Newbie need advice

[Jeebusai]

Hi all,  impulse buy without doing my homework. Have some experience in freshwater tanks but new to marine. Deifinitely need lots of advice from the seniors here. Lol. To cut the story short. Bought a Reefmax 60 tank. Chose to set up myself instead of paying $500. 

Tank has been set up for 3 days and adding all the additives. Live rocks has been added. Realized there are a few snails/slugs coming out and even a tiny crab. 

A few questions.

1. When water level is low. Should I top up with filtered water or pre-mixed salt water. Something that puzzles me. Cos the water evaporate but the salt doesn’t right?

2. Should I remove the snails or slugs? 

3. Adding cleaning crew this weekend. I prefer a easy to maintain tank due to busy work schedule. Any hardy corals or anemones to recommend? Read that I need chiller for corals and chillers. 

4. So far my corals looks nice. If I turn on the light too long the algae will grow and it will stay there? So best to wait for cleaning crew?

Please feel free to give inputs. Appreciate all advice. Thanks in advance!

[Zhi Long Oh]

Since u are starting fresh, u shld bleach the rock to kill all the unwanted pests that come with the live rock. If the crab is hairy, most likely will eat ur corals in future. 

1) top up with filtered water as salt does not evaporate. However, if u have a skimmer, u will still need to monitor the salinity as it will go lower with the waste being skimmed out.

2) u need not remove them if they are not pests. May even help u to eat diatoms during the cycling period

3) yes, chillers will be recommended. Lps and soft corals are usually hardy

4) depends on u. Most impt thing is u must measure the water parameters. Corals first then fishes. Go easy and slowly. Patience is a virtue

[VanquishJ]

1. RO/DI water.
2. Optional.
3. BTA would be alright. Yes, you will need a chiller.
4. Not all cleaned crew will eat algae and chances are, it grows faster than they can eat so reduce the duration of the light would help.


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[Jeebusai]

55 minutes ago, Zhi Long Oh said:

Since u are starting fresh, u shld bleach the rock to kill all the unwanted pests that come with the live rock. If the crab is hairy, most likely will eat ur corals in future. 

1) top up with filtered water as salt does not evaporate. However, if u have a skimmer, u will still need to monitor the salinity as it will go lower with the waste being skimmed out.

2) u need not remove them if they are not pests. May even help u to eat diatoms during the cycling period

3) yes, chillers will be recommended. Lps and soft corals are usually hardy

4) depends on u. Most impt thing is u must measure the water parameters. Corals first then fishes. Go easy and slowly. Patience is a virtue

Thanks for the prompt reply and valuable advice. Sorry, may I ask what’s lps. 

Actually I can’t really tell if they are pests. Too small and look alike. Trying to google 

Is it safe to add shrimp and watchman goby and clownfish first? Supposedly they are termed as “cleaning crew” by the aquarium. 

[Jeebusai]

58 minutes ago, VanquishJ said:

1. RO/DI water.
2. Optional.
3. BTA would be alright. Yes, you will need a chiller.
4. Not all cleaned crew will eat algae and chances are, it grows faster than they can eat so reduce the duration of the light would help.


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Thanks for the the prompt reply and advice. May I ask what’s BTA? 

[VanquishJ]

Thanks for the the prompt reply and advice. May I ask what’s BTA? 

Bubble tip anemone.



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[Jeebusai]

9 minutes ago, VanquishJ said:

Bubble tip anemone.



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Lol thanks. Will Google. 

[kakak99]

With a chiller is always good. However you can do without, if you want to keep the run simple with just anemone and few fish.

Try to research the coral and fish that you want to buy. Not all are compatible. Fish that get into the tank first might be aggressive to new comers. Some fishes of same type might also fight to death.

Try to research fish disease (some new fish come with disease)

Try to research reef pest, they will give you nightmare.

Try to research bacteria, you don't want to get ammonia spike and wipe out whole tank.

ID and research all the living things in your tank.

If you are serious in this hobby, get a RO/DI unit and chiller (set to 26~27 degree)

Your other questions, many helpful bro had replied.

 

 

[Jeebusai]

Thank you for guiding me hat to look out for. Will save me lots of time. 

[Kingkk]

let the cycle complete.

Easy to maintain tank.. if u intend to go for corals go for less fish (not more than 4-5 for ur tank size). For LPS have nitrates below 50, for SPS nitrates below 25, Water temp 26 -24 C all time.


