New to the salt water scene.
- Thread starter sruiz
- Start date
whiteshark
Active member
Well, if I told you everything you needed to know it would take 100's of pages. I suggest you do some reading first and a lot of research before you start.
whiteshark
Active member
Well, I will let WaterKeeper handle this one as he is much more qualified than I to answer your question. I can tell you that you won't be able to put fish in until your tank is cycled which could take a while ( up to a month or month and a half ). WaterKeeper will let you know how to clean your rock. You should also add some live rock to speed up the cycling process.
yogisfriend
New member
sruiz,
Clean your rocks well. I scrubbed mine with a medium nylon brush. Rinse, rinse, rinse! If there is anything black on them, scrub it off.
You did mean you have put saltwater in your tank, correct? Once the rocks are clean, put them in so there is good water movement and wait. And wait. And wait. Do water changes to help keep the smell down and to keep the ammonia from killing off everything on the rock. Lights or not, your choice--I didn't use mine because of the possibility of algae.
You need testing kits very soon, at least for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. Do not put any livestock in! Even if you are told to use a cheap fish to help cycle, don't do it.
I don't know much; I am just starting a reef tank, but I can assure you that once you get started and have specific questions, you can't find a more helpful place than this!
Clean your rocks well. I scrubbed mine with a medium nylon brush. Rinse, rinse, rinse! If there is anything black on them, scrub it off.
You did mean you have put saltwater in your tank, correct? Once the rocks are clean, put them in so there is good water movement and wait. And wait. And wait. Do water changes to help keep the smell down and to keep the ammonia from killing off everything on the rock. Lights or not, your choice--I didn't use mine because of the possibility of algae.
You need testing kits very soon, at least for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. Do not put any livestock in! Even if you are told to use a cheap fish to help cycle, don't do it.
I don't know much; I am just starting a reef tank, but I can assure you that once you get started and have specific questions, you can't find a more helpful place than this!
whiteshark
Active member
Kent makes a product called, I believe, rock prep. It has a built in brush and a mild cleaning solution. You could try that, then rinse it with some RO water. I wouldn't use tap.
yogisfriend
New member
I used the kent w/brush the other day, and it was ok. However, the bristles are short and square, so if you have fiji or other branchy rock, it may not work for you. It's also difficult to get into the crevasses because the brush is square. I just soak the rock for awhile in saltwater then scrub it well, rinsing in another bucket of clean saltwater.
whiteshark
Active member
That'll work. It was a long time ago that i set up my tank. Honestly, I forget most of what I did. 
yogisfriend
New member
Whiteshark, you were actually a great help to me, and that was just last week.
sruiz, I cannot stress enough that this will take time. You may go a month or more without fish, but that's ok; you'll have fun anyway. Just get the rock in and the checkbook out. And get the test kits! Don't listen to anyone at the store. Check here first.
sruiz, I cannot stress enough that this will take time. You may go a month or more without fish, but that's ok; you'll have fun anyway. Just get the rock in and the checkbook out. And get the test kits! Don't listen to anyone at the store. Check here first.
whiteshark
Active member
Glad I could be a help yogi! Now what was it I helped you with???
yogisfriend
New member
I was impatient, you said to take my time and read. I did. You offered encouragement when I was close to turning my 120 into a jacuzzi.
whiteshark
Active member
lol, well i'm glad you took the time to research properly. Definetly very important. I've also learned a lot of patients. Algae will bloom, ammonia will spike, temp will drop or rise, fish will get diseases, your house will flood, corals will die. Don't get disscouraged. Learn from mistakes and move on (and try not to be dumb like me and make the same mistakes twice!).
yogisfriend
New member
Ha, you just described my last week! Except for the ammonia spike.
sruiz, I spend a couple of hours a day reading posts on this site. Soak it up. Read all the forums, not just the new to hobby. Mistakes are very costly.
sruiz, I spend a couple of hours a day reading posts on this site. Soak it up. Read all the forums, not just the new to hobby. Mistakes are very costly.
Hi sruiz,
I think this is the primer the Sharkman was referring to-
The New Tank Thread
It may take a little while to read through it but it should cover most of your questions.
I think this is the primer the Sharkman was referring to-
The New Tank Thread
It may take a little while to read through it but it should cover most of your questions.
