


Dave

what time of day and how are your testing your PH?