First tank and already messed up. Do I need to start over?

[JCOLE]

Welcome to R2R!!! Like others have said just wait it out. Also, plan on watching a box of water and rocks for the next month before adding anything. Will need to let the tank cycle.

 

[Revmh]

I finally got my tank today (Fluval evo 13.5). I’ve been learning about this Harvey for the past couple weeks and when I got my tank today I went to my local fish store and bought sand, Rodi water, salt, and a number of other things. I got home and mixed the salt with the rodi. I totally forgot to rinse the sand before putting it into the tank and now it’s completely fogged from the sand. Will my tank overcome this or do I need to start fresh? I also think I filled up my tank a bit too high as all three compartments in the back are at the same level. I’ve been watching videos and it seems like other people‘s levels are lower in the three compartments. I attached some pictures, do I need to take some water out? Is something other than me rinsing the sand wrong? I have the pump on now, is that right? Or should I turn it off until the fog subsides?
Thanks

Agreed, no need to start over. If this is your biggest mistake, you're going to have a great time.

 

[kiteski14]

I must say, I'm so glad I joined this community. I can't believe how helpful everyone is and how active the community is. I love that I make a post and get responses almost immediately! Thanks for all the help, I'll be sure to share my journey.

As for cycle starters, is there a favorite that people have that I should use, or any mentioned in this thread will work fine?

Is it completely necessary since I have live rock, I'm assuming it'll just kick start the process (which I am looking to do).

 

[therealdealdc]

The only reason I would suggest you start over is if you want a bigger tank....which you will want soon. It happens to all of us.

 

[CamKole]

When i first put water in my tank, i didn't know that the live sand came with a substance in some clear pouch that is supposed to help settle the sand. I threw it away thinking it was some packaging object. I did a partial water change to get some of the sand out of the water and let it sit for a day.

Like everyone's stated already, being patient is very important with this hobby and it's honestly why i started my tank in the first place. I needed something to teach me to be more patient.

Welcome to R2R!

 

[Sofishtication]

My 13.5g fluval sea did exactly the same thing don’t worry. I would suggest rinsing your filter media out tonight, removing the he ceramic and carbon, and packing the two cutouts with filter floss (and then rinse or change the filter floss a couple of times a day) and it will be crystal clear in no time.

Some tips for the fluval sea:
from the get go put a small media bag of rowaphos in the same cut out as the carbon. This will prevent you getting a big algae bloom a couple of months down the line.
8/9 kg of live rock works out about right for this tank and gives you a decent amount of filtration in itself.
When placing your rock and doing you aquascape be conscious of making sure you have alenough caves/hidey holes. I ended up having to rescape due time init being such a small tank and using such a little amount of rock.
If you haven’t got the ps1 or ps2 fluval skimmer then get one.
Once you pure cycled and established a small handful of cheato algae in chamber one (beneath the skimmer works wonders.
People will tell you that the 13.5 gallon is really hard to keep due to its small capacity, especially for a beginner, but I assure you it’s not. This tank was my first venture in to the world of marines.
10-15% water changes every week (every 4-5 days if you push your bioload)
After the first month or so (before you get close to putting fish In) add a couple of bags of copepods weekly to try and establish a thriving colony before the fish eat them as soon as you open the bag.

welcome to the hobby. Enjoy It and take your time. Don’t rush in to things like many of us did when the excitement took over. Happy-reefing!

 

[Pau Hana Reefer]

Welcome to R2R! You got some great advice here from everyone.

I had the same problem and my cloudy water would not clear up for nearly a week. I ended up adding Caribsea BioMagnet Clarifier before going to bed one night and my tank was crystal clear the next morning. Per @CamKole 's comment, you might have a small pouch included with your sand. Perhaps give this a try of none of the other suggestions work.

 

[Sofishtication]

When i first put water in my tank, i didn't know that the live sand came with a substance in some clear pouch that is supposed to help settle the sand. I threw it away thinking it was some packaging object. I did a partial water change to get some of the sand out of the water and let it sit for a day.

Like everyone's stated already, being patient is very important with this hobby and it's honestly why i started my tank in the first place. I needed something to teach me to be more patient.

Welcome to R2R!

From what I gather caribsea or reef (I can’t remember which One) don’t include the clarifier savers with their live sand anymore. The tank I set up recently certainly didn’t come with any in the bag of live sand and my lfs confirmed that was the norm with that brand now.
From what the op described any way I think he was supplied dry sand anyways. Seachem clarifier for the win!

 

[CamKole]

From what I gather caribsea or reef (I can’t remember which One) don’t include the clarifier savers with their live sand anymore. The tank I set up recently certainly didn’t come with any in the bag of live sand and my lfs confirmed that was the norm with that brand now.
From what the op described any way I think he was supplied dry sand anyways. Seachem clarifier for the win!

I used CaribSea and it did come with it. This was about four and half weeks ago. Maybe this is a new thing?

 

[Sofishtication]

I used CaribSea and it did come with it. This was about four and half weeks ago. Maybe this is a new thing?

like I said, I can’t remember the brand, although I’m sure I used carabsea.
When I went back to the shop I questioned it as people who used it around similar time had the clarifier and they said all the newer batches don’t. More than one lfs has confirmed this since. That’s all I know

 

[arturoo1977]

I recently used 5 bags of Caribsea fiji pink and all 5 came with the clarifier bag. I did used them, although not sure how effective they are anyways. Water in tank got cleared in about 3 or 4 days by using filter floss, not a sponge.

 

[Frigus Reef]

Welcome to R2R! You got some great advice here from everyone.

I had the same problem and my cloudy water would not clear up for nearly a week. I ended up adding Caribsea BioMagnet Clarifier before going to bed one night and my tank was crystal clear the next morning. Per @CamKole 's comment, you might have a small pouch included with your sand. Perhaps give this a try of none of the other suggestions work.

Is it safe for corals though? Like for immediate addition of corals?

 

[Cell]

Welcome to R2R!