Newbie asking for some guidance

@

@rmyvet

New member
Hello fellow Reefers and Veterans,
I'm writing today because I'm almost complete on getting my equipment for a saltwater tank . I have been in the freshwater scenery for many years 30+ and to me its been so easy for me on everything i do between water changes and everything in general with no fear. But saltwater omg between reading about it for 5 years and I still am learning more new stuff it scares the living daylight out of me. So much stuff so its coming down to like simple stuff I need to know and it just seems I can't find the answer but if I do its just part and the main reason its never mentioned. So I have a 90 gallon with overflow and a sump which is 38"x14" 1/2 were skimmer sits 17" the refurium 11" filter3" return 6" I special ordered it from trigger to fit my cabinet and I don't know how many gallons it has. So my questions are as follows 1)how do I fill the tank and sump to were if powerfails it won't overflow on to my floor. 2) when i mix the saltwater do I top off the tank when the water evaporates with the saltwater I have stored or do I top it off with freshwater from RODI. 3) how do I run or tune my skimmer I had found a video but I can't seem to find it now. I have so much more but I didn't want to make this post a novel. So to start off I have the tank the sump the skimmer the RODI the two barrels to hold the saltwater and fresh RO and thinking on getting the chaetomorpha for the refurium but to know when to add this. I'm in no hurry I will be cycling the tank for how long Hell I don't know till I read for how long or what to add to make it go faster. This is where I need to see if someone directs me to a site video or just tell me what I need to do and look for. I want to think it's not that hard but I see others that setup with no problem and others that have everything which just blows me away. I want to have coral and maybe a couple fish not to many. I have the lights heater everything needed to start I just need the guidance on what to do look for and what's next. I know I'm probably over thinking things but it just gives me a headache always thinking about what to do and how to do it. So if someone be so kind on showing me the way I would apprieate it. Thanks all for your time on reading my posts and look forward on starting my quest. Thanks @rmyvet.
 
1) You need to measure the amount of water that will drain from the display tank in the even of a power failure and level that much or more extra space in your sump..
Typically you have anti-siphon holes drilled just below the normal water level in the display tank that when the water drains will break the siphon as air is pulled in or you just have the returns high enough that air enters and breaks the siphon or whatever..

2)salt does not evaporate.. So "top off water" is fresh RO/DI water with no salt in it at all..

3)Skimmers have a break in period so in general you run it wide open for a bit an then slowly start closing its valve after a week or so until you achieve the desired skimmate amount.. I personally shoot for trying to fill the cup in 1 week... Skimmers are only so efficient so don't go crazy thinking it must be perfect.. Its not a required piece of equipment at all but is optional and will not make or break a tank..

4) You can bring a refugium(chaeto) online whenever you want..

5) Use spaces to make your paragraphs easier to read... I may have missed some questions in there..

6) Don't overthink things.. Saltwater is really not that difficult... Just a few more parameters to watch if you get into corals ..
Don't worry about dosing or anything at this time..

7)The best thing you can do is maintain a roughly 20% water change every 2 weeks.. That alone is really all you need to do to have a successful experience.. All other equipment (skimmers,reactors,etc..) are all optional..


Also.
Nothing good happens fast in this hobby..

And relax.. Its supposed to be fun.. We can help with any problems but don't over react and don't over think..

Oh.. and never rely on one persons answers as truth (unless its me :) )
 
Check out the sticky threads on top of the new to the hobby and general discussion sections. They should answer most of your questions.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
@rmyvet;25362594]Hello fellow Reefers and Veterans,
I'm writing today because I'm almost complete on getting my equipment for a saltwater tank . I have been in the freshwater scenery for many years 30+ and to me its been so easy for me on everything i do between water changes and everything in general with no fear.

But saltwater omg between reading about it for 5 years and I still am learning more new stuff it scares the living daylight out of me. So much stuff so its coming down to like simple stuff I need to know and it just seems I can't find the answer but if I do its just part and the main reason its never mentioned.

So I have a 90 gallon with overflow and a sump which is 38"x14" 1/2 were skimmer sits 17" the refurium 11" filter3" return 6" I special ordered it from trigger to fit my cabinet and I don't know how many gallons it has. So my questions are as follows.

