Aries85's RSM 35

A

Aries85

Reefing newb
Hi well as you can see from the post on the Introduction forum we went out and bought our RSM yesterday. After we got it all situated yesterday the LFS was close so we couldn't get any rock. Thats todays adventure and it should hopefull go well. So after I get done here at work I am going to head on over and get started. Here is another pic I took last night.

103_0842.jpg
 
No we picked up the tank yesterday and they close early on Sunday like 4pm or so. We only tried to over there once thats all.
 
That is today's plan. I was starting to feel sick at work if you know what I mean. I really did not want to come in, but rather sleep in and just go right on over the LFS.

We figrued 30-40lbs of rock for it should work nice. I just have to figure out how I am going to hold it together. I figured some epoxy from the LFS should hold it together well or I could always do some PVC if it comes down it.
 
What about sand? Don't forget sand. The rocks will hold themselves together. Just arrange them so that they are snug. Most people don't need to use anything to hold them together.
 
Sand was also on my list today. Whats a good rule of thumb for how many lbs of sand one would need. We were going for a bed of 2-3inches thick. Would that be adaquate amount for anything that would burrow in the sand?
 
I would say 40 Lbs of substrate in that tank should do.
My LFS has one they are really nice,

any plans on what fish you will keep.
 
We are probably going for some True Percula Clownfishx 2 or 1, Flame Angelfish, Longnose Hawkfish, Purple Psudo, Yellow Watchman Goby , Royal Gramma. I think there is one more fish I just cant think of the name.
 
So you decided to go with the hawkfish after all? Be careful not to stock too fast. Let your tank cycle for a couple weeks then add one fish. Watch your water parameters carefully. Then on out, you can add another fish every two weeks or so. Stocking slowly is the key -- you wouldn't believe how many times people dump three or four fish in at once and then they all 'mysteriously' die.
 
We are in no hurry to start adding fish to the system, I mean we are but we know we have to take our time. We plan on letting the tank sit for about a month or so until we get everything right. We are diffently trying to go about this the right way. I am heading out from work now to head to the LFS to get us some rock and sand. Will definatly post some pics later.
 
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Well we added our sand and rock today. We added about 30lbs of sand and about 30lbs of LR. Sorry for the cloudy pictures but the tank was nice and clear till I came home and decided to play with the rock and stir it up again.

On a side note. Does anyone know whats an easy way to hold the rock together? We tried some crap epoxy the LFS recommenced to us, but it held together like crap. Whats a safe alternative epoxy that I can get at like Home Depot or something like that? Also, should I run the protein skimmer while I am cycling the tank? As of right now we are not.

103_0844.jpg
 
Congratulations!
I mentioned elsewhere,those RSM are really nice.

Sorry I always use epoxy and it works well for me.Sometimes you have to push the putty into the pores of the rocks.Sometimes the rocks has to be supported until the putty dries.I've heard of people drilling holes and using plastic rods to hold rocks together.
 
You can also use some black zip ties to hold the rock.

I would run the skimmer while its cycling,mainly because its got to break in anyway and the cycle is as a time for that as any.
Good luck with it,You'll have an awesome reef before you know it.
 
Thats what I was thinking about doing was using zip ties but thats my project for tommorow then. We got some nice piece and they fit together nice we just want to make sure that they tumble on anything that will be in the tank later.

Thanks for info on the skimmer, will go turn it on now.
 
Run the skimmer. Try zip ties. There really isn't anything that you are going to put in that tank that will be capable of moving rocks. I wouldn't worry about it.
 
I don't know if the epoxy holds the rock well. I think it just makes a little mold for the other rocks to sit in, making them more stable. don't know from experience. just seems like I remember someone saying that at one time.
 
Should be ok with just setting them in there, the epoxy willl harden over time and lock everything together. A drawback of locking them all together is you cant ever take out the rocks (in an emergency) my :twocents:
 

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