New to this

zen97

Reefing newb
Hello everybody,
Just purchased a 46 gallon with "all the trimming" (Live rock,sand,filter,lighting...) The store is delivering and setting up tomorrow. What now? :smile: I was told to bring a water sample back to the store on sunday... they will check the water and maybe I would be able to purchase a "test" fish. (We bought the tank for my 7yr old daughter but as usual daddy will maintain it) Where can i get a good beginner guide? Any advice will be appreciated :) THANKS.
 
There are some good guides in the user articles section. Focus on fish selection ones and basic maintenance ones. You should also look into basic water chemistry stuff as well. It's all not really that tough. Sounds like you bought a ready to go outfit so probably won't have to worry about a cycle. You want to get your own test kit and learn how to test it yourself and learn to do water changes weekly to keep your nitrates from building up. As for fish walk your daughter through the pet store and see what she likes the most. Then research those fish to see if they are compatible. If your also going to grow corals this limits your fish selection down a lot.
 
Welcome, this site is a very good start for a beginner. This is a good book for every level of marine aquarist The Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Robert M. Fenner; Christopher Turk; Matthew L. Wittenrich; Scott W. Michael (Hardcover - Revised Ed.): booksamillion.com . I would buy your own test kit, Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Saltwater Liquid Master Test Kit Don't add a "Test" fish, it will not help your tank cycle any faster and will only end up harming the fish. Once your cycle is complete you can add a new fish every 3-4 weeks.
 
Thank you all for the warm welcome and words of wisdom. The book recommended is in route :) I will purchase the test kit this coming weekend. Let the FUN times begin. I will post pics and updates soon.
 
Thank you all for the warm welcome and words of wisdom. The book recommended is in route :) I will purchase the test kit this coming weekend. Let the FUN times begin. I will post pics and updates soon.

So your saying your going to start a build thread in the tank showcase section right?
 
Wow, such a warm welcome. Thanks all, i will post pics of my progress soon. RO/DI water? not sure what kind of water that is... i thought of just buying the water from the aquarium store. Bad idea?
 
Water that has been filtered through reverse osmosis and deionized is called RO/DI for short.All or most of the impurities are removed and should have a TDS(total dissolved solids) of zero or very,very close to it.It wouldn't hurt to have a TDS meter to measure what the LFS sells,just to make sure they are selling clean water.
 
You can buy your water from the LFS but, over time you will end up paying a lot more for water there than if you spent $150-200 on your own ro/di unit and the cost of LFS water will add up quickly.
 
After getting some great advice... I have decided to wait awhile before purchasing "Lucky" (our first fish) and get a "cleaning crew" instead. Could any one recommend a good crew? The only stipulation is that they need to be interesting to my little girl (7 yr) :) Would a bunch of crab and shrimp do the job? What about star fish and is there such a thing as colorful "cleaning fish"?
 
Interesting cleaning crew? that's doubtful.. but kids like anything that goes in the tank..

Nassarius snails
Cleaner Shrimp (once you get fish)
hermit crabs (they tend to kill snails and take the shells) blue leg?
Astrea snails (neat, but they can't right themselves if they flip over, and they will)
bristle starfish
Peppermint shrimp (some will eat aiptasia)

There's more but those are typical cleaners.

Welcome to the forum.
 
I would say
either a brittle or serpent star
snails (Nassarius, Nerite, Astraea)
Dwarf Blue leg hermit crab (be careful though, they will eat your snail pop.)
Sea urchin (these are my favorite things I wish I could have more in my tank, also can be very colorful )
 
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