new tank

[raymond2688]

I have been going threw this site for a couple of weeks now. learning alot!!!
this is my first salt tank and it has been very chalenging for me. I would like to post a couple pics of my set up so i can get some suggestions.

the tank has been runing for about 7 weeks now and i dont think it is cycled...ugh. my amonia keeps spiking to the highest level on my chart.

I have done alot of things wrong because i was listening to my LFS who was just trying to sell me stuff and i am not to happy about that.

I think i have a good setup now

125 gallon, Rena filstar xp4, seaclone 150 skimmer, 2 fluval plus3

i have about 2 inches of live sand and crushed coral and about 110lbs of live rock which i got uncured (mistake) as i did not have the abikity to cure it myself and i did not know any better. I have not seen any of the things growing in my tank that everyone else starting a tank has seen yet.
I am developing a puple colored algea on one rock though. i upgraded my lighting i have 4 coralife 18k bulbs suspended about 4 inches from the tank.

i have added fish which i know now i shouldnt have. they have survived but it has been tough.

here are my peramiters.
amonia 8.0
nitrites 2.0
nitrates 20
ph 8.2
water temp 80
salinity 1.023

I have done numorous water changes added cycle to the tank and feeding is a minimal amount. I am sure that the amonia is the live rock. I have taken it out of the tank 2 times and scrubed it and rinsed it to get all the dead material off.

I will add a few pics as soon as my battery is charged. any help would be greatly appreciated thanks in advance.

 

[raymond2688]

here are a few pics
not sure how to do it now this is a test to see if they post

 

[raymond2688]

here they are....any sugestions as to any aspect of my setup that could be improved or anything anyone sees is wrong

 

[raymond2688]

the first set of pics (second pic) is a pic of the purple algea that i think is good.

the pic of the filter in the closet is obviously sideways. this week i will be adding a sink in that closet.

my inhabitants are:

2 lawnmower blennys
1 clown
1 coral beauty
1 lepord grouper (not going to keep him)
1 emrald crab
3 blue legged hermits

 

[TRe]

if the tank hasnt finished cycling i would take ALL those fish back.... as far as filtration you dont need any actual filter but really all you want is a few powerheads for water movment along with a decent skimmer, the skimmer you have isnt the best but i guess its better than nothing, you should have skipped the crushed coral but oh well too late now! once the tank is finished cycling you dont want to run out and stock the tank just yet! start with a cleanup crew and wait a week or 2 to make sure you dont have another ammonia spike and THAN slowy begin to stock the tank.... take this as a lesson learned and dont listen to the dumb guy looking to make a buck at the lfs!

 

[raymond2688]

TRE
i have noticed that the LFS suck. i have had 4 amonia spikes so far 2 weeks ago all paramiters were perfect so i got a couple fish. it then spiked again. the blennies and crabs were for my cleanup package i feel i have been pretty patient and will continue to be so i am just concerned i am not doing things right. what would be a good skimmer i am not real satisfied with the one i have.
do i need to do water changes with it cycling?

thanks in advance

 

[TRe]

normally theres no need for water changes during the cycle but since you have fish in ther its a diffrant story! by adding all those fish at once you most likley cause a mini cycle...you dont wanna dump 5 fish in all at the same time

 

[KahluaZzZ]

Congrats on the new tank, the frame look is very cool. Checking your hardware, you might wanna add more muscle in the water movement department, like getting strong and wide powerheads ( Seio, Tunze, Hydor )..helps a lot with algaes and gaz exchange in a SW tank.
You skimmer, well, is kinda inefficient, 'cause it's a seaclone. I was once "seacloned" too when i started the hobby and was pissed at the LFS guy. It can work, but with a lot of tweaks and for a much much smaller tank. Looking at your pics, i can see that the tank isn't drilled, so you need a hang-on skimmer, wich reduces your choices of skimmers and the water level changes due to evaporation, so some hang-on will not properly work when the waterline is not leveled. Anyways i bought 2 skimmers from this company (for my clients) and they were very efficient : SWC XTREME HANG ON TANK SWC Xtreme HOT [SWC Xtreme HOT] - $399.99 : SWC - Salt Water Connection, Protein Skimmers, Calcium Reactors, Filters & Lights and you could also look at the Remora Pro Mag3 if you bioload isn't huge. Those are the only 2 that comes in my mind when i look at your setup.
You could ditch the Filstar 'cause over time it may become a nitrate reactor, or just keep the carbon, but no need to put other medias in there. You lighting is ok for a fish only setup, but if you need corals eventually you should upgrade.
And yeah, the ammonia coming from the rocks is normal 'cause they're uncured.

 

[raymond2688]

ok i ditched the filstars i did not like them and was going to replace them with a couple good powerheads...
I am now a little upset that after 125 bucks my lighting is not sufficient. what bulbs do i need to grow coral. also i am not famillar with alot of the terms example calcium reactor bioload.

are you saying i need 2 skimmers and they are 399 each.....

oh and i guess i need to have a yard sail for all the stuff i bought twice...ughhhhh (big lessons learned) but i want it done right.

thanks to all

 

[raymond2688]

also do i need to be doing anything to the water to get it ready for coral while i am going threw the cycle process.

