Hello everyone.. I just started a 75gallon aquarium. I have 40lbs of LS and 40lbs of Crushed coral in the tank. I am running one power jet, 2 heaters, and a Fluval FX5 cannister filter. My tank has been clowdy for 3 days now. I took some water in to the local fish shop and everything tested out fine. I am just wondering if there is something i can do to speed up the clearing process or is it just a matter of time. I was also wondering how do you know when your tank starts to "Cycle". Thanks for the help cant wait to hear from you guys.
Water Clarity
- Thread starter Nemo2010
- Start date
Smitty
Reef pro
Hello and welcome to the site...you shouldn't worry about the cloudiness, it takes a couple of days to even a week to start clearing up. What you should worry about though is the crushed coral you have, its gonna give you problems down the road with high nitrates.
yote
In Memoriam
Welcome aboard Nemo.
Like Smitty mentioned,the crushed coral isnt good for a reef tank.It'll trap and hold detritus and other waste products that will compromise water quality.An aragonite based sand will do a much better job and look more natural.
Like Smitty mentioned,the crushed coral isnt good for a reef tank.It'll trap and hold detritus and other waste products that will compromise water quality.An aragonite based sand will do a much better job and look more natural.
yote
In Memoriam
Pretty much.
What'll happen,is the sand will settle down into the crushed coral,and over time it'll start looking like crap.
You MAY be able to seperate the crushed coral from the sand.But I dont know that it would be worth the trouble.I'd probably just pick up a bag of the dry aragonite sand and replace the mixed.JMO
The dry is a whole lot cheaper,but you'll have to rinse the dust out of it.
What'll happen,is the sand will settle down into the crushed coral,and over time it'll start looking like crap.
You MAY be able to seperate the crushed coral from the sand.But I dont know that it would be worth the trouble.I'd probably just pick up a bag of the dry aragonite sand and replace the mixed.JMO
The dry is a whole lot cheaper,but you'll have to rinse the dust out of it.
Bifferwine
I am a girl
Did you add anything besides the sand and crushed coral to start the cycle?
I too started my first saltwater tank with crushed coral. And man did I regret it. In fact, we have a "Worst Advice You Were Ever Given" thread on here, and that's what I put down as the worst advice I was ever given. Not only will crushed coral trap poop and uneaten food, but digging animals that are essential parts of your cleaner crew (and digging fish) can't live in it, so there's nothing to clean it. It can lead to a nitrate factory, making it impossible to keep animals -- which is what happened in my first tank :(
It's easy to remove it all now while you can, and replace it with sand. There's no need to spend the money on live sand vs. dry sand. It's kind of a scam -- dry sand will become live sand soon enough on its own.
But then you need something to start the cycle. The tank just won't cycle on its own. Usually, live rock does the trick. You should have 1 to 2 lbs of live rock per gallon in your tank. To save money, you can buy part live and part dry rock. Live rock will serve as the main source of filtration in your tank, and it's probably the most important component of a saltwater tank -- more important than any expensive piece of equipment.
After you've got the rock in, you can jump start the cycle by throwing in a raw piece of people food shrimp, or some fish food, and just let it decay. This will cause the cycle to begin. Never use a live fish to cycle.
If you're just sitting with a tank filled with water, sand and crushed coral, then nothing is going to happen on its own -- you need to add something that is rotting to start the cycle.
I too started my first saltwater tank with crushed coral. And man did I regret it. In fact, we have a "Worst Advice You Were Ever Given" thread on here, and that's what I put down as the worst advice I was ever given. Not only will crushed coral trap poop and uneaten food, but digging animals that are essential parts of your cleaner crew (and digging fish) can't live in it, so there's nothing to clean it. It can lead to a nitrate factory, making it impossible to keep animals -- which is what happened in my first tank :(
It's easy to remove it all now while you can, and replace it with sand. There's no need to spend the money on live sand vs. dry sand. It's kind of a scam -- dry sand will become live sand soon enough on its own.
But then you need something to start the cycle. The tank just won't cycle on its own. Usually, live rock does the trick. You should have 1 to 2 lbs of live rock per gallon in your tank. To save money, you can buy part live and part dry rock. Live rock will serve as the main source of filtration in your tank, and it's probably the most important component of a saltwater tank -- more important than any expensive piece of equipment.
After you've got the rock in, you can jump start the cycle by throwing in a raw piece of people food shrimp, or some fish food, and just let it decay. This will cause the cycle to begin. Never use a live fish to cycle.
If you're just sitting with a tank filled with water, sand and crushed coral, then nothing is going to happen on its own -- you need to add something that is rotting to start the cycle.
Thanks.. I went back to my fish guy and told him what you guys told me and he said because the crushed coral that i am using is so fine like agrigate i will be fine. if i were using larger crushed coral there would be a problem. he also told me to turn my jets on my filter and my jet up a little so that it is not disturbing the stuff on the bottom until i get live rock in that will help with the filtering. What do you guys think of that?
He also told me since i added a chemical to "jump start" the cycle i should wait a week or two before adding anything to the tank. Basically take it SUPER SLOW as the internal eco system is very sensative and you have to give it time to do its thing. He also recomended that i take some water in to the shop and have them test it prior to me putting any live animals in.
coolhandgoose
Reef enthusiast
Taking it slow is definately the best advice. Speaking of taking it slow, I would tend not to jump to adding chemicals into the tank. There are some that make it look like quick fixes but the effects may become detrimental down the road.
Also be ware of the cannister filter. Also a huge nitrate making factory if it doesn't get cleaned regularly.
Also be ware of the cannister filter. Also a huge nitrate making factory if it doesn't get cleaned regularly.
I plan on checking the filter weekly and changing 40% of the water monthly my main concern is the post that i did earlier about the crushed coral. Being that the crushed coral is like agrigate and very fine do you think that i will be ok with that. I understand that crushed coral is bad but mine is not like regular size. what do you guys think of that?
Bifferwine
I am a girl
I've never heard of crushed coral being a different size. Your substrate is either crushed coral or sand. Sand is sugar-grain sized. If it's bigger than that, and if it has chunks of broken up seashells and rock in it, it's crushed coral.
yote
In Memoriam
Can you post a pic or a link to what you used?
daugherty
part time reefer
get some more flow in the tank and just give it some time to settle. some it you clarity problem may be just dust on the glass the dust will stick to the glass and make the tank look very cloudy
yote
In Memoriam
That looks more like sand with a little bit of crushed coral in it.It MAY be alright.
I really dont want to change out all the sand and water due to the gravel. I posted the pic of they type of crushed coral that i have in there. If you guys think i should be fine please let me know. or what you would recomend me do so i dont have to change everything out. What is the worst case senario with crushed coral? Hopefully the crushed coral i have is fine enough that i will not have any issues.
yote
In Memoriam
Judging from the pic you posted,I honestly think it will be alright.It'll be great if you ever decide you want to keep a couple of jawfish.
