Chrissy & Mikey's Start Up!!

[cmh6684]

So here is what we have so far. 2 live rock and the sand I got was not live but it was Oolite Aragonite.. I put salt in and thinking I might need to buy a little more salt.. I did go the faucet way of water but down the road I will buy the water mixed from my lfs like I did a few years ago. I can't wait to see this come to life. I do know we want to have some coral and ect but we have to get lights and ect 1st... I bought the tank with everything and as we know they are usually set up for freshwater so gotta buy a few things that wise as well...

The tank is on the floor for the time until I can build a stand for it. :)

 

[cmh6684]

Right now the levels are KH 180, Ph 7.5 NO2 0, NO3 20 tank has only been running 2 days

I only have the strips for right now...

 

[Ted]

Cute kid, its a start which is always exciting. Dont forget how much the tank is going to weigh. When you build/buy a stand that is gonna be a bear to lift. Obviously you will need to remove a great deal of water. I have used and know people that run tanks with power filters. As long as you keep up the maintenance not a big issue. Main things I see in your future. Stand, rock, and lights. Look at MarcoRocks Aquarium Products for inexpensive good dry rock. I got my lights from here Aquatraders - Guaranteed Best Prices on Aquarium Lightings + Free Shipping! I have the 36 inch 4 t5 unit with built in timer and have been very happy with it. I did notice that petco has a stand for a 29 for $104. Not a bad looking stand in the picture but might want to go see it in person or steal design ideas from it. Obviously would be great if you go with a sump and all that in the future but you can get away with a hob protein skimmer and power heads. Your main filtration is the live rock anyway and good water flow.

 

[chichimom79]

Did you test your tap water for nitrates? For you to be at 20 already suggests your tap has a high level of nitrates. You are in for a big algae bloom. I would drain the tank and start over with distilled or RO/DI. Also, whenever you are ready to put it on a stand, you will have to drain it completely. Moving a tank with water in it can cause it to crack.
Good luck with the tank! Your son looks very excited!

 

[cmh6684]

So update... I bought a 7 lbs LR today and will look into getting some BR later on... I placed a cube of frozen Mysis Shrimp in the tank yesterday I forgot about as well. Here is the landscaping so far not much though...

BTW my son wanted to take this photo...

 

[Ted]

Progress is progress...even a small step in the right direction means you have less to travel...see posting at 2am makes you sound all zen and stuff...lol

 

[cmh6684]

So there was a guy in the military and moving sold me about 30 lbs live rock for $40.. He asked me if I would take his 2 maroon clowns told him my tank was not ready so he gave me a lot of the water from his tank and the clowns for free.. hopefully they will survive I have them in a gallon ziplock bag for now in the tank.. ugh on the upside the snail is still alive and doing good... Oh yeah he also told me in the tock might be a hidden damsel he could not find.. New photos will be uploaded soon!!

 

[cmh6684]

I hope this works...

 

[Ted]

Rock looks good, I hope this works as well. Clowns are tough buggers, hope for the best.

 

[cmh6684]

Thanks! They are still alive as of right now and looking pretty good. They made them a bed in the sand during the night. When I turned the light on they was still sleeping and came to the front and started to swim. They like the right side of the tank right now they havnt really been to the middle or the left..

 

[ErinCahir]

Clowns don't really use the whole tank... they'll likely pick a spot and stick there.

I don't remember if anyone has mentioned this yet, but keep testing and be ready to do water changes if you do see a spike in your parameters.

 

[cmh6684]

I will, I've been watching and keeping an eye on everything. Both clowns have started to check out the whole tank to see where all they can go they still like the one side best lol.. Thank you Erin

 

[ErinCahir]

Anytime. :)

 

[cmh6684]

testing signature out..

Well I couldnt get this added to the signature... But I bought the test kit today for the water and here are the reading...

 

[cmh6684]

Todays reading this morning....

 

[chichimom79]

I hope your clowns do well. I have a pair of Maroons also. I love them :D Beware: They will nip at you and get mad after they become settled. They are pretty territorial, even against us humans!

 

[Treezer8]

Make sure to top-off your tank with RO water! Something I always forgot to do when I started. I use the black border on the outside of the tank as my marks, and add when I see the water line go below it

 

[cmh6684]

I got my cleaner crew!!

 

[chichimom79]

Sand sifting stars usually only fare well in huge mature tanks(like 250+ gallons) with a ton of life in the sandbed. I would take it back for store credit if I were you.

 

[ob_on3]

Good luck with the build...looks really good...hope everyone in their is happy!!