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Katie3G
06/20/2010, 07:25 AM
A number of weeks ago I started a thread to document the establishment of my 55 gal tank. Well, due to other events in my life, as well as the trials of living on an island where non-perishable goods are shipped via a long ferry ride across an ocean channel, the tank did not get going until a few days ago. In short, the tank did not get set up until last Thursday evening.

The tank - 55 gal - 4 feet long, 12 inches wide, about 20 inches high

Equipment:
Skimmer - AquaC Remora with Maxi-Jet 1200 pump
Heater - Visitherm 200 Watt
Lights - Tek T5 HO with 4 54 watt bulbs (2 10,000k daylight and 2 actinic)
Filter - Rena XP4

I cannot drill the tank and I do not want a hang on tank overflow so I am not adding a sump. The canister filter will provide water flow and a place to add carbon and GFO.

What is in the tank:
Live rock - 55.5 lbs
Aragonite - about 20 lbs. 0.5-1.0 mm
I have ordered a slighter larger aragonite but I am still waiting for the bag to arrive. I will add about 10 lbs of this aragonite to the tank.

I have an old (purchased in 2006) test kit (I have ordered a new test kit) and tested the water on Friday evening (the tank had been set up for about 23 hours). Here are the numbers:

Salinity-1.020 pH-7.8 Ca-320 mg KH-110 mg/l NH3-0.25 NO2-0.50 NO3-15 Temp-80 F

I have added more salt to the tank and this morning the salinity is 1.022. Probably Ca, KH and pH are a bit higher as well. I have also lowered the temperature on the heater and this morning (after the lights were off all night) the temperature was 76 F. The lights really heat up the water so I will check later to see what the temperature is - hopefully it will stay just below 80 F.

Since the salinity is a bit low I will add a bit more salt to the tank (and, yes, I am mixing it with water before adding). Right now I am using a hydrometer. I have ordered a refractometer but it has not yet arrived. I want to get the salinity to 1.023 (as measured with the hydrometer) - if my hydrometer is measuring too low or too high I am hoping that this is a safe level.

Once the cycle has completed (hopefully within 2 weeks) I will begin to add a clean-up crew. My plans (I will be adding these slowly - this is what I am planning as a total clean-up crew):
Tuxedo Urchin
Trochus Snail - 1
Turbo Snails - 5
Astraea Snails - 5
Cerith Snails - 2 or 3
Nassarius Snails - 3 or 4
Peppermint Shrimp - 2
Cleaner Shrimp - 2

The livestock. I want to create a peaceful tank with soft and hard corals. I am not sure which corals will do well under my lights. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. The first fish to go in the tank will be two ocellaris clowns, then a neon goby and then a yellow watchman gobie/pistol shrimp pair. Hopefully the tank will be ready for the clowns in one month. I will wait about 2 weeks before I add the neon goby and then another 2 weeks for the watchman gobie/shrimp pair. Then I will wait at least a month before adding any new fish. That month will probably be a good time to add some coral.

Sorry, no pictures yet. I need to take some and then figure out how to post the pics on the thread.

coraltastic
06/20/2010, 07:51 AM
sounds like u r on the right track, with that light u should be able to keep about any type of coral.

robs.mark
06/20/2010, 08:00 AM
I would wait a little longer before adding a cuc, its better to let the parameters sit stable for a couple of weeks. Also i would add the urchin and the shrimp a little later still, inverts are sensitive to basic basic parameters. Just so you know that size tank is closer to 100g than 55g! Will make managing your parameters, aquascaping, and livestock choices better.
Your lighting on a 20 deep lank imo would be great for softies and some LPS. You may be able to keep some lower light requiring sps on at the top of your tank.

May i ask why your not interested in fitting a sump/fuge? It not only keeps all of your eqp (pumps, heater, skimmer, gfo reactor etc out of the display/out of sight) it also allows you to grow macro, which is a great way of keeping nitrates down. A must imo.

