Talking about a restart here...

Reefing Newbie · 09/12/2011, 02:43 PM

As many may know, my tank set up(in sig) came as a whole set up. I got the stuff in my sig, on top of several corals and three fish, two of which aren't with me(one was taken for trade in at lfs, the other died of ick or some other cause in hospital tank) I still have the three stripe damsel, which has eluded capture for three weeks now. Despite being in the tank the whole time including getting some ick, he has no issues. He is naturally a very light eater. He will eat maybe three mysis every three days. He is shy, and has only attacked the addition of three peppermint shrimp.

That is the back ground info. My tank has some major algae problems, which I started two or three threads getting opinions(couldn't keep them going for very long). I now have what I have counted to be five different species of algae(red bubble, red turf, green hair algae, diatoms, and dino). Each one is growing at prolific rates, diatoms, dino, and green hair being the most prolific. I didn't change the sand before setting the tank back up at my place due to time constraints. Both my rock and sand smell like oysters. It is very strong for either one and is somewhat detectable when standing or walking by the tank. I know you can run carbon for odor, but I feel that odor can tell you a lot about how your tank is doing. I figured out that both my rocks and sand are leaching higher amounts of phosphates. Since I have already waited three months before making a purchase towards a reef, and a month after setting up my tank, I don't want to wait 14 weeks to cook or dip my rock in acids and cycle. To avoid this problem, I am going to buy roughly 150lbs of dry rock and 20-40lbs of LR. At this time, I will also be getting new sand and use a water/vinegar mix to scrub the whole tank down.

Now to the questions I have. What depth of sand should I be looking to achieve keeping in mind that I am going to be getting a goby/shrimp pair? How long do I leave the piece of shrimp in the tank before I remove? The last question that I can remember is what shall I do with all of the snails that I have during this time? I have over 200 snails in the tank thanks to reefcleaners bad counting

. Thanks to those who answer in advance!

thegrun · 09/12/2011, 03:24 PM

I would go with a 1.5"-2" sandbed. I just let my shrimp rot away, but you can remove it once your ammonia reaches 1ppm. You could place the snails in a couple of 5 gallon buckets with a powerhead and heater. They will need live rock and likely some food.

Reefing Newbie · 09/12/2011, 03:56 PM

Thanks for the input! I just remembered an additional question: Is there a specific grain size I should go with on the substrate? I was thinking of getting around 120 lbs of sand from Reef Rocks when I order the 150lbs of live rock, but was not sure if I would need to go bigger in grain size. They say sugar grain size in the description.

Reefing Newbie · 09/12/2011, 07:36 PM

bump...

Reefing Newbie · 09/13/2011, 02:17 PM

Really no input on the questions I have? Only one person is willing to answer, this is way less than I thought I would get.

lordofthereef · 09/13/2011, 02:28 PM

Grain size is largely preference. Some people have issues with sugar fine sand blowing around. I have never had such problems. I am currently running southdown which is basically sugar fine with some slightly larger pieces (but not rubble-like) and an MP10 ES in reefcrest on full blast. As I said, no issues. For a goby, I would use smaller grain size for substrate. It doesn't have to be sugar fine but it also shouldn't be very big.

09/12/2011, 02:43 PM	#1
Reefing Newbie Registered Member. Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Minnesota Posts: 2,435	Talking about a restart here... As many may know, my tank set up(in sig) came as a whole set up. I got the stuff in my sig, on top of several corals and three fish, two of which aren't with me(one was taken for trade in at lfs, the other died of ick or some other cause in hospital tank) I still have the three stripe damsel, which has eluded capture for three weeks now. Despite being in the tank the whole time including getting some ick, he has no issues. He is naturally a very light eater. He will eat maybe three mysis every three days. He is shy, and has only attacked the addition of three peppermint shrimp. That is the back ground info. My tank has some major algae problems, which I started two or three threads getting opinions(couldn't keep them going for very long). I now have what I have counted to be five different species of algae(red bubble, red turf, green hair algae, diatoms, and dino). Each one is growing at prolific rates, diatoms, dino, and green hair being the most prolific. I didn't change the sand before setting the tank back up at my place due to time constraints. Both my rock and sand smell like oysters. It is very strong for either one and is somewhat detectable when standing or walking by the tank. I know you can run carbon for odor, but I feel that odor can tell you a lot about how your tank is doing. I figured out that both my rocks and sand are leaching higher amounts of phosphates. Since I have already waited three months before making a purchase towards a reef, and a month after setting up my tank, I don't want to wait 14 weeks to cook or dip my rock in acids and cycle. To avoid this problem, I am going to buy roughly 150lbs of dry rock and 20-40lbs of LR. At this time, I will also be getting new sand and use a water/vinegar mix to scrub the whole tank down. Now to the questions I have. What depth of sand should I be looking to achieve keeping in mind that I am going to be getting a goby/shrimp pair? How long do I leave the piece of shrimp in the tank before I remove? The last question that I can remember is what shall I do with all of the snails that I have during this time? I have over 200 snails in the tank thanks to reefcleaners bad counting . Thanks to those who answer in advance!

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09/12/2011, 03:24 PM	#2
thegrun Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Garden Grove, Ca Posts: 17,023	I would go with a 1.5"-2" sandbed. I just let my shrimp rot away, but you can remove it once your ammonia reaches 1ppm. You could place the snails in a couple of 5 gallon buckets with a powerhead and heater. They will need live rock and likely some food.

09/12/2011, 03:56 PM	#3
Reefing Newbie Registered Member. Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Minnesota Posts: 2,435	Thanks for the input! I just remembered an additional question: Is there a specific grain size I should go with on the substrate? I was thinking of getting around 120 lbs of sand from Reef Rocks when I order the 150lbs of live rock, but was not sure if I would need to go bigger in grain size. They say sugar grain size in the description.

09/12/2011, 07:36 PM	#4
Reefing Newbie Registered Member. Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Minnesota Posts: 2,435	bump...

09/13/2011, 02:17 PM	#5
Reefing Newbie Registered Member. Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Minnesota Posts: 2,435	Really no input on the questions I have? Only one person is willing to answer, this is way less than I thought I would get.

09/13/2011, 02:28 PM	#6
lordofthereef One reef to rule them all Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Leominster, MA Posts: 5,299	Grain size is largely preference. Some people have issues with sugar fine sand blowing around. I have never had such problems. I am currently running southdown which is basically sugar fine with some slightly larger pieces (but not rubble-like) and an MP10 ES in reefcrest on full blast. As I said, no issues. For a goby, I would use smaller grain size for substrate. It doesn't have to be sugar fine but it also shouldn't be very big.