Need Help reviving my saltwater fish tank

javi515707 · 01/14/2010, 12:06 PM

Hello Reef Central Forums

Not new to the hobby but I have a situation on my hands that I need help with.

I have a 3yr old 50 gallons saltwater tank that at one point was healthy with plenty of fish and corals. After landing a job that required much of my time I found my self neglecting my tank and over the time loosing everything I had worked so hard for. Frustration kicked in but I never gave up on my talk so I never took it down. For the past 8 to 12 months I've kept my talk half way filled with water so the live rock/sand would not go bad and I've kept the power heads running to circulate the water with the idea that someday I can bring my talk back to life. I have changed the water every other month and kept is as clean as possible.
When I had my talk up and running. My only system of filtration was my live rock. I only ran my filters about a week per month just to keep things under control.

Here is my question. How can I bring my 50gal. tank back to life?
I am ready to give it the attention it needs.

1) Do I need to let the tank cycle again?
2) I do not mix my saltwater. I purchase my water from a mom and pop aquarium in town.
3) I have plenty of live rock and sand (original rock and sand for the past 3yrs)
4) I have a protein skimmer
5) I have a canister filter if need it.

Please feel free to ask any questions... I would really like to get my fish tank back to the beautiful talk it use to be.

Thank you

stingythingy45 · 01/14/2010, 12:13 PM

1) Do I need to let the tank cycle again?You may not have to.But you'll need to test the biological filter.Best way is to feed the tank heavy for a few days and then see if ammonia rises.
2) I do not mix my saltwater. I purchase my water from a mom and pop aquarium in town.
I strongly suggest you get an ro/di unit and mix your own water.It's the right way to do it.
3) I have plenty of live rock and sand (original rock and sand for the past 3yrs)
4) I have a protein skimmer
5) I have a canister filter if need it.

Is there a bunch of algae growing?
Was the temperature maintained in this tank?

1blackchicken · 01/14/2010, 12:20 PM

Im sure that you could clean the tank and do some large water changes and be fine, but if it was me I would take everything out and scrub down the rock and either rinse really well or replace the sand and start from scratch. If you are looking to restart the tank I think that would be the safest way to make sure that it is done right. Hopefully someone else will also chime in but that is what I would do. Good luck to you.

cubsFAN · 01/14/2010, 12:28 PM

you need test kits. first check your salinity. if it's ok you should top off the tank with water of an equal salinity. once your salinity is an acceptable range check amm, nitrates, nitrites. If everything looks good i still wouldn't add anything right away. I'd take this time to clean up the tank. clean the glass take care of salt creep so its looking nice. i'll bet you'll be able to get that thing up and running in no time. you may want to consider setting up a softy tank that does not require much care in case you lapse again. where are you in ca?

Still Wet · 01/14/2010, 12:58 PM

IMHO take it all down do a good cleaning and start fresh. I had bought rock from this guy whose tank was like yours. It looked ok but as soon as I put his rock in my tank all the bad stuff came out. HA on the new rock not the rock i had and i've been fighting it for a month now

theyammieguy · 01/14/2010, 02:04 PM

Why is using an RO/DI and mixing your own water vs buying water from an LFS the RIGHT thing to do?

I guess the 3 years I've been buying my water was wrong?

stingythingy45 · 01/14/2010, 02:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by theyammieguy

Why is using an RO/DI and mixing your own water vs buying water from an LFS the RIGHT thing to do?

I guess the 3 years I've been buying my water was wrong?

Well,you also have a nano.

drparker · 01/14/2010, 02:47 PM

Problem is your relying on someone else to keep their filters maintained and not to let them slip do to neglect or cash flow. So in buying RO/DI you could be getting water that does not read zero TDS and or worse has phosphates in it. I did this for two years before getting my own.

Buying a RO/DI system was the best single invest I've made for my tanks.

theyammieguy · 01/14/2010, 05:49 PM

I know it's good to have but I don't think there is a right or wrong. The LFS nearest my house is one of the most respected in Houston and I trust him.

I don't think getting his water from an LFS for his 50g is going to break his wallet either.

Yes, I do have a nano, and yes and RO/DI will be part of my 40g upgrade.

