oh mj 1200's are like $25 a piece and are like 295 gph a piece.. they'd get you by for now and the cool thing is you can mod them for an additional $25 a piece www.mjmods.com and get around 2000 gph a piece.. 1 would modded would be good for you tank.. and if you upgrade you will have the extra maxijet you can mod and that will save you from spending a fortune on powerheads.. good luck
Frustrated in florida
- Thread starter reebow in nwfl
- Start date
sunfish11
Premium Member
Since you are working with a Fish Only Live Rock tank then I wouldn't worry to much about 20 ppm nitrates. It has been shown that even skyrocketed nitrates (200ppm +) do not have a detrimental effect on most fish. Your cleaner shrimp should be fine at 20ppm. Of course if you decide to go reef you will have to keep them low depending on which corals you decide to keep.
I would respectfully disagree with the 1.0265 SG for Fish Only tank. I think you are fine on your reading. The cleaner will be fine at your reading. Bear in mind that most hydrometers are wrong. I have 4 (different brands, just for grins) and only one is the same as the refractometer. The other ones are at least .003 - .004 (even more) off and don't account for temp properly. Staying where you are at puts you at a fairly safe zone even if your hydrometer is way off.
Stay away from test strips. They aren't very accurate.
Besides the scooter blenny (I would suggest returning it) the fish you have are hardy.
You can leave your temp where it is if you like, some experts recomend that temp, but personally I would probably go up to at least 78.
I would do 10% water changes every week if it was my tank. If this doesn't work for you than you could go every 2 weeks. Make sure that you PH stays in acceptable range and use a Marine buffer for fish only tanks to correct. You do not have to worry as much about cal, alk, mag in a Fish only situation. Water changes should keep these in line.
Good Luck,
Lisa
I would respectfully disagree with the 1.0265 SG for Fish Only tank. I think you are fine on your reading. The cleaner will be fine at your reading. Bear in mind that most hydrometers are wrong. I have 4 (different brands, just for grins) and only one is the same as the refractometer. The other ones are at least .003 - .004 (even more) off and don't account for temp properly. Staying where you are at puts you at a fairly safe zone even if your hydrometer is way off.
Stay away from test strips. They aren't very accurate.
Besides the scooter blenny (I would suggest returning it) the fish you have are hardy.
You can leave your temp where it is if you like, some experts recomend that temp, but personally I would probably go up to at least 78.
I would do 10% water changes every week if it was my tank. If this doesn't work for you than you could go every 2 weeks. Make sure that you PH stays in acceptable range and use a Marine buffer for fish only tanks to correct. You do not have to worry as much about cal, alk, mag in a Fish only situation. Water changes should keep these in line.
Good Luck,
Lisa
sunfish11
Premium Member
I didn't mention the Crushed Coral. If you want to keep it you will need to vaccuum it like the gravel in the fresh water tanks, and often. I don't like it personally and I wouldn't use it. Since you did just keep it clean. If you progress to a reef you will want this gone eventually. You will also have to make other changes.
Lisa
Lisa
mikeandjenn99
New member
And you may want to take the scooter back and trade him for something else. Those guys are dragonets and pretty exclusively eat copepods. He will most likely starve to death in a new tank, and one without live rock. Save yourself another dead fish and the money and swap him out soon. 
And listen to these guys, they're pretty good.
And listen to these guys, they're pretty good.
Shagsbeard
New member
I didn't see that the original poster added any live rock to the tank... most all of our advice is based on the assumption that you have 1-2 lb's of live rock per gallon in your tank... about 100 lbs in your case. If this isn't the case you need to let us know.
where in NW FL are you? I think you should keep your tank the way it is for at least 2 months. Fish wise that is
i pretty much gree with everything that SUNFISH said
I would reccomend taking the scooter blenny back to the store, because unless you seee it eating mysis or other food, it will most likely starve.
How much live rock is in the tank? I would reccomend at least 50lbs, depending on how dense it is.....just make sure the liverock you get is cured, otherwise it will cause your tank to cycle and more than likely kill your fish..
Also, the crushed coral bed will more than likely give you a problem, unless you vaccume it regularly. Detritus gets stuck in between the pieces and as it decomposes, it adds to nitrates.
This is why most people prefer to use sand. It does not allow food and other stuff to get stuck in it.
SG i would keep around 1.024 with FO but when you go reef, 1.026 is what many people use.
i pretty much gree with everything that SUNFISH said
I would reccomend taking the scooter blenny back to the store, because unless you seee it eating mysis or other food, it will most likely starve.
How much live rock is in the tank? I would reccomend at least 50lbs, depending on how dense it is.....just make sure the liverock you get is cured, otherwise it will cause your tank to cycle and more than likely kill your fish..
Also, the crushed coral bed will more than likely give you a problem, unless you vaccume it regularly. Detritus gets stuck in between the pieces and as it decomposes, it adds to nitrates.
This is why most people prefer to use sand. It does not allow food and other stuff to get stuck in it.
SG i would keep around 1.024 with FO but when you go reef, 1.026 is what many people use.
reebow in nwfl
New member
no live rock yet will get next wk, live in Mary Esther Fl, which is just west of Destin. aka Hurricaine alley. Scooter blenny has been eating flake, pellet and mysis shrimp has been in for 8 days now.
In Deep Water
In Memoriam
From what Ive been told....You have added the scooter blenny to early. They need a very established tank so they do not starve.
reebow in nwfl
New member
Thanks for everyones help. scooter blenny will go back, have brought temp up to 78, am going to leave SpGr as is. Will focus on adding cured live rock over the next two months and go from there. Will be sure to vacuum crushed coral every water change and see how things go
