New Reef Tank(3 days old).. did i mess it up already?

[missi0n]

Hi all, I jumped into this hobby way too fast. From reading up the past few days apparently nothing with reef tanks happens fast, except creating problems. Well, I hope I haven't done irreversible harm to my tank.

Some stats:

56 gallon tank 30 x 20 x 20

Heater

55 lbs LR
40 lbs live sand

filtration system is coming in friday.. I got a sump with a Coralife Super Skimmer 220, and a Rio 1700 pump.

Here is my problem:
I may have many.

I used tap water. filled up 5 gallon buckets and put about a cup of salt in, then added it to my tank until it was about 3/4 full. Then I added all the sand, let it sit 15 mins, then added all the live rock. a little anxious? I know, after reading I'm embarassed, but I didn't know better at the time! the guy at my LFS didnt sell me a powerhead, so the water just sat in the tank heated to 78 degrees with my light turned on 8 hours at a time. That was on sunday, then today after researching I went back and bought a 200gph powerhead to create some flow in my tank.

have I already done serious damage? is my live rock...dead? when i complained to the LFS they offered to take back the rock and give me new rock since they failed to mention that I should have the filter running before putting LR in.

 

[House of Laughter]

I would get the rock out ASAP and get it into salted RO/DI water and remove all contents - rinse sand with RO/Di and start over, you can keep the rock in a bucket with heater and powerhead until the rest arrives

This is only the start of what you'd need to do to recover.

House

 

[bigbris1]

Rofl!!!

No, seriously. There's a list of items you wanna have (in addition to what you already may have) before you start.

1. RO/DI filter system (or at least some sort of treated water until you can get one)
2. Hydrometer (to measure how much salt is in the water you're mixing)
3. Proper lighting (to sustain & encourage life & growth of a "reef" system)
4. Heater
5. At least two powerheads
6. TEST KITS for at least:
...Ammonia
...Nitrite
...Nitrate
...PH
...Calcium
...Alkalinity

 

[masterswimmer]

Don't be too discouraged, regardless of what people say. Just don't add ANY chemicals or medications (especially copper) to the system and all will be fixable.

Before you begin doing anything drastic, read, read and read some more.

I must disagree with the hydrometer though. Just spend a bit more and get a refractometer. It will be much more precise with regards to measuring your salinity.

I agree with what house of laughter said about removing the rock and sand and beginning with a 'clean' tank. Then you can start accumulating the necessary equipment to do things properly.

Please keep in mind, local fish stores (LFS's) are going to try to sell you the product they have on their shelves. It's not always the optimal product for what you're trying to ultimately achieve.

If you have specific questions, this community (Manhattan Reefs) is top notch and very knowledgeable. Good luck and ask questions first.....then buy.

Russ

 

[Craig]

when i complained to the LFS they offered to take back the rock and give me new rock since they failed to mention that I should have the filter running before putting LR in.

I would reccomend taking them up on their offer



You also mentoned that you have a sump coming. Your tank doesnt appear to be reef ready, so were you planning on using a hang on overflow or emptying your tank and then having it drilled?

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

I would reccomend taking them up on their offer



You also mentoned that you have a sump coming. Your tank doesnt appear to be reef ready, so were you planning on using a hang on overflow or emptying your tank and then having it drilled?

I second this opinion plus make sure you have the sump running before getting the rocks from the LFS. Also, if you choose this route, make sure you also have a small bucket with lid that you can carry the rock in water(where they keep the rocks) or unless your LFS is like next door to minimize die off.

BTW, I did not see you mention testing the salinity or the specific gravity of the water. Adjust salinity by volume could spell disaster.

 

[bueller]

Just don't add ANY chemicals or medications (especially copper) to the system and all will be fixable

SO TRUE


get yourself a RODI unit, Best investment you can make for all the money you will spend on corals/ LR / FISH ect. your fish/Corals/Inverts will love you for it!

You are going to have die off anyway just by bringing the LR home from the LFS. I would { just my opinion } leave the rock in as is, keep the powerhead/ heater in there and start your cycle. GET A RODI unit and when you make some good water do a few water changes. Oh yeah, Test kit...Your going to need one of them...LOL

AND SLOW DOWN! LET THE LR SIT IN THERE AT LEAST 3 TO 4 WEEKS. TEST EVERY WEEK AND KEEP A RECORD OF IT.

 

[Davidl919]

If the store offered to take back the rock you should. Get the rodi water Mix it with the marine salt and heater Seperate from the rock once it is mixed put the rock and the water together in the tank with the heater / pump and come back We will get you going in the right direction One baby step at a time. If you need info on an rodi go here

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

My response in Red

SO TRUE


get yourself a RODI unit, Best investment you can make for all the money you will spend on corals/ LR / FISH ect. your fish/Corals/Inverts will love you for it! "AGREED"

You are going to have die off anyway just by bringing the LR home from the LFS. I would { just my opinion } leave the rock in as is, keep the powerhead/ heater in there and start your cycle.