1)How do I fill the tank and sump to were if powerfails it won't overflow on to my floor.

2) When i mix the saltwater do I top off the tank when the water evaporates with the saltwater I have stored or do I top it off with freshwater from RODI.

3) How do I run or tune my skimmer I had found a video but I can't seem to find it now.

I have so much more but I didn't want to make this post a novel. So to start off I have the tank the sump the skimmer the RODI the two barrels to hold the saltwater and fresh RO and thinking on getting the chaetomorpha for the refurium but to know when to add this.

I'm in no hurry I will be cycling the tank for how long Hell I don't know till I read for how long or what to add to make it go faster. This is where I need to see if someone directs me to a site video or just tell me what I need to do and look for.

I want to think it's not that hard but I see others that setup with no problem and others that have everything which just blows me away. I want to have coral and maybe a couple fish not to many. I have the lights heater everything needed to start I just need the guidance on what to do look for and what's next.

I know I'm probably over thinking things but it just gives me a headache always thinking about what to do and how to do it. So if someone be so kind on showing me the way I would apprieate it. Thanks all for your time on reading my posts and look forward on starting my quest. Thanks @rmyvet.
 
Mcgyvr,

Thanks for the information. I know how I am I get to excited when I start a project but I'm just going to take it easy and just read to what everyone has to say. Its all about having fun and enjoying the hobby.

I fixed the post I didn't notice how I wrote everything together so I fixed it thanks.

One more thing why do people have a saltwater bin. I got two barrels thinking I am suppose to have one barrel saltwater and one barrel RO water. I thought that when you need to top off your sump it was with saltwater. So why have two barrels I just seen videos of people showing there tank setup and I see they have two barrels one tagged saltwater and the other RO water.

I know you told me to top off tank with RO which I misunderstood totally wrong and thought I had to add saltwater. So why do I see two barrels with two different waters. I seen it on BRS as well.

This is why I check first here I was going to mess everything up.

Thanks again
 
1)How do I fill the tank and sump to were if powerfails it won't overflow on to my floor.

The most recent build I did (a drilled 38g) I just bought a tiny sump that would actually fit under my stand. It wasn't very good planning TBH. However, I did a test run to see how much water would drain when my pump turned off and basically marked my fill line in the return chamber. I'm glad I tested because i had way too much water in the system but was ready and turned my pump back on really quick. Again, not the greatest planning but I knew that worst case, I'd buy a check valve to put on the return line to stop the draining from there.

2) When i mix the saltwater do I top off the tank when the water evaporates with the saltwater I have stored or do I top it off with freshwater from RODI.

Top off with RO/DI water. If you top off with salt water, you're salt level will creep up because salt doesn't evaporate like water does.

3) How do I run or tune my skimmer I had found a video but I can't seem to find it now.

Just turn it on. To break it in, I'd run it low, meaning the bubbles will stay towards the bottom on the body. Then you can slowly tweak it to skim dryer (less, but darker skim mate) or wetter (light colored, more of it). It's really a personal preference on how you decide to run it. Personally, it depends what I'm doing. My latest tank hasn't been set up very long so I've been battling hair algae, diatoms, the usual new tank stuff so I've been running my skimmer a bit wetter to get the extra organics out. However, once it's more balanced and tuned in, I'll probably run my skimmer a bit dryer, especially since I'll be dosing amino acids and such (I don't want them to get skimmed out right away).

Don't get nervous. It's a lot to learn. Research as much as you can. Try things but do it SLOWLY. The most famous quote in this hobby is "nothing good happens fast". I've found that to be true. Once you research things, decide what you think you want to do and go from there. If things are looking good and doing great, awesome! If not, start tuning things. Remember, it's takes a long while for a new tank to settle down/in. I consider myself moderately experienced and I still only have a few small fish, snails and some corals and my tank's been cycled for about 1.5 months. The corals I have are all hardy LPS corals on the sand bed, even though this will be SPS dominant. I just know from experience that things aren't balanced out yet. Heck, I think my first tank I let my live rock cycle for almost two months before I added my cleanup crew because someone told me to take it VERY slow. Now that I have more experience, I don't wait that long but I've been doing this for a decade.
 