Are you using RO/DI water?

Katie3G
06/20/2010, 08:39 AM
Oh wow, did I ever make a typo - the tank is one foot wide, not 2 (I wonder if that was wishful thinking). I have edited my original post so that my tank measurements are accurate (also fixed a few typos).

Why not a sump? My tank is all tempered glass and therefore cannot be drilled and I don't trust a hang on tank overflow. It is an old tank that I used for about 5 years to keep discus. The heater is also old. All the other equipment is new.

I have not used RO/DI water. I don't have an RO unit, nor can I purchase RO/DI water - this service is not available where I live. My tap water is very low in solids. I know that pH and KH are not the only measurements of dissolved solids. Nonetheless, my tap water has a pH of about 6 and whenever I have measured the KH of my tap water it has always been less than 10 mg/L (wonderful for discus BTW). I kept a 10 gal salt tank for 3 years without any problems with algae (used a hang on tank filter, no skimmer, and weekly 2 gal water changes - nitrates always stayed at 10). As a result of other issues in my life, this tank went downhill last year because of lack of maintenance. I plan on setting it up again very soon. As well, I know a few other people in my area who have kept salt tanks using tap water without any problems. In short, I am willing to try the tap water for now. If this fails I may consider getting an RO unit. I don't really have the space for this water treatment system.

Thanks for the advice so far.

Katie3G
06/20/2010, 08:42 AM
Forgot to add that I will be placing a small breeder basket in the tank to grow macro algae. This should help with nitrates and phosphates.

mthomp
06/20/2010, 09:05 AM
yeah a sump is not a must by any means, its a nice convience. i currently run a 55gal sumpless and while my next build will have a sump my basic barebones system is coming along nicely. they key is to not overstock.

Katie3G
06/20/2010, 09:49 AM
mthomp - that is good to know.

Palting
06/20/2010, 09:56 AM
Forgot to add that I will be placing a small breeder basket in the tank to grow macro algae. This should help with nitrates and phosphates.

That was my first refugium! Drilled a few exra holes on the sides and positioned it close to one of my returns for flow.

You may want to invest in a in-tank reugium, or a hang on back one, like the CPR ones. Although the breeder basket does not cost much, that's still $$ you can save towards a true refugium. Mine is now in a dump somewhere.

Katie3G
06/20/2010, 10:03 AM
Palting - the basket I have ordered is made of net so I don't need to drill holes. I too am going to place right it by a return flow.

Palting
06/20/2010, 10:15 AM
Palting - the basket I have ordered is made of net so I don't need to drill holes. I too am going to place right by a return flow.

LOL! Budget constraints will fuel human ingenuity! Great minds think alike.

Mark my words, though. You'll be wanting a true refugium sometime down the line :).

Katie3G
06/20/2010, 10:25 AM
Oh, I want a 6 foot 120 gal tank with sump and refugium (I love tangs). I even have a great spot in my living room for this tank - and everyone I know agrees that the wall is begging for a 6 foot tank. My 55 gal is in my home office and looks great there. It would look really small where the 6 foot will eventually go. The price of the 6 foot (I want a really nice stand and great lighting) means that I will have to wait a few years before I can get that up and running. The 55 gal (and the 10 gal) will keep me occupied for now.

Katie3G
06/21/2010, 10:13 AM
I tested the water last night. Here are the results:
Salinity - 1.0225 Temp - 80F pH - 7.8 Ca - 420 mg/L KH - 110-120 mg/L NH3 - 0.50 NO2 - 0.25 NO3 - 5

The increased salinity has helped raise the Ca and KH (I think). NH3 has risen, NO2 has decreased slightly and NO3 has decreased. Presumably the skimmer is helping to lower the nitrates.

Palting
06/21/2010, 12:24 PM
It's coming along!

I try to keep my salinity @ 1.026. Helps keep the Calcium, strontium, etc up there, for the corals. Not needed for now for you, but something to keep in mind.

