New Tank Setup

[mipstien]

I just wanted to quickly introduce myself. My name is Ryan. I use to be into freshwater aquariums many years ago and got out of it. Now I have jumped back in the deep end. My gf and myself have started a 55 gallon reef aquarium. We currently have 2 clown fish to help start the cycle up. I am excited to have an active forum to visit and learn new stuff. I am new enough that we are still trying to piece together the major parts of the aquarium. Sump, return pump, skimmer, biomedia, better lights, among other things.

I am trying to understand everything we need to test for and what the numbers should be in range. One of the clownfish was a little sideways at the top of the tank this morning. I am trying to figure out levels to make sure we are ok and if that is the problem with the new fish.

 

[Crabs McJones]

Welcome to R2R!

#WelcometoR2R
Give these threads a good read through, lots of good information for starting out :)
The Ultimate Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Aquarium
Cycling An Aquarium
Acclimation and Quarantine
Also please post pictures of the little guy with your parameters and we'll see if we cant get it figured out for you. Generally a fish in cycle is not as widely practiced as it used to be and may be contributing to your clownfishes odd behavior. :)

 

[mipstien]

They one on the left that you can see the side view is the one acting weird. It was hanging out at the top and slightly tilted and didn't swim away when I opened the top. But now he is acting like he did. Sitting in the same area while the second one explores.
We put dry live rock and live sand. 2 hanging filters, some bubble maker, heater, and the pirate ship. The salinity was 1.021 and the ph, nitrate and nitrite looked like 0 with the coloring. I will do another test and check back in

 

[HotRocks]

Welcome to R2R!!!

Great Place, Great People, and TONS of Great INFO!!! :)

 

[hdsoftail1065]

Welcome to R2R Ryan! Tank look interesting, how about a full tank shot? Curiosity is killing me!

 

[mipstien]

These are the only 2 I have currently.

 

[hdsoftail1065]

Ah ya, nice. I knew it was a ship wreck but I couldn't picture it in my mind. Thanks for posting!

 

[mipstien]

Ah ya, nice. I knew it was a ship wreck but I couldn't picture it in my mind. Thanks for posting!

The plan is to have the coral cover it eventually.

 

[infinite0180]

Go to Petco and get a large bottle of BioSpira. Dump the whole thing in the tank. Petco will match the price they have online so you can save a few bucks but you really need BioSpira to kick start the cycle!

 

[mipstien]

Go to Petco and get a large bottle of BioSpira. Dump the whole thing in the tank. Petco will match the price they have online so you can save a few bucks but you really need BioSpira to kick start the cycle!

Can this be used with fish in the tank already?

 

[infinite0180]

Can this be used with fish in the tank already?

Yes! It contains the live bacteria you need to process the ammonia! If i were you i would go ASAP! You still need to monitor ammonia closely after adding it but it will help big time! If ammonia is going up in the tank you need to do a large water change to bring it back down. The BioSpira will cycle the tank pretty quick though!