Just ensuring I'm doing this the right way...

[Accipiter]

I'm about to set up and decorate my new 92g corner. Actually, its my first coral reef tank ever.
Therefore, some advice from you experienced guys would be preferable. :D

Here's my plan, hope you could take the time to check if its a sufficient scheme for the next few days.

1. Get the equipment inside the tank, filling it with freshwater. (checking if the system works well.)

2. If everything is okay, I mix the saltwater in a couple of containers, with heaters and some circulation.


3. Next day, I put my sand (DSB) into the bottom and put the LR inside (about 30 kg), ready to aquascape.

4. Fourthtly, I fill the tank with the mixed water (made the day before).

5. Patience, patience, patience, patience, patience

QUESTIONS:confused:

1. What's the right amount of salt to use?? (I use TM Pro Reef) I've bought a refractometer, of course. Do I have to mix, measure, mix, measure, mix and measure until I got the right values? Seems weird to me..

2. I've bought sugar-sized sand ("oolite"). How do I rinse it? May I just make a small hole in two sides, and let the water run slowly through the package? I've heard it's to sugar-sized to be rinsed. However, the package says the opposite..

3. I suppose I have to let the water mature (or whatever you say:crazy1: ) for one day. Mixing it right into the tank might kill much of the life in and on the LR, right?

Hope you're able to let me know if this is an appropriate start.

Thank you!:)

Sincerely
Accipiter, (17 year newbie from Norway!:o)

[kctango]

Where are you getting your water from??? Tap???Well??? RO/DI???
You dont have to rinse live sand, its a mater of choice that people do. I have never rinsed my live sand.
if its dry sand I cannot answer since I have never used it.

Take out the freshwater before adding the saltwater
Fill Half Way
Then add your sand and LR top off with saltwater.
Since your making your Saltwater let it sit for a day with a pump in it to help circulate it.

[Accipiter]

Tapwater. Unusual clean, though

[Rocdoc]

Tapwater. Unusual clean, though

Yep, everyone has unusually clean tapwater. Then they get unusually clean nuisance algae problems. :eek2: Gotta go with the RO/DI water. Save you a ton of heartache down the road.

+1 on draining the freshwater, then filling bout halfway with day or two old saltwater, then aquascaping. If your live rock is cured, you'll still have die off if it is exposed to air for prolonged periods.

[wmdick_2007]

Well, measure like 2-cups salt in 5-gallons of water and test. Adjust from there to know what you need for 5-gallons and just multiply.

Sugar sized is a little small --- okay, it will have bands of color from denitrification. Good for sand sifters.

I do not understand mixing --- never mix salt in the tank --- use a 5-gallon bucket or similar item.

Live rock should be cured in another tank or container with water flow. However, since this is a new tank --- it will cycle and be cloudy for a while. Just put the sand in and place the rock where you want it. Now, add pre-mixed water to the tank.

I would pour some sand in a bucket and rinse with some salt water. The water maturing ---> that will happen in the next 30-to-45 days while the tank cycles.

[wmdick_2007]

If the tank is empty of life and full of good water --- you can add salt mix and mix it in the tank.

[Accipiter]

Thank you!
I think I'm able to manage this now ;)

[iwishtofish]

Hi Accipiter!

Are you sure you want a DSB in your display tank? It can be fun because of all the sand-dwelling critters you can keep, but it is harder to clean and some people argue it has a "life span" and will need replacing periodically. Disturbing a DSB can release pockets of harmful gases as well; many people prefer to have a remote DSB, ie one they can isolate from the main system if they wish to replace it or take it off line. I like the idea of 1"-1.5" of sand in the display tank that is easy to stir periodically to keep clean.

+1 on RO/DI water. Nuisance algae can become quite the battle, and has turned off many people from the hobby. Phosphates in tap water can also permeate your sand and rock, and leach out over considerable periods of time (perpetuating the problem).

You can rinse the live sand if you want, although there are a couple things in mind that may affect this decision: Is the live sand coming directly from a nearby fish store, or is it in a bag that has likely been sitting on a shelf for prolonged periods? If it is the latter, it is likely mostly "dead" sand and will just help kick-start your cycle. If the former, it likely has all sorts of critters you want to keep around, and should be added to the tank as soon as possible without exposure to freshwater.

Your live rock will likely have some die-off, as mentioned above - the degree depending on how long it has been exposed to air. That die-off will also help kick-start your cycle. There is not likely any need to add fish food or a raw shrimp to help with that. And remember not to add any critters until the cycle is complete (please, no fish to cycle the tank - that's old-school and kinda cruel).

Best wishes, and have fun! :)

[Accipiter]

Thank you iwishtofish!:)

Yeah, the sand is "dead", so I think I got to rinse it then.
I'm sure I want to keep a DSB in the display tank. This is to get a lower noise-level because of no sump or refugium(!), in addition to all the critters and its filtration-ability.
Regarding the harmful gases (nitrogen gas); they're not harmful to people in the amounts represented in the aquaria, or do you mean 'harmful to people' (quoting your post)?:hmm2:

(Actually, I don't think the patience are going to be my main problem. This is because I'm living pretty far away (2 hours) from the nearest LFS which sells corals and saltwater fish. Thus I won't buy anything before the next time I go to the city, which may be several weeks, if not even months, until!:strange: )

Edit: Our tap-water have been proclaimed as the best tap-water in Norway, so guess I'm safe ;)