01/14/2010, 12:06 PM	#1
javi515707 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: CA Posts: 18	Need Help reviving my saltwater fish tank Hello Reef Central Forums Not new to the hobby but I have a situation on my hands that I need help with. I have a 3yr old 50 gallons saltwater tank that at one point was healthy with plenty of fish and corals. After landing a job that required much of my time I found my self neglecting my tank and over the time loosing everything I had worked so hard for. Frustration kicked in but I never gave up on my talk so I never took it down. For the past 8 to 12 months I've kept my talk half way filled with water so the live rock/sand would not go bad and I've kept the power heads running to circulate the water with the idea that someday I can bring my talk back to life. I have changed the water every other month and kept is as clean as possible. When I had my talk up and running. My only system of filtration was my live rock. I only ran my filters about a week per month just to keep things under control. Here is my question. How can I bring my 50gal. tank back to life? I am ready to give it the attention it needs. 1) Do I need to let the tank cycle again? 2) I do not mix my saltwater. I purchase my water from a mom and pop aquarium in town. 3) I have plenty of live rock and sand (original rock and sand for the past 3yrs) 4) I have a protein skimmer 5) I have a canister filter if need it. Please feel free to ask any questions... I would really like to get my fish tank back to the beautiful talk it use to be. Thank you

01/14/2010, 12:13 PM	#2
stingythingy45 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: MA Posts: 3,296	1) Do I need to let the tank cycle again?You may not have to.But you'll need to test the biological filter.Best way is to feed the tank heavy for a few days and then see if ammonia rises. 2) I do not mix my saltwater. I purchase my water from a mom and pop aquarium in town. I strongly suggest you get an ro/di unit and mix your own water.It's the right way to do it. 3) I have plenty of live rock and sand (original rock and sand for the past 3yrs) 4) I have a protein skimmer 5) I have a canister filter if need it. Is there a bunch of algae growing? Was the temperature maintained in this tank? __________________ Bob Current Tank Info: 90 gallon,mixed Reef,2-250 watt Optix 3 pendants(Phoenix 14K)2-54 watt T5 Super actnics ,ASM G-2 Gate/recirc mods,70 gal. basement sump,20L ref

01/14/2010, 12:58 PM	#5
Still Wet Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Alma Center,WI Posts: 57	IMHO take it all down do a good cleaning and start fresh. I had bought rock from this guy whose tank was like yours. It looked ok but as soon as I put his rock in my tank all the bad stuff came out. HA on the new rock not the rock i had and i've been fighting it for a month now __________________ I have a love for salt water and legos. I wish i could mix them but I think a lego built tank might leak... Not sure though Current Tank Info: 90g rr mixed 75g rr fowlr 150g rr work in progress

01/14/2010, 02:04 PM	#6
theyammieguy Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Houston Texas Posts: 1,691	Why is using an RO/DI and mixing your own water vs buying water from an LFS the RIGHT thing to do? I guess the 3 years I've been buying my water was wrong? __________________ "Ya'll can go to hell, I'm going to Texas". David Crockett. 12g JBJ deluxe JBJ viper 70w, maxi jet 900, Koralia nano, two false percs, softies, LPS, and SPS, about 25# LR and 2"-3" SB. Running since 3/22/07. Soon to add sump with skimmer Click my home page for pictures. 40g breeder upgrade in progress. Planning a 60g cube FOWLR.

01/14/2010, 02:47 PM	#8
drparker Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Palatine, IL Posts: 2,652	Problem is your relying on someone else to keep their filters maintained and not to let them slip do to neglect or cash flow. So in buying RO/DI you could be getting water that does not read zero TDS and or worse has phosphates in it. I did this for two years before getting my own. Buying a RO/DI system was the best single invest I've made for my tanks. Last edited by drparker; 01/14/2010 at 02:48 PM. Reason: spelling correction

01/14/2010, 12:20 PM	#3
1blackchicken Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Marina, Ca. Posts: 232	Im sure that you could clean the tank and do some large water changes and be fine, but if it was me I would take everything out and scrub down the rock and either rinse really well or replace the sand and start from scratch. If you are looking to restart the tank I think that would be the safest way to make sure that it is done right. Hopefully someone else will also chime in but that is what I would do. Good luck to you.

01/14/2010, 12:28 PM	#4
cubsFAN Moved On Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: South Lake Tahoe Posts: 1,550	you need test kits. first check your salinity. if it's ok you should top off the tank with water of an equal salinity. once your salinity is an acceptable range check amm, nitrates, nitrites. If everything looks good i still wouldn't add anything right away. I'd take this time to clean up the tank. clean the glass take care of salt creep so its looking nice. i'll bet you'll be able to get that thing up and running in no time. you may want to consider setting up a softy tank that does not require much care in case you lapse again. where are you in ca?

01/14/2010, 05:49 PM	#9
theyammieguy Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Houston Texas Posts: 1,691	I know it's good to have but I don't think there is a right or wrong. The LFS nearest my house is one of the most respected in Houston and I trust him. I don't think getting his water from an LFS for his 50g is going to break his wallet either. Yes, I do have a nano, and yes and RO/DI will be part of my 40g upgrade. __________________ "Ya'll can go to hell, I'm going to Texas". David Crockett. 12g JBJ deluxe JBJ viper 70w, maxi jet 900, Koralia nano, two false percs, softies, LPS, and SPS, about 25# LR and 2"-3" SB. Running since 3/22/07. Soon to add sump with skimmer Click my home page for pictures. 40g breeder upgrade in progress. Planning a 60g cube FOWLR.