New to Saltwater

[Dturner]

Hello, just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Daniel and 3 weeks ago I decided to convert my 60 gallon freshwater aquarium to salt. I had been a freshwater hobbiest for a little over 2 years and decided I was a little bored with it, so I made the jump.

It was a bit of a start up cost but I love every aspect of it 10x more than freshwater. I am basically glued to my tank now and wouldn't have it any other way.

I currently have 60 pounds of live rock (supposedly fiji), I started off with 2 clown fish and 1 lawnmower blennie. I also have 1 cleaner shrimp, 1 blood red fire shrimp, and one peppermint shrimp. I have a few snails, about 7 hermit crabs, red tipped and blue leg. After a few days I bought 2 leather corals (supposedly) and a set of polyps. I might have my terminology wrong there, but I'm still learning.

I'm looking to buy a diamond goby in a couple days and possibly another coral, but I'm not sure what to buy. Any suggestions would be nice. I attached a picture of my tank as it is. One of my leather corals' polyps have been closed up for 2 and a half days now. I am not sure whats going on with it.

That about sums it up. Thanks in advance for the info I'll be getting from these forums.

Edit: link to bigger picture of tank

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[dartmyth]

Have you tested your water to make sure tank has cycled.
and you should slow down on your stocking in saltwater you have to wait for the good bactira to catch up with your waste load.

 

[Bifferwine]

Hello, did you cycle the tank before adding all those animals? You are stocking very fast. You can't stock as fast in saltwater as you do in freshwater. It's a good idea to add no more than 1 fish every 3 or 4 weeks.

 

[karisfish]

Hello. your tank looks nice so far. I would listen to them about stocking slow and making sure you tank has cycled.

 

[Dturner]

Have you tested your water to make sure tank has cycled.
and you should slow down on your stocking in saltwater you have to wait for the good bactira to catch up with your waste load.

Thanks for your response.

Yes I have tested it on an almost daily basis. It has cycled. My test results as of yesterday are as follows:
Calcium: 380 ( I added a calcium supplement after seeing this)
KH: 235
Phosphate: 0
Nitrate - 5 to 10
PH 8.3
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0

When I started the tank I used TLC to help it cycle and I used 60 lbs of live rock for a little over a week and a half or so after letting live sand settle a couple days.

The owner of my local saltwater shop says I should be fine to add more fish and he actually seems like he has been looking out for my best interests, despite the fact that he owns the shop. He originally told me to wait before adding any more fish, then he tested my water over the weekend and says I should be fine.

Looking at my test results as of yesterday, do you still think I should wait?

Thanks again.

 

[Dturner]

Hello, did you cycle the tank before adding all those animals? You are stocking very fast. You can't stock as fast in saltwater as you do in freshwater. It's a good idea to add no more than 1 fish every 3 or 4 weeks.

I did make sure my tank was cycled before adding any life to it. I guess I should wait a little longer before adding more. I'm going on a trip to Las Vegas in a couple weeks, I may just wait till I get back before adding anything else. I get back on the 24th. I'm sure at that point I can add more fish/coral right? If so, can I add coral and fish at the same time?


Thanks again for all of the great info guys. Greatly appreciated.

 

[karisfish]

its good you started with live rock! Just keep in mind that before your tank cycles your water will look great then all the sudden it spikes (it can be up to a month after you set up the tank) then it goes back to normal slowly. Just keep an eye on it and you should be fine. Some tanks never go though a cycle if you start with live rock and live sand.

 

[Smitty]

Hello and welcome to the site...the tank looks good so far. My advice is the same as everyone else's...slow down on stocking to give your tanks bacteria time to catch up and handle the bio-load.

 

[AmberSunrise]

Looks good so far my tank didnt have a huge cycle either live rock helps but I agree slow down just a little give the bacteria some time to catch up to breaking down all the poop.