 

[KahluaZzZ]

T5 , metal halide, depends on which corals you wanna keep, but for now the filtration is the most important thing to focus on. No you don't need 2 skimmers, i just pointed out 2 good hang on skimmers. The one that is 400$ is amazing...anyways any SWC skimmer is great IMO. There are other ones but i'm not gonna link you to skimmers that i never used or seen in use.
Calcium reactor = don't need one for now. You'll have plenty of calcium for your saltwater mix. If you had zillions of corals and calcium consuming livestock maybe, but hey plenty of SW hobbyists don't have one. Bioload..in this case.. well if you had plenty of fishies that crap a lot, you'll have plenty of bioload
Meh you can keep your seaclone as a backup if you new one fails, or use the maxi-jet (the pump) for water circulation..unless you have a good price but it's kinda hard to find someone willing to pay a good amount of money for a used Seaclone.
I would wait a bit with the water, your cycle is still young even tough it took some time, ammonia is pretty high, wait until it balances more, when nitrates are higher and ammonia + nitrite lower, then good water changes

 

[raymond2688]

is it ok to leave the brown algea growing while i am finishing my cycle period. it is out of control realy and getting worse by the day. or will the power heads i put in there help with this problem.

sorry about all the questions i just want to do it right so i can enjoy it

 

[KahluaZzZ]

hem...do you use tap water or you have a reverse osmosis system ?
also yes, powerheads reduce algae problems, inhibiting them..also close the lights..

 

[raymond2688]

i did not use tap water this time around and i have no idea what a reverse osmosis system is. i try not to leave my light on any longer than 8 hrs

 

[KahluaZzZ]

what water were u using then..bought it from the LFS ?
If you put directly water from the faucet then mix it with you salt, it's tap water before the mix..so it's not filtered enough. A ro/di unit like this

is used to filter the water before you mix it with salt..it's kinda..very important to use one..it helps to clean the water before it gets in the tank..

 

[Lorna]

wow, where to begin..... Tre and Kahluazz know their stuff and are not steering you wrong. You will continue to have ammonia until the rock is fully cured and that can take a few weeks. Yes you are patient especially given all the bad advice you have been given. Others on the forum starting out please take note......LFS are really not your friends.....they are in business.

Have a garage sale, sell all that stuff you can't use and take the fish back until you are ready for fish.....start slowly and add your equipment with good quality stuff. You have a large tank and will need a large skimmer to handle the load. The crushed coral is not a good choice and you should seriously think of switching it out for sand. it traps nutrients and with your crappy skimmer you are setting yourself up for problems later. From experience the AquaC Remora Pro with the mag 3 upgrade will barely handle a 120g but will be okay if it is lightly stocked. It is a great skimmer and with the preskim box you should be okay. You can find them on ebay reasonably priced. Powerheads are a must and you should look at something providing lots of wide flow like the hydor Korallia 4 or 5 Seios or even maxijets that are modded. flow in this size tank can't be underrated. look for 20 x turnover at the minimum......good luck and welcome to the forum

 

[raymond2688]

Kahluazz

what is the cost of that system. i went ahead and ordered the skimmer you recomended and i figure i will turn the seaclone into a flower pot .....LOL

i was wondering if the reverse osmosis system will filter the water already in the tank as well or is it only for new water.

 

[TRe]

u should get a few koralia #4's too!

 

[KahluaZzZ]

A simple 5 stage RO/DI should cost around 100-120$, with all cartridges.
The one showed on the pic is more like 300$, with a TDS meter that show the water's quality and other cool features, but 90% of the reefers i know are using pretty much the same (100-120$). Works well. I didn't use a RO/DI for a year or so and was constantly battling brown algae, hair algae and all..even tough we have here great tap water quality, it wasn't enough. A ro/di unit will prevent chemicals like chlorine, metals from the plumbing, silicates, phosphates, to get in before so you'll need less filtration after. BTW nice buy, it's pretty much the most powerful hang on skimmer available, with the sicce pump and the pin wheel. Works better than a Deltec for 40% less money! Very strong acrylic ( wich is often why it can cost a good amount of money )
A good skimmer is one of the most important thing you need.
A flower pot ? I've seen some people using their old skimmer with hand soap, you'll have a cool bubble party...also other people using them as bongs.
Seriously keep the skimmer's pump, use it to dissolve the salt mix in your water in a bucket.
OH...the ro/di in ONLY for new water, you don't use it in the tank! You plug it in under the sink on the cold water tubing, or you buy a 9$ faucet adapter to put in easily under..well the faucet. Its uses the pressure inside the pipe, no powerheads..it's a slow process but it's pristine water.

 

[raymond2688]

the new skimmer is great......
i have been doing alot of reading on this forum and was wondering if it is bad that i am running a canister filter. i have a rena 4. my water is finally doing great i will continue to moniter it for another week and may get a cleaner package. i have been looking at the cleaner packages online and was wondering if i need what they recomend for tank size since there are no fish at this point would not want them to run out of food. maybe downsize the pakage a couple tank sizes.