new Tank Set-up

marks4470 · 12/02/2008, 09:03 AM

Good Morning,

I picked up a 55 gallon tank that came with a stand, nice double compact florecent light, a plexiglass sump and all the pumps and other stuff and I was thinking of setting this up to keep a lionfish and maybe an Eel or something else. My question is, the tank has a bunch of coral/sand in it that was alive, but sat in my garage in the cold for 2 months and the sump has a bunch of gravel on one side that is most likely in the same condition. What should I do to get everything up and running again and how much live rock do I need?

ajolie30 · 12/03/2008, 01:24 AM

hi there how are you welcome I am new here on reef central and first off let me start by saying I have done many countless hours of reading and gathering information as well as taking notes written in a notebook... education education and again education and mostly patience is the key here to success... Ask as many questions as need be when in doubt..... I have found this website to be very informative as well as interesting and everyone is here to give a helping hand. as I have read it is very important to research the fish that you are interested in putting in your tank.. each fish has a specific requirement as far as space and compatabilty with other tank mates keep in mind we as humans are taking natures most beautiful creatures out of their natural environment and putting them into man kinds environment to thrive.. these fish need ample space to swim and carry on their lives as natural as possible so with that said tank size should be considered a good rule when trying to make them happy and in terms of longevity... Lionfish tend to get very large and in my opinion a 55 gallon tank is too small.. You can look into it further but from what I have seen with these fish they get quite big and it will outgrow its tank in no time.. as far s the live sand sitting in your garage I would just get rid of it and start over who knows what could have gotten in there if anything at all.. You can buy sand that is not alive as well as seed it with new sand that is alive as far as live rock is concerned the more the better given there is room for your fish to swim and be happy.. live rock is what your tank will need to help it flourish and keep its inhabitants growing.. I would invest in a ro/di unit to start making water for your tank and then purchase new sand and live rock I would clean the tank and sump out DO NOT USE ANY SOAPS and start your cycle... there are threads on this web site to help you in starting a new tank and how long before you should introduce any fish in it... My advice read read and read some more and my friend its all with patience that good things come to those who wait...

divewsharks · 12/03/2008, 04:37 AM

As mentioned clean everything without soap. get new sand. as for the amount of rock, that depends on how you want to aquascape. you'll want to have enough room for swimming around, but also caves and overhangs for the fish to hide.
if you are going to house an eel, you'll want to place the rock directly on the bottom of the tank and put sand around it, as eels can move any unstable/unset rock around. you'll also want to make sure you have a cover on the tank, bird netting (from Home depot) works well. and if the tank has an overflow, net that too.
realize as predators, eels & lionfish can produce a fair amount of waste, so good filtration and water changes will be necessary.
as for keeping lionfish, in a 55 you can keep dwarf species.
this link should help:
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/20...ture/index.php

hth

divewsharks · 12/03/2008, 04:38 AM

forgot to mention, be patient. the key to sucesss is patience; if you rush things it will catch up to you in the end (which will come sooner rather than later)...

12/02/2008, 09:03 AM	#1
marks4470 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: SPOKANE WA Posts: 44	new Tank Set-up Good Morning, I picked up a 55 gallon tank that came with a stand, nice double compact florecent light, a plexiglass sump and all the pumps and other stuff and I was thinking of setting this up to keep a lionfish and maybe an Eel or something else. My question is, the tank has a bunch of coral/sand in it that was alive, but sat in my garage in the cold for 2 months and the sump has a bunch of gravel on one side that is most likely in the same condition. What should I do to get everything up and running again and how much live rock do I need?

12/03/2008, 01:24 AM	#2
ajolie30 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: ct Posts: 300	hi there how are you welcome I am new here on reef central and first off let me start by saying I have done many countless hours of reading and gathering information as well as taking notes written in a notebook... education education and again education and mostly patience is the key here to success... Ask as many questions as need be when in doubt..... I have found this website to be very informative as well as interesting and everyone is here to give a helping hand. as I have read it is very important to research the fish that you are interested in putting in your tank.. each fish has a specific requirement as far as space and compatabilty with other tank mates keep in mind we as humans are taking natures most beautiful creatures out of their natural environment and putting them into man kinds environment to thrive.. these fish need ample space to swim and carry on their lives as natural as possible so with that said tank size should be considered a good rule when trying to make them happy and in terms of longevity... Lionfish tend to get very large and in my opinion a 55 gallon tank is too small.. You can look into it further but from what I have seen with these fish they get quite big and it will outgrow its tank in no time.. as far s the live sand sitting in your garage I would just get rid of it and start over who knows what could have gotten in there if anything at all.. You can buy sand that is not alive as well as seed it with new sand that is alive as far as live rock is concerned the more the better given there is room for your fish to swim and be happy.. live rock is what your tank will need to help it flourish and keep its inhabitants growing.. I would invest in a ro/di unit to start making water for your tank and then purchase new sand and live rock I would clean the tank and sump out DO NOT USE ANY SOAPS and start your cycle... there are threads on this web site to help you in starting a new tank and how long before you should introduce any fish in it... My advice read read and read some more and my friend its all with patience that good things come to those who wait...

12/03/2008, 04:37 AM	#3
divewsharks Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: San Jose, CA Posts: 1,905	As mentioned clean everything without soap. get new sand. as for the amount of rock, that depends on how you want to aquascape. you'll want to have enough room for swimming around, but also caves and overhangs for the fish to hide. if you are going to house an eel, you'll want to place the rock directly on the bottom of the tank and put sand around it, as eels can move any unstable/unset rock around. you'll also want to make sure you have a cover on the tank, bird netting (from Home depot) works well. and if the tank has an overflow, net that too. realize as predators, eels & lionfish can produce a fair amount of waste, so good filtration and water changes will be necessary. as for keeping lionfish, in a 55 you can keep dwarf species. this link should help: http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/20...ture/index.php hth

12/03/2008, 04:38 AM	#4
divewsharks Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: San Jose, CA Posts: 1,905	forgot to mention, be patient. the key to sucesss is patience; if you rush things it will catch up to you in the end (which will come sooner rather than later)...