where do I begin?

[Bifferwine]

thank you so much :D
also. is there a certain kind of salt I should be using to make the water?

Everybody likes different brands of salt. There really isn't a "bad" salt. Some have different water parameters than others, but all should be just fine for most tanks, especially new tanks, or tanks that don't have a lot of animals in them.

 

[yote]

yes i have been using chemi-clean
how can i get rid of it if it has built a resistance?

Fix any water quality issues you may have first, then you can do something like a black out for a few days to get rid of it. Once your water quality issues are taken care of then it shouldn't grow back.

Ulta is right.
Start by actually testing the new water your buying.Dont blindly trust your LFS to be selling good water.Test it for ammonia and inorganic phosphates.Dont forget to test the salinity too.
After you've made sure the water is good.Start doing 20 to 25% water changes weekly.At each water change,siphon out as much of the cyano as possible.

 

[andersoned14]

Did you get any pictures yet? What kind of equipment do you run? What kind of lights and how long are they on for? If your bulbs are old they may need replaced.
I read someone was buying water from a LFS and when they tested the "clean" water in was reading 25ppm nitrates. Just something else to look at.:Cheers: And welcome to the site. Can't wait to see the turn around on this tank. Maybe start a build thread so we can all enjoy the progress of this tank and cheer you on.

 

[shahrzad1893]

I don't have any pictures yet but i will be borrowing a camera soon
We got brand new lights less than a year ago, the kind i forget :P but its a coralife fixture with two separate bulbs for the blue and white lights and a switch for blue night lights (yes i use very technical terms ha) for now i have been keeping the lights on for only 8 hours in response to an algae and cyano problem
and I do not but from a LFS i drive 15-30 mins to get to the reef store that we've always visited
:) and thanks i should do that as soon as i get a camera and a little more money to work with:mrgreen:

 

[andersoned14]

less than a year ago

depending on the bulbs a year is about the max from what I have read.
sounds like a t-5, if it only has two bulbs that might not be enough light for many corals. Untill you know for sure what you have or can get a pic of them That is about all I can help with. BTW I am still very new and learning alot here also. IME this site has help me out a lot and ask every question you think of the people here seem to always be right on track and have help me out with a lot of beginers growing pains. And always do your own research because alot of what I found is your person wants. Have fun and be patient.




My spelling sucks, please forgive me.

 

[bjohanson1234]

It could also be PC lights. Does each bulb double back on itself? Like a long U? If so, they are PC bulbs and should be changed out every 9-12 months. If they are skinny, about 5/8 inch in diameter, then they are t5 and should be changed every 12-18 months.

Bulbs loose intensity over time even if they dont go completely out. You will also not notice a loss of output but it will effect both algae and coral.

 

[shahrzad1893]

oh thanks! They are PC lights I will look into getting new bulbs to replace them soon then

 

[rwynn]

Without knowing much else about the lights it might be worth it to save up a little and get a decent T5 or Metal Halid fixture used from a local reefer or CL if you plan on doing corals in the future. shop.aquatraders.com has really good prices on their lights as well.