My first saltwater tank

bronzefighter 2014-05-22, 14:05

So I've getting a BioCube from one of my coworkers for free! It's fully cycled and I believe it has one clown in there.

Anyways, I have no idea where to start. Anyone have an good resources to read?

DMD123 2014-05-22, 14:14

Congrats on the new tank! cheers

Always have been interested in saltwater but too afraid to try. With freshwater you can fix just about anything with a quick easy water change. With salt you need to think it through a bit more and either make your own water ahead or go and buy it. Very interested to see what you do, keep us posted.

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-23, 22:36

bronzefighter wrote:So I've getting a BioCube from one of my coworkers for free! It's fully cycled and I believe it has one clown in there.

Anyways, I have no idea where to start. Anyone have an good resources to read?

There is a wealth of information over at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] and also [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] has a great there just about BioCubes. I used to own one myself, but I sold it and bought a JBJ 28 Nano Cube Pro Led for my salt tank.

Good luck and keep us updated! Very Happy

bronzefighter 2014-05-24, 11:11

So I've been doing some reading, and I have a question for anyone out there. With our quality of water here, is an RODI unit totally necessary? It'd be a pain to purchase a system for only a few gallons every week.

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-24, 11:15

Yeah I hear you there... the first time I had a tank I didn't use one because I couldn't get a hold of one very easily. Our water in Seattle is very good with very low TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) but still you are asking for more bad algae outbreaks and problems without the filter. I bought my most recent one on Craigslist after a few months of searching for a good used one.

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-24, 11:16

Check out this article...read it all or as much as you can, it has everything you need to know including RO/DI article.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Guest 2014-05-24, 14:02

Nice one, bronzefighter. Lucky. Someday after more research I will do a nano saltwater reef tank. So jelly of you. Keep us updated with pictures. Spot On

zach_discus 2014-05-24, 16:06

For a Nano, I would not spend the $$$ for a RO/DI unit. Many pet stores sell RO or Pre-mixed Saltwater at a price that is reasonable.

Gryphon 2014-05-24, 20:18

Reef Frontiers is a local SW forum that is pretty good. If you're looking to go for the long haul in SW might consider joining the PSAS.

Denizaari 2014-05-24, 21:36

If you need to buy any salt items, call me first. I have a ton of it. Buffers, additives and food. It's super cheap and better to save the money!!!

bronzefighter 2014-05-27, 00:09

Alright, just picked it up and finished setting it up!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Swung by Petco on the way home and picked up a hydrometer and that piece of liverock in the middle there.

Currently has a fire clownfish and dottyback. I'm fairly certain those are pretty aggressive fish so I'm gonna try and rehome them or trade them or something.

To Do:

I want to replace the sand with some lighter oolite sand

get more live rock

get more invertabrates

get rid of those 2 fish

get some easy corals

fishNAbowl 2014-05-27, 00:20

- Ill be watching this thread very closely...

Neat new project bronzefighter. I have a small itch to dabble in saltwater and corals. Thank you for sharing this experience with us!

Guest 2014-05-27, 00:56

fishNAbowl wrote: - Ill be watching this thread very closely...

Neat new project bronzefighter. I have a small itch to dabble in saltwater and corals. Thank you for sharing this experience with us!

My last tank to do! Saltwater.

Denizaari 2014-05-27, 00:57

Looks nice. I've always wanted to do salt, but I'm a bit scared to "try".

bronzefighter 2014-05-27, 11:10

Thanks guys! Even though the tank is really boring to look at right now, spent a good long while sitting and staring and planning.

gobluecichlids 2014-05-27, 14:00

sometimes an used RO/DI unit is not the best option. You'll need to get new filters and membrane for it. All these together probably cost as much for a new unit. I got my new RO unit on Ebay

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-27, 21:03

I bought my RODI unit on Craigslist and it was about 6 months old and still had zero TDS coming out so good to go for me...luckily our water in the PNW is generally really good already so that helps the membranes from running out so quickly. If you live near a LFS selling salt water that would be a good option until you can invest in an RODI. My first salt tank in Seattle I bought my water from the Seattle Aquarium which for a coral tank isn't really recommended but probably better than tap water and instant ocean salt.

Guest 2014-05-28, 01:44

Is it really hard to keep saltwater like what other people saying. Especially a nano or just 30gal and below. What is your experience with saltwater, BallardFishGuy

bronzefighter 2014-05-28, 09:37

Thanks! I'm pumped to start this build and see where it goes. Yesterday I managed to find someone who would take the fish in exchange for some cured liverock. Since there was no livestock in the tank I took that time to switch out the sand for some Caribsea Aragonite Oolite. Sidenote, I love this stuff, extremely soft, looks great, helps buffer the water. I use it in my malawi tank too. Anyways, now to wait for the inevitable mini-cycle, then grab a bit of a cleanup crew.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Still looking at RODI and my options. In the meantime I just grabbed a premade bucket of water.

bronzefighter 2014-05-28, 09:41

SiRWesDragon wrote:Is it really hard to keep saltwater like what other people saying. Especially a nano or just 30gal and below. What is your experience with saltwater, BallardFishGuy

From my experience (all 3 days of it! lol!

) and research, it's not necessarily 'harder,' as it is more involved. I'm so spoiled by my planted tanks, where I just throw some food in there, maybe some ferts, maybe do a water change every few weeks. I don't need to keep track of my water params, because the plants and everything are at a point where everything is pretty much stable.

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-28, 10:52

Yeah salt tanks are more work but once they are really established they can thrive without a lot of fuss. A tank with just fish is easy but once you move into corals there is more work for sure. I've had a few salt tanks over the years but this is the first one where I'm going all out with the corals. Your two best friends will be really good water (RODI) and really good salt. I use Red Sea Coral Pro. Then if you do weekly water changes you won't need to dose supplements unless you have a stacked tank of intense SPS corals which I plan on not having. Also if your tank is done right and balanced I know an LFS that had their 14g BioCube that was a coral tank with some fish that hadn't had a water change in two years. They just topped it off and dosed supplements, not that I would recommend that but it does show things don't have to be overly complicated. I'm not planning on using a skimmer as it isn't 100% nessesary on a small tank. Time will tell.

DMD123 2014-05-28, 11:41

Very nice! The bio cube is coming along nicely.

I have a friend who wants to get into fish but wants to go salt with a bio cube. I feel like he is waiting for me to jump in before he starts. I was hoping all my freshwater tanks would influence him that way but no go. Might be a salt tank in my future. Love to see other experiences like this, gives me inspiration.

bronzefighter 2014-05-30, 13:30

UPDATE!

After careful consideration, I decided to jump the gun and get some fish a little earlier than I planned. I figured, with an already established filter, already cured LR, and weekly water changes, water quality shouldn't be an issue.

Plus, I already placed 3 Cortez hermits in there, and since they have been happy and healthy I figured the fish would be okay, considering that inverts tend to be a bit more sensitive.

I found a local reefer who was slowly trying to break down his tank, and snagged a pair of ocellaris clownfish from him for a killer price. My wife has been asking me to start a salt tank with clowns for years, so she was pleasantly surprised.

Next steps are to increase the cleanup crew, start grabbing some easy LPS, and modifying the filter for chaeto growth.

Feel free to ask any questions or give me any suggestions!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-30, 14:42

Looks great, just make sure the big 3 are at zero or close to it... Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite. I have some Xenia I can give you at some point if you want.

bronzefighter 2014-05-30, 15:47

Thanks, I've been keeping a close eye on the parameters and while there was an initial spike after I moved the tank, switched out the sand and added the LR, water quality has returned to near perfection. I think that the combination of an already established filtration system and already cured LR really kept everything in check. And possibly the 'live' sand from CaribSea, though I've heard conflicting accounts regarding that.

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-30, 15:49

Nice, just let your tank settle in now or a while before adding more to avoid a crash since you have a young biological load.

Gryphon 2014-05-31, 12:11

BallardFishGuy wrote: Nice, just let your tank settle in now or a while before adding more to avoid a crash since you have a young biological load.

+1!

If you're looking to get any more fish in there you'll have to be careful with your selection, a pair of clowns will establish the whole tank as their territory.
If you're ever down in Federal Way let me know I'll hook you up with a piece of branching frogspawn.

bronzefighter 2014-05-31, 12:32

Gryphon wrote:
BallardFishGuy wrote: Nice, just let your tank settle in now or a while before adding more to avoid a crash since you have a young biological load.

+1!

If you're looking to get any more fish in there you'll have to be careful with your selection, a pair of clowns will establish the whole tank as their territory.
If you're ever down in Federal Way let me know I'll hook you up with a piece of branching frogspawn.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. As far as any extra livestock, I might add one of the smaller gobies in the future, but I'm okay with just the 2 clowns. lucky for me they are relativly small, only about 2 1/2"-3" and fully grown. I've heard that occ clowns can push 4+ inches at times, especially the females.

But anyways, I'm planning more on lots of inverts and coral in the future, not really fish.

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-31, 13:46

Gryphon wrote:
BallardFishGuy wrote: Nice, just let your tank settle in now or a while before adding more to avoid a crash since you have a young biological load.

+1!

If you're looking to get any more fish in there you'll have to be careful with your selection, a pair of clowns will establish the whole tank as their territory.
If you're ever down in Federal Way let me know I'll hook you up with a piece of branching frogspawn.

Frogspawn is one of my fav's too! I have one small frag/head of it so far, it's green with purple tips!

Gryphon 2014-05-31, 14:27

Mine are red with bicolor (green/purple) tips. I have a few pieces scattered around my tank.

Right now I'm busy watching where my new RBTA is gonna roam.

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-31, 14:55

Gryphon wrote:Mine are red with bicolor (green/purple) tips. I have a few pieces scattered around my tank.

Right now I'm busy watching where my new RBTA is gonna roam.

Nice! You should post a picture.

Gryphon 2014-05-31, 15:13

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Best picture I can get of it, my camera hates the blue lights. It looks a lot better in person. Ignore the algae too, I need to get my scraper going sometime this weekend.

I'll try to get a picture of the RBTA up once it comes out of the rock work more. I just got into the tank Tuesday, and last night it decided to leave the cave it was hiding in, work it's way through all my rock work to pop up under some Montipora.

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-31, 15:48

Looks great, Euphyllia are my favorites.

Gryphon 2014-05-31, 19:18

Sorry for the thread hijack Bronzefighter, last pictures unless you request more Very Happy

New RBTA with blues on:
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Blues turned low:
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

My other RBTA, low blues:
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

My LTA, currently being stupid and staying above the sand, low blues:
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

BallardFishGuy 2014-05-31, 19:51

Those are great, love that first picture. I would love to get a small Flower Pot Nem... one with great color, they don't move much and won't kill my corals or fish.

bronzefighter 2014-06-02, 09:32

No worries, that is one gorgeous bubbletip. Anyways, here's an update from 5-30:

bronzefighter wrote:UPDATE!

After careful consideration, I decided to jump the gun and get some fish a little earlier than I planned. I figured, with an already established filter, already cured LR, and weekly water changes, water quality shouldn't be an issue.

Plus, I already placed 3 Cortez hermits in there, and since they have been happy and healthy I figured the fish would be okay, considering that inverts tend to be a bit more sensitive.

I found a local reefer who was slowly trying to break down his tank, and snagged a pair of ocellaris clownfish from him for a killer price. My wife has been asking me to start a salt tank with clowns for years, so she was pleasantly surprised.

Next steps are to increase the cleanup crew, start grabbing some easy LPS, and modifying the filter for chaeto growth.

Feel free to ask any questions or give me any suggestions!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

bronzefighter 2014-06-02, 10:12

Okay, updated pictures of corals! I got these from a local reefer, and am pretty happy with them. A frag of Candy Cane Coral, a few polyps of Green Button, a Pulsing Xenia, and my favorite, a Duncan.

After a few hours they all opened up, and just last night I saw the Candy Cane open up for feeding! As you can see, the clowns have taken a liking to the duncan as well.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Guest 2014-06-02, 19:18

Very nice. Spot On

So jealous of you right now.

**MRTom** 2014-06-02, 23:36

The jealousy is killing me... I LOVE where this tank is going Smile

bronzefighter 2014-06-13, 10:12

Here's an update for you lovely people!

Everything is humming along pretty smoothly now! After a brief diatom bloom, I added a CUC from Reef Cleaners. They have been munching down on any algae that pops up, and the tank looks great now. I also added a small bit of Sargassum into the tank. Pod population seems to have EXPLODED overnight, along with coralline growth. The coralline growing on the magfloat has started to grow up and out into little 'tubes,' and water parameters continue to stay in check. The corals have been doing great too, the light hasn't been on very long in this picture so their a bit closed up still.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Any suggestions?

Future tentative plans include a possible Pistol Shrimp/Goby Pair or a 6 line wrasse or possum wrasse. I'd like to look into some how adding a mangrove to the system too, either by modding the hood, or using a HOB... I'm not too sure yet.

Thanks for looking!

Guest 2014-06-13, 11:33

Looking great. Spot On

bronzefighter 2014-06-13, 13:51

SiRWesDragon wrote:Looking great.

Thank you!

ShortyKiloGyrl 2014-06-13, 14:10

Has the algae been hard to maintain? I see people's sw tanks sometimes be horrible with algae

bronzefighter 2014-06-13, 15:04

No not particularly. I did get a small diatom bloom from switching to new sand, but that's winding down now. Combination of "excessive" water changes, a mag float, and the recently added clean up crew solved that problem.

However, since I've been using nonRODI water I have had a small amount of hair algae. The clean up crew made short work of that, and I'm sure the few remaining patches will be eliminated soon. I've also started using a phospate removing pad in the filter, even though my phospates are fairly low from the tap to begin with.

ShortyKiloGyrl 2014-06-13, 16:00

This is making me want to try sw! Lol

bronzefighter 2014-06-23, 21:29

Update! Did some rearranging, and added some new inhabitants. I was given a beautiful piece of LR that is just covered in life- tubeworms, brittlestars, tons of Pods, few different types of worms...it also had a massive colony of Pulsing Xenia in a lovely shade of red. It looks really nice with my purple pulsing xenia (sidenote, if you're wondering why they are called pulsing xenia, youtube it. my daughter calls them grabby hands Laughing

).

Once I had it in place I noticed that it had 2 mushroom corals on it too! The only downside.... a single head of dreaded aiptasia. So I also placed 2 peppermint shrimp in there too, and theyve made short work of the aiptasia. A few days later I added a tiger pistol shrimp and what I had assumed was a Randalls Goby, but is actually an Aurora Goby. After a few days of exploring and pissing off the clowns, the tiger made a lovely little burrow right in the front of the tank. I'm hoping that the Goby pairs up with him soon. Anyways, pictures:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

BallardFishGuy 2014-06-23, 22:36

Looking good! I need to post some updated pictures of my salt tank!

bronzefighter 2014-06-23, 22:42

BallardFishGuy wrote:Looking good! I need to post some updated pictures of my salt tank!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

BallardFishGuy 2014-06-23, 22:47

Maybe tomorrow...it's blue light time right now and everything is hiding.

Sponsored content

We have moved to a new home! You can find us at:http://wafishbox.com/

We have moved to a new home! You can find us at:
http://wafishbox.com/