New member starting a salt water reef with a 29 Biocube

Mary Carmen

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Hi all!

I have been taking care of fish for several years now. I have a 5 gallon tank with a Betta fish, and a 10 gallon with 5 tiger barbs. Both tanks are planted and doing well. This year for my 40th birthday I told my family and friends that I wanted to start a salt water tank. Last weekend, I found that petco had a CORALIFE 29 biocube tank on clearance for 95$ so I took it as a sign that I should get started with my dream. So here I am. I decided to join this forum so I can read as much as I can before I start purchasing all the supplies I need. Suggestions are welcome.

Thank you for reading!

MC
 

Crabs McJones

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Welcome to R2R!!
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Mary Carmen

Mary Carmen

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Hi all,
This is a little summary of where we are with this project. Feel free to comment and let me know what I am doing right or wrong or if you just have suggestions.
I am still researching to make sure I don't make mistakes. Finding the 29cube on clearance was a nice surprise.
I can't start until the Reef Saver Aquarium Dry Live Rock arrives and I figure out how to cure it. I only ordered 12 pounds because I want to go to my LFS and buy some of their already cured live rock.

Anyhow... this is a list of what I already have:
  • the tank 29 biocube from CORALIFE. I am covering the bottom of the tank with eggcrate to protect the glass.
  • the stand (built by my AWESOME husband, I will add a picture below)
  • CaribSea Arag-Alive Fiji Pink Sand
  • I have a couple of pounds of seashells my girls picked up from the beach last summer. Can I just rinse them with salt water and add them to the aquarium?
  • Instant Ocean Sea Salt
  • RO system (not sure if I need API StressCoat + water conditioning, but I have it too)
  • Refractometer
  • DIY rack for the filter (you can't see it in the picture but the walls have a plastic layer so the water has to travel down to the bottom)
  • Purigen
  • Chemipure elite
  • In-tank Aquarium filter floss
  • ViaAqua 100-Watt Quartz Glass Submersible Heater with Built-in Thermostat (this will arrive tomorrow or monday)
  • API Test Kit
I am still looking for the perfect wave maker, so far I like the Hydor Koralia Nano 240 Circulation pump. Does anyone have other circulating pumps they like more? Will one be enough?
I also have no idea which in-tank thermometer is better.
If I am forgetting something or you have any suggestions, please let me know. Here are some pictures:

IMG_0471.JPG IMG_0472.JPG IMG_0473.JPG 54181895193__D3DA7A10-3AE2-4C43-9DA7-7E203883566F.JPG Thank you, MC
 
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Mary Carmen

Mary Carmen

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Hi all again!

I finally got the rocks. I rinsed them thoroughly and I figured out a nice layout. Here I added a couple of pictures of how my 29 biocube looks like.
IMG_0505.JPG IMG_0503.JPG

You can't see it well but the rock on the top right, the one that looks really dark, is the one I got already cured and aged from my lfs. I waited until there was some water in the tank before I placed it. Then I noticed there was something coming out of the rock, I think it was fish poo but I am bot sure. I hope I didn't make a mistake not rinsing this rock. Here is a picture of what came off it:

IMG_0507.JPG

I also tested the water after I had the pump and the heater running for an hour and this is what I got:

Salinity- 1.024
PH- 8.1
Am- .25 (looks a bit darker)
Nitrite and Nitrate - 0
I will be testing again in 5 days if I can wait that much. Here are some pictures of the results:

IMG_0510.jpg IMG_0511.JPG IMG_0512.JPG IMG_0513.JPG

I am running the tank without the Purigen or the Chemipure elite. I read somewhere that it will slow down the cycle. I am using the blue and white filter floss to help collect residue. Let me know if I should be doing something else.
Wish me luck!
Mary
 

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