I am looking to start my first Saltwater tank within the next few months. I am trying to find the best method to cycle a tank.
I understand I will need live rocks. But would like to know: do I put fish in during cycling, what about live sand, how much rock & sand should the tank have, what about crabs & snails, and anything else that I should know?
(I would like to avoid getting Damsels or other aggressive fish.)
Your live rock and sand would start your cycle. Don't add any fish to the cycle, because that can easily kill them. The most humane way is to let the LR and LS do its job. It will also be your main source of filtration.
Do not add any livestock untill your cycle is 100% complete. This means 0 ammonia, nitrites and nitrates (or, if you are doing FOWLR, then you can have around 5 nitrates). CUC is once the cycle is done. You can add corals at around 50-60 days, and if you can keep up with everything, then fish at 60-80 days.
Ah, that would be your CUC, which stands for Clean-up-crew. This includes inverts that eat unwanted material, clean things, etc. This includes snails, hermits, *some* starfish, and many others. These should be added when your cycle is done, and it is before any fish or corals.
What kind of starfish would this be, and what system would you be running (FO, FOWLR, Reef)?
People go by many different rules for a CUC. These being 1 snail per 2-3 gallons, and a hermit for every 4-5, or 1 snail and hermit for every 5 gallons...I would perosnally do a snail per 2 gallons and a hermit per 5 gallons, but whatever floats your boat.
Still a little lost on the terms, so want to make sure I got this right:
FO - Fish Only
FOWLR - Fish Only With Live Rock
Reef - No Fish (Reef meaning coral?)
What about a Fish and Reef tank?
Thank you!
Ro is Reverse Osmosis. You want to make sure you have RO/DI water (DI=Deionized Water) for best results. It is just water with no impuriteis. You can buy it from your LFS or buy a special fitler for it.
Drs. Foster and Smith is amazing. They have like everything. Good prices too. Here is the home page, just go to the fish section: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/
DJOstrichHead said:
Cody said:
Phoenix said:
That should do fine, as long as you add no other inverts or corals. :?
Astrea's are safe for reef tanks and shouldn't harm corals or other inverts.
Chocolate Chips, on the other hand, should only be in FOWLR and no other inverts.
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