"From what he say, a cup of salt for a 40G+ seems like fresh water and his rocks are ALL dead by now-that's a lot of dead organics to cycle. If the LFS offer cured LR, why not-he paid for CURED ones. Just have to make sure to keep it alive during transport"

GET A RODI unit and when you make some good water do a few water changes. Oh yeah, Test kit...Your going to need one of them...LOL

AND SLOW DOWN! LET THE LR SIT IN THERE AT LEAST 3 TO 4 WEEKS. TEST EVERY WEEK AND KEEP A RECORD OF IT.

 

[bueller]

Agreed,
He actually didn't say what his specific gravity is in the tank :scratch: if they did offer he should bring them back & make sure his salinity is at least 1.022 before putting the new LR back in the tank.

 

[missi0n]

Thank you so much for all the feedback! Okay.. after reading all your responses and doing a little more research I have a plan.

- Get RO/DI unit. now the question is which one??
- I already have a refractometer, should have stated that in my first post.
- Swap my died off live rock for newer live rock from LFS. Do I need to swap the sand too??

I am not drilling the tank, I will have an overflow box.

I want to take the LR out of my tank, leave the sand and water in. install all the pumps, skimmer and the sump (sump has lava rock and plants in it with a light over them), and leave the water cycling for a few days with no rock in (or should i put the rock in same day?). Then I'll get the new LR from the store and put it all in when I get back. Once I get my RODI I will do 20% water changes weekly for a month.

When do I put in the cleaning crew?

 

[marki24]

what kind of salt are you using?

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

Thank you so much for all the feedback! Okay.. after reading all your responses and doing a little more research I have a plan.

- Get RO/DI unit. now the question is which one??
- I already have a refractometer, should have stated that in my first post.
- Swap my died off live rock for newer live rock from LFS. Do I need to swap the sand too??

I am not drilling the tank, I will have an overflow box.

I want to take the LR out of my tank, leave the sand and water in. install all the pumps, skimmer and the sump (sump has lava rock and plants in it with a light over them), and leave the water cycling for a few days with no rock in (or should i put the rock in same day?). Then I'll get the new LR from the store and put it all in when I get back. Once I get my RODI I will do 20% water changes weekly for a month.

When do I put in the cleaning crew?

Hopefully,I will have time tonight to write up the whole procedure for you but quick glance tell me that you should not use lava rocks-most of them are acidic in nature and contain high silica.

Don't worry about eh cleaning crew in the mean time. Like David say, one baby step a time.:tongue:

 

[missi0n]

thank you Aqua! That would be so helpful, this is quite the procedure.. I'm very eager, but I'll worry about the cleaning crew later. I'll take pictures of my whole setup up Friday when I get it all hooked up.

Marki - not sure what salt I'm using, its in a big bucket.. I will check when I get back to my apt tonight.

any suggestions on what RODI I should get?

 

[masterswimmer]

We have a vendor on Manhattan Reefs called Buckeye Field Supply. His RO/DI units are top notch. Speak to Russ. He'll guide you all the way.

swimmer

 

[marki24]

RODI- 4 stage or better

 

[missi0n]

does anyone else have the Buckeye Field Supply BFS-204 Premium Series 150 gpd RO/DI System?
Reviews?

 

[bueller]

lose the lava rock..put live rock in the sump, just listen to wingo, he'll hook you up with what you have to do.

bueller

 

[basiab]

Thank you so much for all the feedback! Okay.. after reading all your responses and doing a little more research I have a plan.

- Get RO/DI unit. now the question is which one??
- I already have a refractometer, should have stated that in my first post.
- Swap my died off live rock for newer live rock from LFS. Do I need to swap the sand too??

I am not drilling the tank, I will have an overflow box.

I want to take the LR out of my tank, leave the sand and water in. install all the pumps, skimmer and the sump (sump has lava rock and plants in it with a light over them), and leave the water cycling for a few days with no rock in (or should i put the rock in same day?). Then I'll get the new LR from the store and put it all in when I get back. Once I get my RODI I will do 20% water changes weekly for a month.

When do I put in the cleaning crew?

That last question is a big clue. You still have not read enough. Do you understand about cycling. Do you know if the rock you are going to get is cured or not. If you understand what cycling is and you know what kind of rock you are going to get then you will have enough info to at least get restarted. Do you have test kits to tell you the condition of your water? There is no rush at this point. Your old rock is dead if all you had was 1 cup of salt. So make sure you know how to begin before you rush off in 5 directions. There is a lot of good advice here but you have to understand some basics if you expect to be successful.
Good luck

 

[drperetz]

...

U do not need anything more than 75 gpd. Unless u have a huge system..

35- 50 gpd. Will be suficient enough.

Where are u planning to store your rodi water?...
Get a tds meter with the unit (less than $30). This will help u on the maintanace of the rodi unit.