@rmyvet said:
Mcgyvr,

Thanks for the information. I know how I am I get to excited when I start a project but I'm just going to take it easy and just read to what everyone has to say. Its all about having fun and enjoying the hobby.

I fixed the post I didn't notice how I wrote everything together so I fixed it thanks.

One more thing why do people have a saltwater bin. I got two barrels thinking I am suppose to have one barrel saltwater and one barrel RO water. I thought that when you need to top off your sump it was with saltwater. So why have two barrels I just seen videos of people showing there tank setup and I see they have two barrels one tagged saltwater and the other RO water.

I know you told me to top off tank with RO which I misunderstood totally wrong and thought I had to add saltwater. So why do I see two barrels with two different waters. I seen it on BRS as well.

This is why I check first here I was going to mess everything up.

Thanks again
Click to expand...

One barrel is where you keep a supply of RO/DI water and one barrel is where you mix your salt. Some people will store new salt water weeks at a time. I personally just mix it up a couple hours before I use it for a water change. Again, it's something you can make your mind up about once you get more experience. For now, top your tank off with RO/DI water and use a separate container to mix your NSW (new salt water) in. Make sure it's mixed well, heated and circulated then you should be doing a 10% water change every week (I prefer this, especially for small tanks) or 20% every two weeks (these are the "standards" some people use other methods and change more water or some use methods and don't hardly ever do water changes). Don't do any water change while you cycle the tank. Once you have no ammonia or nitrite (your tanks cycled) do a largish water change to bring down nitrate (which you should have).
 
Water changes (typically 20% every 2 weeks to start) are done with saltwater..
Thats mixed in a barrel by many..

Then some people also just store the RO/DI water for longer times and only mix in the salt right before they use it..

You mentioned BRS.. Did you watch their 52 weeks of reefing video series? I think that should get you up to speed real quick
 
Easiest way I found to fill the tank and sump is to keep filling from the tank until your sump is a 3 or 4 inches from overflowing then stop. You can then turn on your return pump. You may need a valve in the return line to slow the flow in case the pump is too fast for your weir to handle the flow. I have the same background as you, lots of years with fresh water. I debated discus or saltwater for years. I found one of the main things with saltwater besides husbandry (water changes etc.) is testing the water.
 
oldhead said:
Easiest way I found to fill the tank and sump is to keep filling from the tank until your sump is a 3 or 4 inches from overflowing then stop. You can then turn on your return pump. You may need a valve in the return line to slow the flow in case the pump is too fast for your weir to handle the flow. I have the same background as you, lots of years with fresh water. I debated discus or saltwater for years. I found one of the main things with saltwater besides husbandry (water changes etc.) is testing the water.
Click to expand...

Yup, keeping things stable (salinity, alk, calc, mag are the big ones, especially if you're going to get SPS or even LPS coral).
 
ramseynb said:
1)How do I fill the tank and sump to were if powerfails it won't overflow on to my floor.

The most recent build I did (a drilled 38g) I just bought a tiny sump that would actually fit under my stand. It wasn't very good planning TBH. However, I did a test run to see how much water would drain when my pump turned off and basically marked my fill line in the return chamber. I'm glad I tested because i had way too much water in the system but was ready and turned my pump back on really quick. Again, not the greatest planning but I knew that worst case, I'd buy a check valve to put on the return line to stop the draining from there.

2) When i mix the saltwater do I top off the tank when the water evaporates with the saltwater I have stored or do I top it off with freshwater from RODI.

Top off with RO/DI water. If you top off with salt water, you're salt level will creep up because salt doesn't evaporate like water does.

3) How do I run or tune my skimmer I had found a video but I can't seem to find it now.

Just turn it on. To break it in, I'd run it low, meaning the bubbles will stay towards the bottom on the body. Then you can slowly tweak it to skim dryer (less, but darker skim mate) or wetter (light colored, more of it). It's really a personal preference on how you decide to run it. Personally, it depends what I'm doing. My latest tank hasn't been set up very long so I've been battling hair algae, diatoms, the usual new tank stuff so I've been running my skimmer a bit wetter to get the extra organics out. However, once it's more balanced and tuned in, I'll probably run my skimmer a bit dryer, especially since I'll be dosing amino acids and such (I don't want them to get skimmed out right away).

