My first tank!!

[BL1]

I think I'll keep doing what I'm doing now (and PM Dennis to see what he did). And if my ammonia or Nitrites spike too high I can get them out and into the 10g setup. I'm trying out this whole patience thing that you're supposed to have in this hobby, we'll see how that works out

 

[rwynn]

Patience is so much easier said then done!

 

[d2mini]

YOU HAVE TO DO WATER CHANGES!

Richard knows EXACTLY what he is doing. Follow his instructions to the letter!
Setting up a TBS tank is completely different than setting up a regular tank.
With TBS, it's more like transferring an established system from one tank to another, as if you were upgrading tanks. Everything you are putting in your tank was in the ocean just days ago and never left the ocean water. With TBS you get an instant reef! And just a very short cycle. As soon as those nitrates get up to 20+, start doing large water changes or you will lose all that great life that came with the rock and sand. Change out 25% of the water every day until the nitrates drop to 20 or lower. Should take 3-6 days to come down. Once it does you are done and ready to get Part II! Then you will do the same thing and this time it's even more important because you will have even more life and more sensitive animals. It's a lot of work but for only a very short time! Then you are pretty much good to go. My tank is only two months old and it looks better than my 1 year old tank ever did! I have 3 fish including a sailfin tang, corals, sponges, stars, clams, etc. I will never start a reef tank without TBS ever again. :bowdown:

 

[BL1]

Rwynn, trust me I know, I have less patience than most.

Thanks Dennis, I've been following Richards directions so far (just wanted to make sure since this is my first tank). And I agree with you, for his customer service alone I'd continue dealing with him ... but his stock is amazing as well!

 

[BL1]

Well, did another 25% water change today and caught some bad hitchhikers (mantis shrimp and gorilla crabs). Also, ordered a 4-channel Power switch center for my stand and started shopping around for an RO/DI unit (buying gallons of water is starting to add up) I'm looking at the 4-stage 50gpd model Aquarium Water Quality: Pure-Flo II RO Units
What do you guys think?

 

[d2mini]

I always recommend the guys at The Filter Guys
Great quality products and great customer service.
Prices are darn good too especially when you take into account what you are getting.
I have the Ocean Reef+1 RO/DI which comes with the dual tds meter, pressure gauge, quick connect fittings, etc.
RO/DI Systems

 

[BL1]

Thanks Dennis, I'm checking them out now. Trying to decide between 4 or 5 different ones now. :frustrat:

 

[BL1]

Checked my water today Ammonia is finally 0! Nitrites up at .25 now. Also, picked up the Acrylic for my fuge today unfortunately Lowes and HD don't sell the cement anymore so I have to wait for that to come in the mail. My temporary solution is the new media/filter basket (pics attached), As you can see the new one(on left) is much larger with larger chambers. With the stock one there would be so much overflow that not all the water coming from the tank was being filtered. Now when I add my chaeto to the basket I can ensure all the water flows through it.

Also, started a crazy outbreak of diatoms and hair algae.

 

[BL1]

Waiting on part #2 of my package from TBS, Richard should be diving this week to get it. Also, ordered my first fish today from Live Aquaria, a tank-bred Ocellaris Clownfish, that way he can spend a few weeks in QT before going in the DT.
Also, attached an updated FTS, I'll be re-scaping it once I get the next part of my package.

 

[BL1]

Got some of Biff's chaeto in today, added it into my temporary fuge until I can continue on my under tank one. Also added some pods into the fuge to get them going. Still waiting on part 2 from TBS before I rescape my rocks. And I found 2 more emerald crabs (that makes 4 so far)

 

[Bifferwine]

Wow, nice looking chaeto! Hope you like it! ;)

 

[Ulta]

I was wondering... for a situation similar to BL1's where he has critters... how would introducing a bacteria supplement from the LFS to take care of the ammonia/nitrite spikes and speed up the cycle?

Haven't really seen any posts referring to that at all really.
(I know his tank is prolly cycled my now xD) I'm new and doing a lot of catch up readings... Its cool to explore other peoples learning experiences!

 

[Bifferwine]

Bacteria convert ammonia to nitrite, and nitrite to nitrate. In a new tank, you don't have a lot of bacteria, so there really isn't much to convert ammonia and nitrite. That's why ammonia and nitrite build up in a new tank. It takes a few weeks for the bacterial population to rise to a large enough size that they can keep the ammonia and nitrites at zero. The bacterial supplements contain large amounts of these bacteria, so in theory, you are instantly populating your tank with the right levels of bacteria to handle these waste products.

In practice, the bacterial supplements don't seem to work very well. People that use them still go through a cycle, and the cycles still take the same amount of time as someone who just waited it out. You're better off saving your money.

 

[RIJohn]

Any photos since the second half of the package? Did it come in yet?

 

[BL1]

Yep, I've got it in ... I posted them in a different thread but forgot to post them here I guess. The layout will change again sometime next week when I get the sump setup and move some of the rock down there

And of course my current project

 

[BL1]

Ok, so here's some updated pics, unfortunately all but one of my sponges have died (not really a surprise). The layout may change again before I'm happy but, I think it's coming along pretty well.

My new sump up and running for 1 day

 

[RIJohn]

Your tanks is coming along nicely.

Aquascaping with the LR from TBS is extremely hard I have to say. HUGE pieces that are really funny shaped and just dont stack well at all.

 

[BL1]

Your tanks is coming along nicely.

Aquascaping with the LR from TBS is extremely hard I have to say. HUGE pieces that are really funny shaped and just dont stack well at all.

I agree, I took a chisel to a few pieces, to try and make it a little easier

 

[reeffreak]

Looks really nice BL.Great job on the sump.

How do you like the sand from TBS.It's just so crush coral looking,no offense.

 

[BL1]

Looks really nice BL.Great job on the sump.

How do you like the sand from TBS.It's just so crush coral looking,no offense.

I know what you mean, I'm really not crazy about how it looks. I've got Argonite in the sump and it's 100x better looking but, I can't argue with sand thats coming directly from the ocean. As much as I wish it was finer grained sand, I still plan on buying another package from TBS when I eventually upgrade.