Fresh water experience/new to marine keeping!

[Vertfreak00]

Hello all. I hope I am okay to do this here. If not please let me know and I will move the post elsewhere. Thanks ahead of time for your input.

I set up my fluval m40 tank July 1st.
I used dry rock, 20lb live sand (pink Fiji), a tunze 9002 protein skimmer, an Aqueon preset 50w heater, a cp1 circulation pump, and a suction salinity gauge. No light. No livestock

After two weeks I tested parameters (July 15)
PH 8.8
Ammonia 1ppm
Nitrite >2ppm
Nitrate 80ppm

I allowed the rock to continue to do its thing for two more weeks. Tested again. (July 29)
PH 8.2
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10ppm

Two days later I purchased a HOB refugium and chaeto. I pulled sand from my tank and placed it in the refugium as well as some rubble that I had originally placed in the built in baffled sump.

I purchased some Omega One mini pellets and began ghost feeding (August 13). I have not tested parameters since July.
This same day I added a new piece of dry rock while rescaping the tank.

Now three weeks (August 16) have passed since I added the refugium and turned its light on and I have good growth on the chaeto.
The bristle worms that rode in on the chaeto seem to be multiplying. I haven't seen any sign of pods or the small hitchhiking starfish either (but I saw them in the bag of chaeto before it was added).
Now the refugium is beginning to grow something I'm not sure diatoms, Dino, or cyano, aswell as some green algae.

I am curious if the algae growing is benign or not.
What should be next on my todo list?

Thank you all for reading this post.

Edit: minor spelling error

 

[Cliving1]

Seems like you are on your way. Do you have any pics of the algae? What color is the algae? Can you measure phosphate? You dont need to ghost feed. That is done in the beginning to spike your levels to introduce they cycle. If your ammonia and nitrite are 0, you should be ready to go. Bristleworms are great clean up crew so keep them in there.

 

[mcgyvr]

welcome to a new tank.. and hobby..

Algae/bacteria growth (diatoms, cyano, green/hair/bubble algae) are very common with new tanks and will pass over time provided that you keep water parameters where they need to be..
Low nitrates/low phosphates are key..

diatoms are very common seem to live off remaining silicate in the system and are usually the easiest..

dinos can suck big time.. they don't seem to effect a big group though..

cyano can suck and is common.. a 3 day dark period + siphoning it out usually takes care of simple issues..

having cheato is a good idea to reduce problems.. proper water changes.. (20% every 2 weeks is a good starting point)..

GFO is great for phosphate control..

Just do the normal maintenance, have faith and it should just clear with time.. (a couple months)..

If it seems like it might get crazy.. then react..

 

[Vertfreak00]

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f302/Zachary_Dean_Johnson/Mobile Uploads/image_zpsvwmscone.jpeg

I seriously hope this link works. It's a picture of the refugium. I'm On my mobile and am having a hard time getting the compression right.

No I currently do not have a way to check for phosphates.

I do plan to run a satchel of gfo in the very near future.

Should I purchase any pods to stock now or later? Does anyone have any preferred brands

 

[Tanthaitrung]

Remember getting a RO/DI

Good luck
Khanh

 

[Entacmaea]

Good suggestions above - I would second the absolute necessity of an RODI unit for long term success if you don't have one already, and the next investment might be an automatic water top off unit. For that small a tank, keeping water levels solid will be key to stability. If you know what livestock you want to keep in the main tank, then research appropriate lighting - or post here for help. Add fish and corals slowly, as your tank bioload will increase dramatically each time you do. In the short term, and to create a good habit - you might test nitrates weekly (or sooner if you see an issue), and getting a Hanna Checker for phosphate is another good investment. The normal vial/color comparison Phosphate test kits are notoriously hard to read, so the Checker is better...