New Reefer Questions

[leon1972]

So I had a tank for a few months in the past but it was already established. I am now starting my own brand new tank at the end of the year. I am in Korea and will be till September so I have plenty of time to learn and figure things out.

1. I want to buy LR that is already cured but I can't seem to find it online. What is the price difference between buying pre-cured rock and curing it myself? I also have about 75lb of what is now dried out dead rock sitting in storage from my other build. That build had tap water in it for most of it. Im trying to figure out the best way to determine if its still good or not. Im figuring I should just toss it in some pre tested RODI water. Then toss the dead rock in and wait 24 to 48 hours. Then I will take a sample of the water again to my LFS store and have the water tested again to see what contaminants leech out from my rock. What I am trying to figure out is the best way to procede if it turns out I do have contaminants in my rock. Should I just keep doing full water changes every few days until there is no more contaminants?

2. I am a little confused on the pros and cons of a Deep Sand bed as they seem to be self contradictory depending on your opinion.

3. I'm thinking I want to lay the rock on the glass bottom then lay the sand around the rock to stabilize it and for the sand burrowing critters. If I do go for a DSB though that is six inches of rock that will be under the surface unused. Is this way of placing LR a good or bad idea?

4. So once my LR is cured I want to fill my tank and test for leaks. Then add salt and let stabilize for 24 hours. Then I will add my LR and after that my sand. Then I will drop In a raw shrimp and wait for several weeks for my tank to cycle. My tanks water will cloud up then clear up. then it will get a brown diatom bloom. Then it will get a green algae bloom. Once the green algae bloom is gone my tank is cycled. From my understanding all I am supposed to do during this process is wait it out. Then test the water once the green algae bloom is gone to ensure correct water parameters. Do I have the basic gist of the process down?

5. What are the best parameter test kits to use? I will be running a American Marine Pinpoint Salinity Monitor because of how often salinity gets measured.

6. Everything will be fed through a mini fridge dosing pump autofeeder feeding everything, including my fish, the reef nutrition line. Right now I'm looking at the Doser One Evolution Dosing pump because it will dose in increments as low as .1ml. Any advice, experience or input on auto feeding would be appreciated.

Thank you for your time and I look forward to a long journey with all my fellow reefers here. I will have just as in depth a tank build as a plan build and may we have fun together!!!!!

 

[Reefing Madness]

 

[leon1972]

Wow. Not single answer from anyone.glad I posted this on multiple forums. Lol

 

[ReeferEric]

1. I want to buy LR that is already cured but I can't seem to find it online. What is the price difference between buying pre-cured rock and curing it myself? I also have about 75lb of what is now dried out dead rock sitting in storage from my other build. That build had tap water in it for most of it. Im trying to figure out the best way to determine if its still good or not. Im figuring I should just toss it in some pre tested RODI water. Then toss the dead rock in and wait 24 to 48 hours. Then I will take a sample of the water again to my LFS store and have the water tested again to see what contaminants leech out from my rock. What I am trying to figure out is the best way to procede if it turns out I do have contaminants in my rock. Should I just keep doing full water changes every few days until there is no more contaminants?

If its dried out, might as well start over, use muriatic acid to wash the rocks considering they have been sitting in tap water who knows what phosphates could have attached to the rock. That's just a mess waiting to happen, GHA city.

2. I am a little confused on the pros and cons of a Deep Sand bed as they seem to be self contradictory depending on your opinion.

Most do not run the DSB anymore. I for one use a lot of LR and Chaeto macro algae to help remove nutrients. Skimmer as well.

3. I'm thinking I want to lay the rock on the glass bottom then lay the sand around the rock to stabilize it and for the sand burrowing critters. If I do go for a DSB though that is six inches of rock that will be under the surface unused. Is this way of placing LR a good or bad idea?

Generally, most will put rock in and then add sand for stability. Recently I've been seeing a lot of people including myself use Travertine tiles on the bottom, then rocks and sand. This is in case you have a rock slide, it will theoretically hit the tiles before the bottom panel which will save you from catastrophic disaster.

4. So once my LR is cured I want to fill my tank and test for leaks. Then add salt and let stabilize for 24 hours. Then I will add my LR and after that my sand. Then I will drop In a raw shrimp and wait for several weeks for my tank to cycle. My tanks water will cloud up then clear up. then it will get a brown diatom bloom. Then it will get a green algae bloom. Once the green algae bloom is gone my tank is cycled. From my understanding all I am supposed to do during this process is wait it out. Then test the water once the green algae bloom is gone to ensure correct water parameters. Do I have the basic gist of the process down?

You should fill the tank first and check for leaks with tap water. Everything else is right. I would use lights as well to help the cycle, people say its not needed but how does bacteria thrive? LIGHTS! I want to say, but some say its inhumane to do would be to add fish once the tank parameters like nitrates and ammonia is stable and low.