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[Jeebusai]

9 hours ago, Kingkk said:

let the cycle complete.

Easy to maintain tank.. if u intend to go for corals go for less fish (not more than 4-5 for ur tank size). For LPS have nitrates below 50, for SPS nitrates below 25, Water temp 26 -24 C all time.


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Thanks for the advice. I’m a bit sceptical about the claims by the shop owner that my place is not too warm and and don’t need any chiller. 

[Kingkk]

Thanks for the advice. I’m a bit sceptical about the claims by the shop owner that my place is not too warm and and don’t need any chiller. 

Check water temp bro.. it gives you confirmation and confidence .. next key to reefing is weekly water changes 10% RODI.. once stable after few months I can do 10% once in 2 weeks


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[soggycookies]

Thanks for the advice. I’m a bit sceptical about the claims by the shop owner that my place is not too warm and and don’t need any chiller. 

Generally if you want to keep all varieties of corals, a chiller is a necessity. If it’s fish-only then a chiller isn’t necessary unless you want to keep deepwater or cold water species


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[Jeebusai]

7 hours ago, Kingkk said:

Check water temp bro.. it gives you confirmation and confidence .. next key to reefing is weekly water changes 10% RODI.. once stable after few months I can do 10% once in 2 weeks


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Thanks for the valuable advice bro. 

[Jeebusai]

5 hours ago, soggycookies said:

Generally if you want to keep all varieties of corals, a chiller is a necessity. If it’s fish-only then a chiller isn’t necessary unless you want to keep deepwater or cold water species


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Any corals to recommend? Specific types that can go without chiller? Thanks 

[Jeebusai]

Added some more rocks. The long wait of cycling.....

Another newbie question. Does it make any difference on the light settings? More blue or white. Personally I prefer more white and not too strong. Lest it makes my eyes very tired. 

[Jeebusai]

Hi all, seems like there’s quite a fair bit of slugs/snails with shells coming out of the live rocks. The LFS recommends removing them. Tried removing a few but some are very small and hard to reach. Should I leave them alone? Afraid of infestations. Previously happened to my freshwater tank and it’s a night mare. 

 

Or should I intro a fish to get rid of them. Any recommendations? Thanks 

[suehwee]

Nice rock scape!

For the snails and slugs you can try making a DIY trap.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f20/diy-pond-snail-trap-126550.html


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[Jeebusai]

5 minutes ago, suehwee said:

Nice rock scape!

For the snails and slugs you can try making a DIY trap.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f20/diy-pond-snail-trap-126550.html


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Thanks for the compliment and great article. Will go try it! 

[kakak99]

ID your snails. Keep all the good one, you will need them to clean your tank.

 

[Jeebusai]

7 hours ago, kakak99 said:

ID your snails. Keep all the good one, you will need them to clean your tank.

 

That’s good advice. Let me find a magnifying glass. Lol

[Jeebusai]

Hi all, I think I overpaid for a bag or activated carbon in a cloth bag and some anophos remover in a bag. (Was sold for $50. Dang). Should I buy my own and put in the bag myself or are those 3 in 1 filter elements useful? The 3-1 removes ammonia too. 

Any good and reliable test kits to recommend? Good meaning easy to use.

Thanks!

[Jeebusai]

The more I research, the more I regretted not doing more research before choosing where to buy my first tank. Trying to learn as much and decided not to patronize the shop after my cover is changed (slight crack). 

Added a few more “cured” rocks from Iwarna and they look clean, and definitely no funny smell. 

Now I recall, the initial ones I bought, felt slimy and had a pretty strong smell. Seen quite a bit of snails crawling out and even spotted a crab. After almost a week, they look much cleaner even when I didn’t do any scrubbing at all. The slime seems gone.

1. The shop recommended adding cleaning crew after a week.  Should I test the water parameters rather than take a risk. 

2. Is it ok to add a watchman goby, shrimp and clown fish for a start? After the tests are positive. 

Thanks 

[suehwee]

Instead of going by time, I prefer adding cleaning crew after I notice algae starting to grow. That way I know my CUC won’t starve.

Watchman goby, clowns and shrimps are quite hardy, especially cleaner shrimps imo, so those are good starter additions. Stock slowly so your tank can handle the bioload.


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[soggycookies]

Any corals to recommend? Specific types that can go without chiller? Thanks 

Green star polyps and some of the hardier leather corals. Xenia. Basically nothing but the hardier softies


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