75G SW Tank HELP!

[little_fish]

You can for sure mix dry=base rock with live rock! And it will seed itself on it own, and you can add it now!

You should leave the shrimp in there for a couple of days, and test your levels dailyish. Just make sure you see the spike or can document that you didnt have one even with the shrimp in there.

And the lighting is really going to depend on more than just the type. How many watts you have is important, along with type of watts. But i would just keep the lights you have with a FOWLER tank until you can buy nice lights that you wont need to upgrade. Look into the T5's.

 

[sperryx91]

Right now im using carb. sea super reef aragonite sand, im pretty sure its not live, but later on will it become live sand?

 

[little_fish]

yep!

Live only means that has a population of bacteria in it that can complete waste cycle in our tanks. And over time the bacteria will be everywhere!

 

[sperryx91]

good news thank you! also another question on the sand for down the road if im forced to re locate. say i were to break the tank down, would i be able to leave the sand in the tank and just add my water back in when i settle down again? Or would i have to rinse it, ive read different things on the web but figured id ask the pros.

(Just planning ahead so if the time does come im prepared :) )

 

[bjohanson1234]

IMO, it would be easier to just buy new sand if you are moving the tank. Especially if you will be having it torn down for more than a few days. It is a pain to clean it out. And stirring up all the crap will cause more troubles.

Rinse out the sand very well if you are going to keep it.

 

[little_fish]

Ya, dont ever move a tank with the sand still in it (or water), that can put unindented stress on it causing a break.

But you either need to rinse it very well, or get new sand (easiest option).

 

[sperryx91]

would i be able to use tap water to rinse? or still use RO or distilled water?

 

[little_fish]

Tap is fine for rising, i would use a garden hose stuck in a bucket with the sand in it to rinse it.

 

[sperryx91]

would a t5 lighting system be strong enough for corals? i plan to just start out with the mix of live/base rock, with a few corals.

I would like to have a mated pair of clowns, are there any specific corals that would up my chances for them to host it? or is that just hit and miss

 

[sperryx91]

another question i forgot to add in the post above would i be able to add the corals when i add my starter fish after the cycle is complete?

 

[daugherty]

no i would wait at least a couple months before adding any coral after adding a fish. let the tank get established a bit. nothing happens fast in this hobby except disaster

 

[little_fish]

Yes a t5 lighting system is great for corals. I would check out the nova extremem pros. They will let you keep pretty much anything you want.

Also the clowns will decided where they want to live, mine like the overflow other like powerheads, or hair algae. Plus they can cause quite a bit of damage to some smaller LPS corals. Look into the hairy mushrooms for your clowns. They are a great beginner coral and if you clowns beat them up it wont hurt them.

Also if you have a pair of clowns, its not a gaurnetee that they will mate. And i would wait at least a couple of weeks after adding your first fish to add your first corals.

 

[sperryx91]

awsome thank you. Also, for water changes, i bought an aquarium vaccum a few weeks ago, and was practicing getting the siphon going for when i extract the "old" water from the tank into a bucket to be disgarded (Which was sucessful). But when i tried to get the siphon going from the bucket on the ground, with the "New water" into a "practice" tank on the table, i was unable to do so. I've watched videos on youtube, and see people are using powerheads to help pump the Newly made water back into the tank, making it ALOT easier it seems. No sucking, and no need to start a siphon. I was wondering which powerheads would be ideal for this? and which ones have a spot to hook up plain tubing to help push the newly made water back into the tank?

*Hope this doesnt seem too rediculous lol, but i just would like to clear that up for when the time comes. thanks guys

 

[BL1]

I used a Maxi-jet 1200 when I was doing my water changes.