Hi from Upstate NY!

[kid_sublime]

Hello everyone! Name is Josh and I have just purchased my first saltwater tank over this holiday weekend. I picked up a nice 65g cube tank used, now i know very little about this saltwater business, but i am quite familiar with freshwater Cichlids. I'm hoping to make a nice transition, hopefully, with the help of the kind people on this forum and my LFS!

I'm also an avid RC car racer, so if anyone needs help going fast... talk to this guy!

So the gear i picked up other than the tank with stand is a "TEK" light with 4 T5 HO lights, 2 with a more white spectrum and 2 with more blue spectrum. also came with a sump, (unsure of size/gallon) a protein skimmer that seems rather large as it sits in the sump. All pumps and hoses with 2 powerheads included! All for $300 :D

As of now I had to use tap water because i haven't got the RO system yet, I got no fish but I do have 50lbs of live rock and a few snails. I just noticed from reading this forum that the tank does have Aiptasia :frustrat:

Anyway thanks for reading my rant! Good to be here :mrgreen:

 

[Smitty]

Hello and welcome to the site... glad to have you aboard.

 

[wontonflip]

Welcome to the site!

Good luck with that tap ;) I started out with tap; couldn't get my nitrates down lol took a while to get it to 0 once i got my RODI.

 

[kid_sublime]

Thanks! Gotta start somewhere right? What would you recommend for an RO unit? Is RODI a brand or some fancy slang I'm just not up on yet? LOL I finally got cuc (clean up crew) and DT (display tank) I think.... :-)

 

[wontonflip]

RO: Reverse Osmosis DI: Deionization

Someone can do the technical explanation cuz that's how far as I get LOL I use a brand called Captive Purity, and it's a 4-stage filter. I got mine from my LFS. Other get theirs from The Filter Guys or from Saltwater and Reef Aquarium Supplies - Bulk Reef Supply Get whatever you can afford...it's better than using tap. Don't forget to get a TDS meter for it.

 

[kid_sublime]

check, check, and check! thanks!

 

[Ted]

welcome to the forum, if you cant get a rodi unit right away you can get it from most LFS or distilled at walmart is good. In a pinch ro water from those machines in the parking lot will be better then tap as well. RODI is best at home or LFS, ro or distilled next, tap last. Glad to have you aboard. :Cheers:

 

[kid_sublime]

what machines in the parking lot do you mean?

 

[Ted]

Around here we have RO drinking water machines that you take your own container to. Most cost 25 cents a gallon. In walmart they have the machines as well that are 29 cents a gallon.

 

[kid_sublime]

wow i could use that lol

 

[ReddyW]

Good luck with the Aptasia. I've been using Aptasia X and it's worked on both Aptasia and Mojanos. I've also tried it on some Yellow Polyps and some unwanted Palys, but they came back.

There's lots of reefers in Rochester, and you've got some great stores there. I'd check out ABC reefs. They also have great prices on boxes of salt.

Good luck!

 

[baeya]

Welcome to the forum! I live in Weedsport, NY. I also shop at ABC Reefs.

 

[little_fish]

Hello and Welcome!

My boyfriend is also an RC car racer

 

[poksal]

RO is a later stage in a set of filter canisters, first you filter out sediment, then down to a smaller size, then down to even smaller, then the RO (reverse osmosis) which is a membrane wrapped around a tube. The water is forced down through the length of the membrane and about 1/3 of the incoming eater is shunted off to the waste drain. The remaining water is down to about 8 to 4 parts per million.. that then passes through one more canister which is a DI (de-ionization) filter. This filter canister has special material in it that (according to if you buy the top grade) changes color as it is used up. That filter canister takes the water down to .000 parts per million and we like to change them when the color indicates or the ppm gets up to about .004.

Frequently the RODI unit comes with a meter which reads the PPT. It reads if there are any particles in the water which will pass an electric current. Pure water does not conduct electricity. It does not mean the water is absolutely pure, but if the meter does not read any particles that will conduct electricity it is a fairly good indication that the water is pure enough for a reef tank... and that is the best test we have that we can afford.

You can purchase the meters (TDS) separate and they are by far one of the less expensive toys for the $$ you can have in this hobby. Many of us would not be without our TDS meter.

 

[kid_sublime]

thats awesome little fish! i don't know how i'm going to manage both hobbies but i'm going to try lol

thanks for the info poksal, the RODI unit is numero uno on my list as of now, along with a small holding tub for water, TDS meter and a whole lot of patience!!!! the latter i believe will be the hardest for me, yet most crucial! i'm used to instant gratification :-)

 

[poksal]

thats awesome little fish! i don't know how i'm going to manage both hobbies but i'm going to try lol

thanks for the info poksal, the RODI unit is numero uno on my list as of now, along with a small holding tub for water, TDS meter and a whole lot of patience!!!! the latter i believe will be the hardest for me, yet most crucial! i'm used to instant gratification :-)

well.... you are in good company as far as patience... I have spent my professional past life causing things to happen and expecting results.. when the results were not there or slow it was my fault... this reef tank patience thing kills me ....some things take months and coral growth is measured in amounts you can only see if you look at a past picture of your tank.... but is good for me.. I think... if I survive it. ..LOL ...:h5: