My new Saltwater tank

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Fishchaser

Fishchaser

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#1
Nov 15, 2005
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Port Dover Ontario
#1
Hi everyone i got a 60 gallon tank for christmas this year. Right now I have 60 lbs of crushed coral and 42lbs of live rock. I am using a Fluval 404 filter an Aquaclear powerhead 901 and a Seaclone 100 protein skimmer. The guy at the store we got it at gave us 2 free damsels 1 three spot domino damselfish and 1 blue and gold damselfish and i am goin to use this to help out the cycle a bit.I have the tank set at 78 degrees, the salinity at 1.022, the Ph is at 7.4 and the ammonia is between 1.2 and 2.4. i will try to get some pics as soon as i figure out my digital camera.
 

1979camaro

1979camaro

Ultimate Fish
#4
Oct 22, 2002
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#4
well, to start with cycling with fish is not necessary and your pH is very very low. beyond that the fluval is a bad option for a marine tank and the seaclone is widely regarded as junk. have you read any of the articles/stickies here about setting up a new tank? they would really help you out a lot because the way things are right now your tank is a disaster in the making
 

KahluaZzZ

KahluaZzZ

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#5
Jun 12, 2004
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#5
a seaclone 100 on a 60g in not enough...i had problems dealing with mine on a 55. the 100g is claimed by the company...really i dunno if it can handle more than 25-30g unless you plan to have a very lmited number of fishies and don't feed often.
Your temp is good, but yeah ph is way too low. My tap water is 7.4 !
Your ammonia will not be kind with your fishies, and your domino damsel can be very aggressive. A lot of damsels can really go crazy and attack small fishies, and when you decide to remove them, you need 1) luck or 2) to remove all the rocks to get them out and give them away.
The only damsels i know that can be peaceful enough are the blue green chromis and the talbot damselfish. Very active fish.
I started with a 55g with a seaclone and damsels and i should have read more. Seriously, i you wanna save some troubles, there are better skimmers out there and peaceful fishies.
I'm not saying it won't work, but it'll be more difficult.
 

Fishchaser

Fishchaser

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#6
Nov 15, 2005
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Port Dover Ontario
#6
update my ph level was actually about 8.1, 8.2 why isnt the fluval good for Sw and my seaclone is doin fine so far and seems to be doin well tell me whats wrong with the fluval it says that it is good for marine or Fw tanks
 

FroggyFox

FroggyFox

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#8
May 16, 2003
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#8
I think the biggest differences people are trying to walk you through are that filtration and how to set up a tank are completely different from the Freshwater to the Saltwater ways...and things that you'd know more about if you read the stickies on how to set up a tank and what you need.

Fluval may be OK, but it can create nitrates in the water...which are BAD in saltwater, not so terrible in freshwater.
 

KahluaZzZ

KahluaZzZ

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#10
Jun 12, 2004
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#10
The bio-media in it and a foam will be a nitrate reactor in your Fluval. You can use it for waterflow tough. The bio-media in it harbors nitrifying bacteria. Nitrifying Bacteria Bacterial species found in nature that oxidize ammonia to nitrite and then nitrate. These are species of bacteria that live in an oxygen rich environment.
You wanna have some denitrifying bacteria. Live rock harbors both nitrifying and denitrifying. Deep sand beds allows denitrifying bacteria to grow ( but also enhance dissolved organics accumulations ).
You seaclone can work, but i had one, and when i switched to another i could see what the seaclone wasn't "cleaning". The seaclone can stop his work after 3-4 days for no apparent reason...and you might have to play with the air intake.
 

SALTY WATERS

SALTY WATERS

Large Fish
#12
Feb 6, 2005
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#12
Hey Fishchaser,

Good to see you decided on a decent sized tank, but ya I wouldn't bother with the Fluval404, if you can return it I would and spend the $$ on more LR as 42lbs is not much in a 60gl...but a very good start! If you do keep the Fluval I wouldn't run any of the media in it other than some Carbon; I did this mistake when I began SW and it was nothing but problems for the water. As for the free fish... I wouldn't cycle your tank using them #1 it's very unfriendly to the fish (they are living creaters), #2 the stress on the fish from being expose to the poor water conditions could lead to outbreaks of disease or even death to the fish. Just curious what store sold you this stuff? As well your Salinity is a little low in my opinion should be around 1.023-1.025. Keep us posted!
 

M

Mushroomman

MFT Staff
#15
Jan 16, 2004
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#15
Actually yes... it does help kill off some stuff with a low salinity. Not exactly sure what though.

Im not russian, though a part of me is close. Ive been learning some of the language off some russian friends of mine and am fascinated with its culture... that and german, which I can speak. The lyrics are from a rammstein song about Moscow.
 

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Fishchaser

Fishchaser

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#16
Nov 15, 2005
449
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Port Dover Ontario
#16
i got my stuff at the petcrazy in brantford and my rock and fish in brantford at the tropical fish room the guy there kn ows his stufff obviously because he has some amazing tanks in there and he recommended the 404 im not sure what is wrong with it and i know you guys all are very cautious over your fish and say i shudnt have them but i got them free so im keeping them. So what you are saying is i shud return the filter for live rock then what why i use for a filter anyways in a couple of days i am getting some live sand and Salty waters did you end up selling your tank and if not good luck on selling it
 

A

aresgod

Superstar Fish
#17
Jan 14, 2004
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#17
well low salinity is fine in fish only systems at fish stores where the fish are in a sterile cube...in a tank with LR and other organisms 1.018 is too low, any where from 1.022-26 should be fine. its really just a matter of prefrence. I keep mine at 1.026 so...
 

SALTY WATERS

SALTY WATERS

Large Fish
#19
Feb 6, 2005
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Waterloo, ON Canada
#19
The Fluval is a nice product, just not for SW! It will just be a big hassle, you will need to chang/rinses the media in it weekly if you were to use it. I just ran carbon in mine on the old tank once i found out that all the other media in it was the cause of my water issues; it made a big difference once I removed it! All you need for filtration is lots of LR, a decent substrate and good water flow! And keep up on your water changes!
 

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