Water, Sand, and LiveRock going in this weekend

thelawnwrangler

thelawnwrangler

New member
I am looking for any pro tips as I will be getting water, sand, and live rock from my lfs this weekend.

The sell RO/DI pre salted water (they over different salinity) I am going to go with whatever the juvenile clowns they bred are in. It is in with anemone so I am guessing it is on the higher side. They also do a ton of coral.

My question really relates to sequence. Please look at my plan and take shots.

1. Half water goes in tank
2. Live rock starts going in (making sure it is covered my water at all times)
3. Put in live sand (this is the scary part want to try and minimize dust storm.
4. More water
5. rest of rock
6. Fill complete
7. Turn it on

I don't care how simple it might be this is my first salt tank so any suggestion would be much appreciated.
 
That looks like a pretty good plan, very similar to how I did mine. I would say to make sure you rinse the sand well but your using live sand. I used a 2 inch piece of pvc to pour the sand down and then slowly pulled the pvc up while moving it. I cut the end of a funnel off and duct taped it to the top of the PVC. A somewhat slow process but it minimized the dust cloud.

My only experience with live sand was some that I added after the tank was running and it was pretty cloudy. Good luck just my 2 cents.
 
Put the rock in after the sand. Sand first, then rock, then add water. Rinsing the live sand kinda defeats the whole purpose of the live sand and bacteria it adds, IMO.
 
I'll take the other side on the rock/sand debate. I strongly recommend placing the rock first, then the sand. If you put the rock on top of the sand the sand will shift over time and your rocks will become unstable. I personally like to put down a sheet of plastic egg crate first which helps lock the rock in place, then place the rock and add the sand last. If you already have the live sand I would rinse the sand in salt water to minimize the dust, but honestly you are better off with dry sand that you can wash well with tap water outside and eliminate almost all the dust. Typical live sand has more dead than live organics in it and since you pay for the water it is shipped in it is more expensive than dry sand with little or no benefit to your tank.
 
+1 on rocks first for the reasons stated above.
I have done with and without eggcrate and IMO, either way is good.
Never used live sand, could not understand how anything could be alive after possibly months on a store shelf.
I have always used well rinsed ( and then rinsed again ) dry sand. Still get some cloudiness, but it clears quickly.
 
kmbyrnes said:
+1 on rocks first for the reasons stated above.
I have done with and without eggcrate and IMO, either way is good.
Never used live sand, could not understand how anything could be alive after possibly months on a store shelf.
I have always used well rinsed ( and then rinsed again ) dry sand. Still get some cloudiness, but it clears quickly.
Click to expand...

I was leaning against egg crate that said I looked for it and couldn't find it at lowes. Was in lighting section.

So live sand seems like a waste? I can wash dead sand in tap?

what do I do dump it in a bucket of tap and then scoop out bottom?
 
I dump the sand into a 5g bucket about 3/4 full then run the garden hose in it till it runs clear. You will save some bucks to use on a fish or coral to boot.

I cut some eggcrate up into pieces to put my rock on.
 
gone fishin said:
I dump the sand into a 5g bucket about 3/4 full then run the garden hose in it till it runs clear. You will save some bucks to use on a fish or coral to boot.

I cut some eggcrate up into pieces to put my rock on.
Click to expand...

thanks

3/4 full of water or 3/4 full of sand?

kind of liking dead sand

LFS was trying to get me to buy into bare bottom. I really like the look of sand
 
Sorry 3/4 full of sand. Yeah I never really liked the bare bottom look just to sterile looking for me. they each have their pros and cons.
 
gone fishin said:
Sorry 3/4 full of sand. Yeah I never really liked the bare bottom look just to sterile looking for me. they each have their pros and cons.
Click to expand...

thanks for sharing tip

is there a size you prefer- I guess that is personal preference? I see some suggest large sand is a trap for waste. I plan to suction at water changes
 
I like the mid range or medium sized grains. To small and they blow around all over the place and to big they seem to trap detritus like you said. Some bottom dwellers don't much care for the large course stuff either IMO.
 
gone fishin said:
I dump the sand into a 5g bucket about 3/4 full then run the garden hose in it till it runs clear. You will save some bucks to use on a fish or coral to boot.

I cut some eggcrate up into pieces to put my rock on.
Click to expand...

but then don't you want to use RO/DO? Using the garden hose you're introducing whatever impurities in the water directly to the sand...
 
chimmike said:
but then don't you want to use RO/DO? Using the garden hose you're introducing whatever impurities in the water directly to the sand...
Click to expand...

After the water is drained off of the sand there really is not much water left. the little bit that is left would not really matter IMO. One could always do a final rinse with RO/DI if they thought it would be an issue.
 
1 day away - nervous lol

so I am going with dry sand medium grade hopefully, and 40-45 pounds of live rock for LFS. (36 gallon tank)

They have some nice flat pieces that I will use for shelfs. I will have one higher than the other. Are there certain water depths I should try to hit if I know I want to get into easy corals/polyps in the future, but I am unsure which ones?
 
I guess I should have said earlier: Go with dry/dead rock. This significantly decreases your chances of unwanted hitchhikers. This will also allow you to build your aquascape without pressure of keeping the LR in water.
 
thelawnwrangler said:
1 day away - nervous lol

so I am going with dry sand medium grade hopefully, and 40-45 pounds of live rock for LFS. (36 gallon tank)

They have some nice flat pieces that I will use for shelfs. I will have one higher than the other. Are there certain water depths I should try to hit if I know I want to get into easy corals/polyps in the future, but I am unsure which ones?
Click to expand...

I hate to say it but when it comes to coral placement I have found trial and error is usually the way.

I will start them down low to let them get acclimated to my lighting. Then move them around to see where they work best taking into account flow and lighting.
 
gone fishin said:
I hate to say it but when it comes to coral placement I have found trial and error is usually the way.

I will start them down low to let them get acclimated to my lighting. Then move them around to see where they work best taking into account flow and lighting.
Click to expand...

Good to know sounds like I am gong to want some options in my aquascaping
 
I chose dry rock for that same reason. I think it probably took longer for it to cycle but it was peace of mind knowing there wasn't anything extra on it that I didn't want.
 
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