Don't get nervous. It's a lot to learn. Research as much as you can. Try things but do it SLOWLY. The most famous quote in this hobby is "nothing good happens fast". I've found that to be true. Once you research things, decide what you think you want to do and go from there. If things are looking good and doing great, awesome! If not, start tuning things. Remember, it's takes a long while for a new tank to settle down/in. I consider myself moderately experienced and I still only have a few small fish, snails and some corals and my tank's been cycled for about 1.5 months. The corals I have are all hardy LPS corals on the sand bed, even though this will be SPS dominant. I just know from experience that things aren't balanced out yet. Heck, I think my first tank I let my live rock cycle for almost two months before I added my cleanup crew because someone told me to take it VERY slow. Now that I have more experience, I don't wait that long but I've been doing this for a decade.
Click to expand...


Thanks ramseynb,

I'm starting to get it now. I have a barrel of saltwater for water changes and the other barrel for RODI water to have on hand for top off.
I'm just waiting for my barrels to come in so I can start making water. I have done freshwater for so many years and discus have always been my fish. I would do once a week water changes so doing WC has never been a problem for me I'm use to doing them.

I'm going to give it a try on filling up the tank and the sump and Mark it.

I like to read but when you read and start getting into other things and equipment it gets mind blowing to how much stuff there is for the saltwater community. I know a lot of this is going to come with experience so I'll keep everyone informed on how my journey is going.

Thank you for the advice. @rmyvet
 
mcgyvr said:
Water changes (typically 20% every 2 weeks to start) are done with saltwater..
Thats mixed in a barrel by many..

Then some people also just store the RO/DI water for longer times and only mix in the salt right before they use it..

You mentioned BRS.. Did you watch their 52 weeks of reefing video series? I think that should get you up to speed real quick
Click to expand...


Thanks again mcgyvr yeah I get the barrels now lucky I asked because I would of ended up topping off with SW.

Yes I have seen some only when I look for a item I see that there's a video and I see he would mention the 52 week series. I'm going to just start from the beginning to watch the whole series. Thanks again @rmyvet
 
oldhead said:
Easiest way I found to fill the tank and sump is to keep filling from the tank until your sump is a 3 or 4 inches from overflowing then stop. You can then turn on your return pump. You may need a valve in the return line to slow the flow in case the pump is too fast for your weir to handle the flow. I have the same background as you, lots of years with fresh water. I debated discus or saltwater for years. I found one of the main things with saltwater besides husbandry (water changes etc.) is testing the water.
Click to expand...



Thanks oldhead,
I can try that as well. I do have a valve install did it just in case I needed it. Sorry for not knowing what you mean when you shorten the words but what does weir mean. I know its something simple. Its like texting my wife and friends they text me but start shortening the words and I'm like what the hell does that mean. I'm just old school I write in the whole word. Hahaha

So is that weir something else I need to be aware of. I know the moment I turn on for the first time all hell is going to break loose.

Well Thanks for the input I will take it all in. I had discus for 10 years loved it everyone that saw them thought my tank was salt. I only have a few now but I still have them.

Thanks again @rmyvet
 
@rmyvet said:
Thanks oldhead,
I can try that as well. I do have a valve install did it just in case I needed it. Sorry for not knowing what you mean when you shorten the words but what does weir mean. I know its something simple. Its like texting my wife and friends they text me but start shortening the words and I'm like what the hell does that mean. I'm just old school I write in the whole word. Hahaha

So is that weir something else I need to be aware of. I know the moment I turn on for the first time all hell is going to break loose.

Well Thanks for the input I will take it all in. I had discus for 10 years loved it everyone that saw them thought my tank was salt. I only have a few now but I still have them.

Thanks again @rmyvet
Click to expand...

That actually is the whole word. It is the toothy looking thing that drains the water back to the sump.

Weir=a low dam built across a river to raise the level of water upstream or regulate its flow.

You may have heard it called the overflow.
 
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