Hoooo boy, do I want to dive back into another reef?

[hhaase]

Well, it's been a few years(7 years already? wow!) since I broke down my 90 reef, sold nearly all of it, and moved cross country. Part of me really missed having that tank, part of me remembers the toil and heartache, but I just re-read my old thread on that tank and saw my progression in learning. When it came time to break it all down I was actually very happy with the tank.

Opportunity is knocking once more and I may be able to go at this again. This time I know a lot better what I want to do. This time I know a lot better what I need to do. I know the work it will take. Yes I'll have to re-learn a lot of things but the basics are solid and I'm not in a rush.

The good new is that I am totally free to daydream right now. I can plan out that optimal setup that would be so fantastic. Even better is I now own a house instead of rent, and this opens up a lot of possibilities I didn't have before.

I just don't know if i want to go down this rabbit hole again. I'm sure you guys can relate.

But ooooooooh I can just picture that pearly jawfish moving his shells around, and some clams again, with a lot of nice LPS on some beautiful pink/purple rock.

Sigh.

 

[Daddyrawg]

Just do it.. I did and its going on 2 yrs and love the growth.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

 

[Oldreeferman]

I agree if time or money is not a major issue then its a beautiful investment in a home, & a rare sight to view to anyone who visits your home.
Seeing things grow............not just survive, is the best part to me!
You know you want to do it.................................and larger i suspect yes?

 

[hhaase]

You know you want to do it.................................and larger i suspect yes?

Want? Yes.
Nervous? Yes.
Larger? I'm thinking 120+

 

[Oldreeferman]

Nervous?
Naaaaaaaaaaaa, your already over the learning curve so just deciding on what you want long term down the rd. when everything has grown out is what you have to speculate on, good luck & have fun. Wish it was me posting ...........................

 

[hhaase]

Well, the nervous part comes from a problem I had a few weeks ago. Had a 10 gallon guppy tank pop a leak in the middle of the night on a bottom corner. Woke up to an empty tank and all the water on the floor. Has me a bit skittish at the moment. Somehow I managed to save all the adult fish. Guppies are pretty durable little stinkers once they get settled in.

 

[hhaase]

When I got out of things, one of the hot tickets at the time was buying a LOT of dry rock, seeding it with a sampling of live rock, and letting it all cultivate naturally.

Still a valid technique, or has experience proven it to be a bad idea?

If I do this, the last thing I want to do is screw up the substrate and rock immediately when starting up.

-Hans

 

[Uncle99]

When I got out of things, one of the hot tickets at the time was buying a LOT of dry rock, seeding it with a sampling of live rock, and letting it all cultivate naturally.

Still a valid technique, or has experience proven it to be a bad idea?

If I do this, the last thing I want to do is screw up the substrate and rock immediately when starting up.

-Hans

Still valid.....you don't even need the sample.
When dealing with any live rock, it is critical that there are no hitchhikers.
Once in, can be problematic in getting out.

I did wash and rinse my dry and then in a bucket of RODI for a day or two. Even though the rock looked clean, couple of days in the bucket turned the water a light brown, likely sediment or dust getting in through sitting and transport.

 

[Oldreeferman]

Yes that is a good way to go.
I did both my tanks that way to assure i would not get the dreaded Aptasia that can be introduced via live rock, that is my main pest fear.
Worked out well, only pests ive ever had if even that are the small type Vermited snails but they don't bother a thing & seem to be lowering in numbers now. Think they sneaked in on a coral frag probably.
Im a big proponent for going all dry rock for this reason & adding straight ammonia the fishless way till nitrites are not reading anymore THEN add a fish or CUC & proceed to finish the nitrate cycle with water changes and Cheato or an algae scrubber in the sump to keep the nitrates in check. I did add bottled nitrifying bacteria in the beginning.
The ammonia rout goes just as fast as any other way to cycle & no odor either or any mess in the tank, just have to add bacteria & allow it to catch up before adding more ammonia, in a few weeks you end up adding ammonia ea. day to feed the bacteria just like you had fish in the tank 24/7 then its cycled or really close.
You still will eventually get all the strange micro organisms since they come in on corals or algaes etc. Live rock may be ok but id QT it for a few months myself just to be certain it had no nasty pests just good flora & fauna but that is just my .02 on that rout.

Dave

 

[hhaase]

Hehehe, yeah. I picked up some rock once from a reefer that had their tank bust apart, and man it did a number on my tank. Hair and bubble algae nightmare from that one.

-Hans

 

[hhaase]

Wifey and I had a good few talks the past few days. Then the tape measures came out, and the decision has been made.

There will be Reef!

Time to move this from hypothetical to planning. When I'm ready to start doing things I'll start a new build thread again.

I'm gonna have me some fun!