5. What are the best parameter test kits to use? I will be running a American Marine Pinpoint Salinity Monitor because of how often salinity gets measured.

Salinity isn't really off most of the time but then again I am running an auto top off. API sells a good baseline kit for minor stuff like nitrates and ammonia. Once you get into corals I would suggest getting Salifert Calcium, Alkalinity, and Magnesium.

6. Everything will be fed through a mini fridge dosing pump autofeeder feeding everything, including my fish, the reef nutrition line. Right now I'm looking at the Doser One Evolution Dosing pump because it will dose in increments as low as .1ml. Any advice, experience or input on auto feeding would be appreciated.

Skip this, making things more complicated then it has to be. I enjoy feeding my fish, sometimes they go a day without food but they are fine. Plenty of pods, etc for them to feed on when the tank is established. Eheim makes a good auto feeder for flakes, look into that. I would feed flakes once of twice a day and every other day frozen, keeping in mind I would check the nitrates and feed accordingly.



I don't think anyone wanted to reply because it was too many questions, I was going to skip it myself but at one point I was in your position as well.

 

[leon1972]

1. I want to buy LR that is already cured but I can't seem to find it online. What is the price difference between buying pre-cured rock and curing it myself? I also have about 75lb of what is now dried out dead rock sitting in storage from my other build. That build had tap water in it for most of it. Im trying to figure out the best way to determine if its still good or not. Im figuring I should just toss it in some pre tested RODI water. Then toss the dead rock in and wait 24 to 48 hours. Then I will take a sample of the water again to my LFS store and have the water tested again to see what contaminants leech out from my rock. What I am trying to figure out is the best way to procede if it turns out I do have contaminants in my rock. Should I just keep doing full water changes every few days until there is no more contaminants?

If its dried out, might as well start over, use muriatic acid to wash the rocks considering they have been sitting in tap water who knows what phosphates could have attached to the rock. That's just a mess waiting to happen, GHA city.

2. I am a little confused on the pros and cons of a Deep Sand bed as they seem to be self contradictory depending on your opinion.

Most do not run the DSB anymore. I for one use a lot of LR and Chaeto macro algae to help remove nutrients. Skimmer as well.

3. I'm thinking I want to lay the rock on the glass bottom then lay the sand around the rock to stabilize it and for the sand burrowing critters. If I do go for a DSB though that is six inches of rock that will be under the surface unused. Is this way of placing LR a good or bad idea?

Generally, most will put rock in and then add sand for stability. Recently I've been seeing a lot of people including myself use Travertine tiles on the bottom, then rocks and sand. This is in case you have a rock slide, it will theoretically hit the tiles before the bottom panel which will save you from catastrophic disaster.

4. So once my LR is cured I want to fill my tank and test for leaks. Then add salt and let stabilize for 24 hours. Then I will add my LR and after that my sand. Then I will drop In a raw shrimp and wait for several weeks for my tank to cycle. My tanks water will cloud up then clear up. then it will get a brown diatom bloom. Then it will get a green algae bloom. Once the green algae bloom is gone my tank is cycled. From my understanding all I am supposed to do during this process is wait it out. Then test the water once the green algae bloom is gone to ensure correct water parameters. Do I have the basic gist of the process down?

You should fill the tank first and check for leaks with tap water. Everything else is right. I would use lights as well to help the cycle, people say its not needed but how does bacteria thrive? LIGHTS! I want to say, but some say its inhumane to do would be to add fish once the tank parameters like nitrates and ammonia is stable and low.

5. What are the best parameter test kits to use? I will be running a American Marine Pinpoint Salinity Monitor because of how often salinity gets measured.

Salinity isn't really off most of the time but then again I am running an auto top off. API sells a good baseline kit for minor stuff like nitrates and ammonia. Once you get into corals I would suggest getting Salifert Calcium, Alkalinity, and Magnesium.

6. Everything will be fed through a mini fridge dosing pump autofeeder feeding everything, including my fish, the reef nutrition line. Right now I'm looking at the Doser One Evolution Dosing pump because it will dose in increments as low as .1ml. Any advice, experience or input on auto feeding would be appreciated.

Skip this, making things more complicated then it has to be. I enjoy feeding my fish, sometimes they go a day without food but they are fine. Plenty of pods, etc for them to feed on when the tank is established. Eheim makes a good auto feeder for flakes, look into that. I would feed flakes once of twice a day and every other day frozen, keeping in mind I would check the nitrates and feed accordingly.



I don't think anyone wanted to reply because it was too many questions, I was going to skip it myself but at one point I was in your position as well.

Thanks for the assistance.