If you get an itch to buy something new stick with ricordias, muchrooms and other easy corals it will add color and interest without more fish waste and poop.

 

[Dturner]

Looks good so far my tank didnt have a huge cycle either live rock helps but I agree slow down just a little give the bacteria some time to catch up to breaking down all the poop.

If you get an itch to buy something new stick with ricordias, muchrooms and other easy corals it will add color and interest without more fish waste and poop.

I just checked out your tank progression. Very nice. I am inspired by the corals you picked in the beginning and once I give my tank a few more weeks I think I'm going to go a similar route. I also want the same sleeper goby you have, those things are so cool.

Which of your corals do you like best?

 

[BL1]

Welcome to the site!

You've gotten some good advise so far. The only thing I can add is that you don't need to dose calcium at this point. It won't become a factor until you start keeping hard corals (LPS,SPS, clams).

 

[AmberSunrise]

I just checked out your tank progression. Very nice. I am inspired by the corals you picked in the beginning and once I give my tank a few more weeks I think I'm going to go a similar route. I also want the same sleeper goby you have, those things are so cool.

Which of your corals do you like best?

Thanks!
My goby is called a watchman diamond goby they like to sift sand and will really keep it stirred up and natural looking. Make sure that your rocks are very solid because they like to dig under then and might cause them to move and smoosh him! He is a hoot to watch in action but my midas blenny is hands down my favorite fish, so interactive and curious I just love it.

I think so far my favorite corals are my ricordias they grow fast and come in a ton of awesome colors. The frogspawn I recently got is really bright and colorful too so its hard to pick a favorite!

I upgraded my bulb to the fiji purple which REALLY makes the colors pop out better than the blue that came with my light fixture.

 

[Aquatic]

Welcome to the site! Don't be shy now! Ask more questions and we'll be glad to help you out.

Feel free to check out our chat room as well. Most people are usually on between 5-8 ish PST time. It's also a great way to get instant replies to your questions!

 

[Dturner]

Welcome to the site! Don't be shy now! Ask more questions and we'll be glad to help you out.

Feel free to check out our chat room as well. Most people are usually on between 5-8 ish PST time. It's also a great way to get instant replies to your questions!

Thanks. I do have a question now that you mentioned it.

I was just browsing around and saw some discussion about lighting and couldn't get a good answer. I have a 60 gallon tank, It's 48" long, 24" high and 12" wide.

I have attached a picture of the box of the light I purchased. Is this light sufficient for a coral tank? I sure hope so. I may have gotten a little ripped off on it, I paid roughly $150 for it. But that was from a shop that I don't go to anymore because they have no clue what they're talking about and are pretty shady.



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[BL1]

Unfortunately, that light won't be enough to keep corals, and you definitely paid way too much for it. It happens to most of us just coming into the hobby though.

 

[Dturner]

Unfortunately, that light won't be enough to keep corals, and you definitely paid way too much for it. It happens to most of us just coming into the hobby though.

Ouch. What do you suggest I do? I can't see myself buying a new one anytime soon after spending that much on the first one. Plus the hood I have only has room for one light.

Man that is a buzz-kill for sure.

Thanks for letting me know.

 

[BL1]

Well, for the time being, you could always keep the tank as a FOWLR (Fish Only With Live Rock) until you're ready to upgrade the lighting.

 

[Dturner]

What type of lighting would you recommend I purchase when I would like to upgrade?

I definitely want corals in my tank. I haven't heard a lot of good things about metal halide due to the heat produced.

And do you recommend I remove my hood from my tank? I've heard mixed opinions. I just replaced the lights that came with my tank with the 48" t5 light. So there is only a 3-4" glass window for a light to go over. I feel like if I remove my hood the water will evaporate too quickly.

 

[Dturner]

And do I need to replace the fixture or just the bulbs?

 

[Dturner]

And one final question, these thoughts keep popping in my head. What is a good website to buy lighting? I don't think my local shops have a wide variety of lighting.