Newbie and a question

fu man chu

Reefing newb
Hey, my name is Bekka... I just had a few questions for everyone... my girlfriends ex step dad actually got me into the hobby, he has a 350 reef tank that is very beautiful and a 300 that is holding a grouper, right now though since he left, we have to be the ones to sell it all. I wanted to take care of the 350 myself but being so new into the hobby I didn't want all the stress to end in a result of resenting the hobby. It's a big leap as people have told me... plus I wouldn't be able to view it as often as I would want to... so I was given a 75 gallon, but currently can't put it in my room nor my girlfriends room (her house is where the large tanks are located, in the basement) because it would go right through the floor pretty much. So I decided to start small. I have a 20-25 gallon... I'm not exactly sure how many gallons, it was given to me and my plan was to start a nano tank... the questions I have is, this tank has been sitting with water, rock and sand in it for about 6 months or more... last Thursday I drained the water out, but I'm not quite sure on what the next step should be. Should I throw the rock out? I read in a book to let rock sit out in the sun... I know I need to completely clean this tank off (as you will see from pictures its horrendous and was just sort of neglected) My other questions is, I was told I can take some sand from the reef tank that is 350 (it's still up and running as well) just put water add salt and I'd be ready to go... What do you guys thing my next step should be, as far as the rock goes... and if you by the pictures could tell me an estimate on the tank... I also wanted to ask what preference is on lighting, protein skimmer, and filtration, as well as am I going to need a sump for a tank this small? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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howdy and welcome to the site..
the tank as long as not leaking IMO can be cleaned up, just use a diluted vinegar solution and you will see it clean up alot. As far as the rocks go I personally would boil the rock and start from scratch with it, others may feel different. A skimmer is not necessary on a tank if it is a 20 or 25 but I always like to have one on.. reef octopus makes a nice skimmer.. T-5 lighting will work fine for your tank not sure what your tank length is but one like this...Aquarium Lighting for Reef Systems: Current Nova Extreme Pro Saltwater T-5 Fixtures
as far as your filter goes your liverock will be your filter for the tank, ,just throw a powerhead or two in and you will be fine.. The sand will be fine to use from the large tank but you will have to wait a few weeks to start putting stuff in the tank (especially if you boil the rock) I just feel a fresh start is your best bet with the rock.. and get rid of the top not something you will want on a salt tank... oh and a sump is not something you have to have on that tank, will increase volume and a place to hide things if you wanted, you could always throw a hang on the back refugium if you wanted...
 
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howdy and welcome to the site..
the tank as long as not leaking IMO can be cleaned up, just use a diluted vinegar solution and you will see it clean up alot. As far as the rocks go I personally would boil the rock and start from scratch with it, others may feel different. A skimmer is not necessary on a tank if it is a 20 or 25 but I always like to have one on.. reef octopus makes a nice skimmer..

Thank you so much... I've been kinda going crazy reading so many different books, magazines, and stuff online that I was going nuts trying to pick a specific thing for everything. You just kinda eased all that tension. The tank isn't leaking or else it would have shown it, since the water had been filled to the top for such a long time... the guy who left the tanks was in my opinion a well advanced hobbyist and we would talk for a long time about how I would set my tank up and all the different type of fish. I've really learned a lot from him... One thing he told me was when I wanted rock he would give me some of his and I could get some zoo's growing.. I want coral as well... those lights would be good for it I would guess right? If I may ask how come on a tank this size a skimmer isn't needed? And in your opinion why do you always like to have one?

Quick Calculator for Aquariums that will help tell you how big it is

Thank you! I'll be sure to measure it when I get home from work later.

Warm water and vinegar will go a long way in cleaning that tank physically of all that crud.

Will regular vinegar due or is it a special kind?

Welcome to the site...glad to have you aboard.

Thank you :bounce: I can't wait to get the tank started, but I'll have to put it off until I get back from Portugal in about a week and a half.
 
no tank "requires" a skimmer if you don't have one it just means alot more waterchanges and the chance of problems.. I just like to have one running makes it easier on me... reading is always a real good thing to do ...:D
and yes should have no issues with any coral you wish with those lights.. a piece of rock from his tank will help seed yours after boiling them, I would see about getting a piece..
 
What lights are you talking about? The fixture on the tank in the pics appears to be a fresh water hood, and most definitely will not be sufficient enough to grow coral.
 
no tank "requires" a skimmer if you don't have one it just means alot more waterchanges and the chance of problems.. I just like to have one running makes it easier on me... reading is always a real good thing to do ...:D
and yes should have no issues with any coral you wish with those lights.. a piece of rock from his tank will help seed yours after boiling them, I would see about getting a piece..

Ah that makes sense... I love reading and learning especially if I get a new hobby... I have always been interested with non traditional animals.. I have a hedgehog, 2 ferrets (though they're not hard to come by in any means) and a scorpion. And I feel that a tank would be beautiful and interesting thing to learn how to maintain... but a lot of the books I was given to read are out dated and when talking about how everything really to do with the tank seemed like it was so much work and a lot of math.

As for the rock I've seen some really great art work done with rocks with different formations of how to set it up, is that as simple as it looks? How long should I let them biol for? I took some pictures of some things I really love in the tank if I posted them could you tell me what they are?

Hello and Welcome!

The guys have you covered!

Thank you :D are you the person who has the picture of the month with the sea horse? It's beautiful.

this was the light I told him to look at or one similar.

her :cheerful:
 
I found all of this that the guy was keeping. 2 and a half buckets of salt... a lot of dry rock and something that I'm not sure.... can this be any good for me?
 

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No, box up all the dry rock and send it to me immediately, it's uh, no good...

All kidding aside, you can use the dry rock and it will eventually become live, just need to cycle it first.
 
The tube, kinda looks like a reactor to me, but im not too sure on that.

EDIT: Marcah, got it for you! :D Im wrong as usual haha
 
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Awesome thanks guys for your help.... so the past 3 hours I really cleaned up this tank... doesn't even seem like the same tank IMO. I can't wait to get the water with rock and sand.

I am really sorry about the "him " earlier... if the rock is 30 to 40 pounds I would just use that and forget the rest that is in the tank..

That's alright no worries :mrgreen: Why does the rock have to be 30 - 40 pounds?
 

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Thats looking a lot better now!! :D
The reason you need that amount of rock is that its going to be your natural "filter", rule of thumb is about 1-2 pounds of rock per gallon.
 
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