water is in!

[RobNJ]

Well everyone, I finally did it, I cleaned out my old freshwater tank and took the saltwater plunge


So far I my 40 High setup with salt, water, and live sand.

I added the water about 2 hours ago, the water is still pretty cloudy, I assume it will take awhile for the sandstorm to go away? Should I have my pumps and powerheads off?

Is this cloudyness normal after filling the tank, my SG is 1.021 I think I need to bring it up a hair. Thoughts?

And the Journey begins!


Cheers
Rob

 

[aquawolf]

What kind of filtration/pump are you using? Is this a drilled tank or is everything hang-on-back?

If it is drilled and you have a sump, you could put some polyfill pads in there to catch a lot of the loose dust as it circulates and keep that part of the system turned on.

I would keep the powerheads off for now as they will just continue to stire up the sand. Not to mention the little particles they will suck in that may eventually cause them to wear down faster.

Good luck on your new journey, it should be one heck of a ride!

 

[bertoni]

The cloud is abrasive, so I'd turn off any expensive pumps, for sure.

This article discusses all the water parameters, and is very handy:

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.php

I target 1.026-1.027 for SG.

 

[Randall_James]

I would work the salinity up to 1.025. min.
The sand storm will settle pretty quickly.

If you can induce a bit of ammonia to the system (fish food, dead shrimp etc) it will help as the bacteria will begin to bind the sand particles together. I would keep some circulation going but probably no need for everything running yet.

Did you obtain any "seed" sand yet? If not, see if you can locate a local reefer willing to part with a bit or try BillsReef.com

 

[RobNJ]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7318573#post7318573 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Randall_James
I would work the salinity up to 1.025. min.
The sand storm will settle pretty quickly.

If you can induce a bit of ammonia to the system (fish food, dead shrimp etc) it will help as the bacteria will begin to bind the sand particles together. I would keep some circulation going but probably no need for everything running yet.

Did you obtain any "seed" sand yet? If not, see if you can locate a local reefer willing to part with a bit or try BillsReef.com

What exactly is seed sand? all i have in the tank right now is 80 lbs of live fiji pink sand.

 

[RobNJ]

When I look at the water, it is so cloudy, i guess its sand "dust" , cuase i dont really see any sand particles in the water itself, i am just concerned, its been about 4 hours and the tank is pretty darn cloudy , unless thats normal.

 

[aquawolf]

Seed sand is live sand from an established system. You can add this to your new system to help kickstart the biological cycle. Since you already used 80 lbs of live sand, you have lots of bacteria, but the larger life forms will come slowly. The established sand should already contain these larger life forms.

The sand storm will probably be cleared up in the morning, so maybe you should try to get some sleep and, hopefully, be happily surprised when you wake up.

 

[RobNJ]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7318659#post7318659 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by aquawolf
Seed sand is live sand from an established system. You can add this to your new system to help kickstart the biological cycle. Since you already used 80 lbs of live sand, you have lots of bacteria, but the larger life forms will come slowly. The established sand should already contain these larger life forms.

The sand storm will probably be cleared up in the morning, so maybe you should try to get some sleep and, hopefully, be happily surprised when you wake up.

Thanks aquawolf

- Rob

 

[Randall_James]

It can take a couple days to clear the haze

Sorry I was not more clear on the "seed" sand