Starting Dead

[dscola]

Hey all. I got a great deal on a ton of equipment from a reefer who's getting out of the hobby. Included in the package is all the rock and sand that I'll need. However, it's all "dead" and has been dry for some time.

I have a very limited amount of LS and LR I can seed it with from my nano. My question is, how much do LS and LR will I need to start the bio filter (10%)? Also, is it necessary to do cure the dead stuff, or can I just give it a quick scrub and rinse.

 

[rustybucket145]

You don't really need that much. maybe a cup full of sand and a pretty decent sized rock will do the trick.

What size tank is it?

 

[dscola]

Thanks Rusty. It's a 120g with a 30g sump. I'm upgrading from 14g! It's good that I don't need much because I can't afford to pull much out of the nano without comprimising its bio filter.

 

[coyoteseven]

If you happen to have a sponge filter that fits over a power head intake or the like, let it run/sit in your established tank for about a week or two, then put it in the sump or display of the new setup. The bacteria from it will migrate out and also help jumpstart your new system.

JMHO

 

[rustybucket145]

Why don't you add a couple of cups of sand to the nano a few weeks before you're going to take some out. This will give the biofiltration a chance to spread.

For a tank as big as a 120 I would seed a cup to begin with and then another cup a week later and another cup a week later. You can just replace the sand you take out of the nano, just be sure not to replace too much of it at one time.

 

[dscola]

I currently keep a stocking full of sand in one of the rear comopartments of my nano which I use for my QT. I'll probably just dump this in and rotate in a new one. (Does anybody else do this?) I may also just pony up and by a 20 bag of CaribSea live sand also.

PS - as a guy, it is a unique experience attempting to explain to the cashier that the ladies stockings your buying are for your reef tank.

 

[Sk8r]

Back in the Jurassic, we used to start systems from totally dead rock, even rock that hadn't seen the ocean since the Devonian, and they still cycled, via a little fishfood and the right water balance and about a month of waiting. Algaes float in the air, I'm convinced, and you'll get algae growth and processes without even trying.

 

[rustybucket145]

I may also just pony up and by a 20 bag of CaribSea live sand also

Do as you will but there's really absolutely no real reason that to start with a bag of storebought live sand. Just go to HD or Lowes and save yourself several hundred dollars.... The sand in your nano is more live that the 'livesand' in a bag will ever be.

then spend that several hundred dollars on necessary equipment or livestock!

 

[jwandersee]

If it is possible to "create" the liverock, why do people spend hundreds of dollars to purchase all LR?

 

[joekr]

With me when I had my 65 it was ignorance. I had no idea I could buy dead rock and seed it with a piece of live rock from an established tank...I know better now and am doing exactly that in my sparkling new 90 aga that is 1/2 full of water..

 

[reefshadow]

You should cure that dead live rock, it is bound to be full of dried junk. Alternatively you can bleach it in order to use it sooner. That's what i would do. It's dead anyway so that's ok.

 

[dscola]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9662682#post9662682 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rustybucket145
Do as you will but there's really absolutely no real reason that to start with a bag of storebought live sand. Just go to HD or Lowes and save yourself several hundred dollars.... The sand in your nano is more live that the 'livesand' in a bag will ever be.

then spend that several hundred dollars on necessary equipment or livestock!

I'd love to go that route, but from what I've read, you can only get silicate sand at HD. By not using an aragonite sand, don't you limit some of the benefits of a DSB (PH buffering/Calcium contribution namely)?

 

[coyoteseven]

Originally posted by dscola
I'd love to go that route, but from what I've read, you can only get silicate sand at HD. By not using an aragonite sand, don't you limit some of the benefits of a DSB (PH buffering/Calcium contribution namely)?

I've used silica (quartz) based sand in all my tanks without the slightest problem. I get the initial diatom bloom, like ALL tanks, but it quickly disappeared and has never returned.

I figure that since silica (quartz) is the most abundant chemical compound on earth and that roughly 95% (give or take a couple percent) of the oceans floor is covered with the stuff... ... ... what's good enough for Mother Nature's 'tanks' is good enough for mine.

 

[joekr]

I am going BB so I don't have the sand variable to worry about...

 

[dscola]

I'd still love t go with an aragonite "sugar fine" sand if I could. Problem is, it's so damn expensive. I read some dated posts about Southdown Play Sand which was an aragonite sand and was available at HD at one point, but seems to be no longer available. Anybody know if you can get cheap aragonite sand anywhere now?

 

[coyoteseven]

Originally posted by dscola
IAnybody know if you can get cheap aragonite sand anywhere now?

You can get it by the ton in Ft. Pierce, FL... but tell them it's for landscaping, kid's sandbox, etc. ... ... ... ANYTHING but aquarium use, or they'll make you unload every last grain. Something about an exclusive contract with CaribSea for that purpose.