Sugar Magnolia
06/21/2010, 12:29 PM
That was my first refugium! Drilled a few exra holes on the sides and positioned it close to one of my returns for flow.

You may want to invest in a in-tank reugium, or a hang on back one, like the CPR ones. Although the breeder basket does not cost much, that's still $$ you can save towards a true refugium. Mine is now in a dump somewhere.

Palting - the basket I have ordered is made of net so I don't need to drill holes. I too am going to place right it by a return flow.

:thumbsup: I use the CPR in-tank refugium. It's placed directly under the return from my HOB filter. I've got chaeto and a mangrove in it.

Katie, you may want to replace that Visa-therm heater. They have a tendency to fail. I had two of them get stuck in the on position and overheated my tank both times. I've been using a Jager heater for years with no issues at all.

Katie3G
06/21/2010, 03:12 PM
Palting - I think I will leave my salinity where it is for now. I am waiting for a refractometer to arrive (hopefully this week). Once I have something that I know is accurate, I will bring the salinity up to 1.024 or 1.025.

Sugar Magnolia - thanks for the advice. The VisiTherm heater is bit old. I used it for 5 years when I was using the 55 gal for discus. It kept the temp pretty steady at 80 F for the discus. I may invest in another heater later. I do have another spare heater that I can use in case of an emergency. Just checked an online price for an in-tank refugium - they do not seem to be available from Canadian on-line suppliers. CPR HOB refugium is about $150 plus shipping and taxes which will probably total $200. I think I will go with the $5.00 breeder basket for now!

robs.mark
06/21/2010, 10:19 PM
yeah a sump is not a must by any means, its a nice convience. i currently run a 55gal sumpless and while my next build will have a sump my basic barebones system is coming along nicely. they key is to not overstock.

Your system is coming on fine atm, but wait to see what happens down the like before dismissing the need for a sump. As your delve further in to this hobby you will realize that the need to grow macro, run a larger skimmer and have everything out of your display will make the need for a sump a must have.

Katie3G
07/03/2010, 11:09 AM
An update on the tank.

Water tests:
June 23 - Salinity 1.0225; Temp 80F; pH 8.2; Ca 420; KH 110mg/L; NH3 0.25; NO2 0.50; NO3 10
June 28 - Salinity 1.023; Temp 80F; pH 8.2; Ca 460; KH 100mg/L; NH3 0.50; NO2 0.25; NO3 10
July 3 - 1.024; Temp 80F; pH 8.1; Ca 420; KH 100mg/L; NH3 0; NO2 0 NO3 0-5 (difficult to read the result)

The tank has been up and running for 2 weeks and 2 days now. Last Saturday diatoms began appearing and by Monday I really had one diatom bloom - all over the rock and a fair bit of the sand. The diatoms are quickly disappearing. Now I am getting some red cyano on the rock and a bit of bright green hair algae on the rock and glass. I just tested my water and you can see from the results that it is most likely that the tanks' nitrogen cycle has been completed. Now for a few questions about when I might add livestock.

First point. My LFS obtains livestock about once every four to six weeks. The store is placing an order next week and hopefully the livestock will arrive by Friday (all depends on undependable Air Canada). The owner of the shop is a friend and he will hold livestock for me. I am definitely getting him to hold some snails for me. And, I am thinking that I can add some snails about 2 weeks from now - I will see how the algae is growing.

My big question is fish. I am hoping that I can add fish in about one month. I am also fairly confident that my friend will hold the fish for me for 3 weeks. My thoughts on the first fish is a pair of ocellaris clowns. I have read that clowns can be territorial and a bit aggressive. Nonetheless, I believe (and maybe I am wrong) that ocellaris are fairly peaceful. In short, would I run into any problems down the line in terms of adding new fish if I placed ocellaris clowns in the tank first? If so, would a yellow watchman goby be a better first addition to the tank?