well deffinately my next addition is a skimmer, and i'll get rid of the test strips and get a better test kit, what do you recommend?? As far as why i bought the bio-wheel filter was to get a little more water movement as well as a little bit more filtration, and i got a pretty nice deal on it, which came to be cheaper than a powerhead. I also went to walmart, and they don't carry RO/DI water, so that's out of the question for me...
Scarsdale Newbie!!
- Thread starter BlueSi4
- Start date
- Location
- Westchester, NY
RO/DI units can be bought cheap, here or at one of our vendors. Or you can used distilled water if you must.
Check these guys out they are sponsors here and do a great job. http://www.buckeyefieldsupply.com/
Check these guys out they are sponsors here and do a great job. http://www.buckeyefieldsupply.com/
- Location
- Ossining, NY
Blue,
For some of your questions, I would use the search feature first - there is so much here on MR you could learn just in some of the decisions you've made to date - search the common words - test kits, and water filtration etc
Welcome aboard and glad we'll be able to help.
House
For some of your questions, I would use the search feature first - there is so much here on MR you could learn just in some of the decisions you've made to date - search the common words - test kits, and water filtration etc
Welcome aboard and glad we'll be able to help.
House
- Location
- Hudson Yards
Your decision to start with a Fish Only With Live Rock (FOWLR) set-up was a good one. This can be a very expensive hobby so taking things gradually over time and buying better equipment as you go to defray serious damage to you wallet is not a bad thing. Salifert are good test kits and you can get an decent RO/DI unit for arbout $200 on eBay or Buckeye as Chief suggested. You can get ones that have an adaptor that attach to your faucet or you can plumb them directly into your water source and mount the unit under the kitchen sink.
Probably the most expensive single piece of equipment next to the tank itself will be your lights. But good lights with the right bulbs and total wattage are worth it. They can make or break a reef tank. So, save up and buy the best lights etc. you can afford. It's also good that you research each fish/coral you want to put in your tank. You need to be sure you are abble to provide the proper environment for a given animal or it will be money and a life down the drain. So, welcome and keep up the good work!
Probably the most expensive single piece of equipment next to the tank itself will be your lights. But good lights with the right bulbs and total wattage are worth it. They can make or break a reef tank. So, save up and buy the best lights etc. you can afford. It's also good that you research each fish/coral you want to put in your tank. You need to be sure you are abble to provide the proper environment for a given animal or it will be money and a life down the drain. So, welcome and keep up the good work!
I think i've learned more in a day here than in the 2 months i've had my tank. Now i'm running my lights for about 6 hours per day, hoping that it will decrease the amount of cyano i have in my tank. I'm also going to put one of those filters that helps lower phosphates, and then next week i'll probably go for a skimmer, and then from there start upgrading my tank.
- Location
- poughquag, ny
new tank
ok the first things i would invest in if i was you, was a good test kit salifert, then a skimmer, people always selling them on here, as far as the bio-wheel well you will get mixed opinion's, but overall census is get rid of it. speaking from experiance to make the hobby a little more cost effective for you, search on here for items f\s. buy proper equiptment first time. cost a little more, but you will be happier in the end, so will your bilfold, i bought my 6 stage ro\di {aquasafe } on ebay and delivered to my door for $95
ok the first things i would invest in if i was you, was a good test kit salifert, then a skimmer, people always selling them on here, as far as the bio-wheel well you will get mixed opinion's, but overall census is get rid of it. speaking from experiance to make the hobby a little more cost effective for you, search on here for items f\s. buy proper equiptment first time. cost a little more, but you will be happier in the end, so will your bilfold, i bought my 6 stage ro\di {aquasafe } on ebay and delivered to my door for $95
- Location
- Upper East Side
What kind of lights are you using? PC? If so, you can run them for longer than 6 hours. I run my PCs for 10 hr/day and don't have a problem with cyano. Your real problem is phosphates - the tap water in NYC is full of chemicals. I tested mine for phosphates, and my test kit turned a color so dark it didn't even register. Letting it sit around is not going to decrease the phosphate content of your water. If you switch to RO/DI, you'll see your cyano start decreasing. Also, if you just set up your tank, you might be getting an especially bad algae bloom in general - it's natural, and will go away.
Do you have a QT tank? You might want to take the hippo out and see if he'll eat in a QT tank. Also, have you tried other vegetable foods for him, like the veggie flakes? I'm surprised he's not eating the nori - usually tangs go crazy for that stuff.
True, neither Pet Goods nor Petco have an idea how to keep saltwater/invertebrates. The fish are usually infested or on a slow starvation.
I only buy dry goods from them, and even that, only in a pinch
Bahamian1999
Bewitched
- Location
- Long Island, New York
Are you conditioning your tap water?:arg:
imo your first upgrade should be an RO/DI filter. This is important if you want to keep corals happy and healthy. some people use tap water, but they use a lot of different media's to filter out the crap in it. I think it's better to do this before it gets in your tank.
my hippo tang has been eating more algae and greens lately, but his face doesn't seem to get any better, any other ideas or suggestions so that he gets better?? i'm giving him formula two as well as 3 different kinds of seaweed, and i tried romaine lettuce the other day, he doesn't seem to eat the lettuce though.
- Location
- The Big City
I can't tell from the picture but I'm guessing the Hippo has some erosion or lateral line problem around the face. Well if that's the case it's going to take some time to heal, if it ever does. Most likely it will have some marks on its face.
You want to keep feeding it what you have been, also try Nori instead of romaine or seaweed. Also get some Vita-Chem and soak the food it in. That will help but it does take time.
You want to keep feeding it what you have been, also try Nori instead of romaine or seaweed. Also get some Vita-Chem and soak the food it in. That will help but it does take time.
i do have an aquaclear, a 70gallon aqua clear. the first time, i didn't change the filters until a month later, i know that's bad, so maybe that's why he got it, but also he wasn't eating any greens, just flake and brine shrimp. i was also told that there might be electrical current on the tank, so i bought a ground probe, we'll see what happens. i'll keep all your info in mind...
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