[beginner]

ok so i have finally got my tank up and running. my water is extremely cloudy so i called my friend who has several salt water tanks and she said it was just from the coral and it would be gone in a few days. good grief it took forever just to get the pump put together. but as i was reading here just looking around in general alot of people have stuff that i dont have in mine all i have is a filter powerhead and heater oh and crushed coral....... as well can i put clams in any kind of salt water tanks or does it have to have a sand bed and lastly i tested my water with the specific gravity thingy ma bob and it was so high it didn't even read so what am is uppose to do ? thanks for all of your help this site has been a life saver all day as i was putting it together

[Reefland]

beginner,

Let me see if I can help get your going on a good foot here, please don't be dissappointed with the suggestions I post, a lot of people make these same early mistakes.

First of all, there are some key levels you need to monitor and maintain for starters:
Specific Gravity
Temperature
pH

The Specific Gravity is the measure of the amount of salt in your water. Plain filtered water will have a specific gravity of 1.000, saltwater for your aqaurium should be at 1.024-1.026; if your way over this, you have too much salt and you need to correct it by removing some of the saltwater and replacing it with, preferably, RO/DI water or tap water if you do not have a RO/DI unit. If your Specific Gravity is below these desired targets, then more salt needs to be added to the water. Never ever add salt directly to a tank that has any livestock in it and never ever add any livestock to a tank that does not have stable water parameters. Temperature is highly debated, but a target of 80F is good; the less flucuation throughout a day the better. pH should be at 8.2 or so and again, the less flucuation the better.

After you have these figured out, you need to consider how to cycle the tank. Never do this with fish! Using liverock is your best method as you will want it anyway and it is nice decoration. During the cycle, the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate needs to be monitored closely. The ammonia will rise then begin to fall, the nitrite will rise then begin to fall then the nitrate will rise, and you will have to practice good husbandry skills to get it to fall. Once the ammonia and nitrite has went up and then back down to 0, your tank has cycled and when the nitrate begins to fall, you can consider adding some cleanup critters such as snails. This process, depending on the liverock you purchase, could take from 1-8 weeks. This is a very quick and broad overview, you should do a lot of research before proceeding any further than what you already have.

Now, the crushed coral you used was a bad idea simply because the particle size allows detritus (waste) to fall through it and there is nothing there that can process it. When we talk about the nitrate, this can lead to a nitrate problem. Do a search for crushed coral, you will find plenty of information.

As for your equipment, I'm afraid your off to a partially wrong start. You really don't need the "filter", the powerhead is helpful but I think your going to need more flow and you definitely need to invest in a good protein skimmer.

I hope this post gives you some ideas on things you need to research further before taking another step. Do not do anything else, do a lot of reading, never listen to your local pet store and consider purchasing a couple of good books.

[Samper]

I see that you added the crushed coral..............a sandbed has bacterias in it that can process nasty things like deitrus. Your crushed coral is just going to allow it to fall through and collect in the bottom unprocessed. You WILL have problems with this tank ranging from fluctuating water parameters to HORRIBLE algae problems and you won't be happy down the road. Take the advice given here no matter how pretty the CC looks it just isn't an option anymore. It isn't too late to change it out. I changed mine after about 5 months of nasty buildup and trust me you don't wanna tackle that.

[beginner]

ok what we are saying here is that the crushed coral was one of the worst mistakes i could have ever made? well that is ok i guess i'm just in the second day of cycling so not a big deal but my question is if i can find the southdown tropical play sand from the carribeans or yardright select tropical play sand will that work ? please tell me it will i think it is just like $4.00 a bag that will help a lot and how much do i need for a 55 gallon tank and any suggestions on what i could do with the crushed coral?

[LowCel]

If you can find Southdown you have it made. That is the most sought after sand in this hobby.

Also, with the swing arm hydrometer it is necessary to kind of break it in. You do this by putting water in it and letting it just set overnight. Even then it will not be accurate though. Mine never has read right, I try to keep my water at 1.023, at least I thought that was what it was anyway. I had a friend of mine check my water with his digital tester, found out it was 1.026.

Another thing to keep in mind is that when testing ph it changes depending on the time of day. If possible try to check it the same time everyday.

One last thing......don't get too frustrated, one of these days everything is just going to click.

[beginner]

ok thanks that makes me feel better but how much sand do i need for a 55 gal. tank ? thanks guys this site is a life and money saver

[LowCel]

Depends, how deep of a sandbed do you want?

[LowCel]

Just found you a link. This will help you figure out exactly how much you need, it is an awesome sandbed calculator.

http://reefcentral.com/calc/SandBed.php

[noobie reefer]

Originally Posted by Samper

I see that you added the crushed coral..............a sandbed has bacterias in it that can process nasty things like deitrus. Your crushed coral is just going to allow it to fall through and collect in the bottom unprocessed. You WILL have problems with this tank ranging from fluctuating water parameters to HORRIBLE algae problems and you won't be happy down the road. Take the advice given here no matter how pretty the CC looks it just isn't an option anymore. It isn't too late to change it out. I changed mine after about 5 months of nasty buildup and trust me you don't wanna tackle that.

hello i think i have crushed coral in my tank it was fine stuff but not as fine as sand. it was the finest stuff at my local fish store , but have had a long battle with algae vs me . ive had my tank for a year and have been through many stages of algae just when it seemed to be gone i have the green mossy type stuff now and i cant shift it. would this be because of my sand? what would be a suitable floor? thanks