Tank from a friend

TexasTim · 04/24/2014, 11:40 PM

Just been given a 29 BioCube. Not in such good shape! Live rock has red algae as does the sand. I think I should break it down and toss the rock and sand and start over. Anyone agree or disagree?

Every1jockzjay · 04/25/2014, 04:01 AM

Ehhh its probly cyano is there a powerhead or any flow in the tank? Starting over is good sometimes depending on how bad it is, post pics and water params... If its just some cyano from lack of care u can fix it by running gfo, water changes and leave the lights off for two days... I mean theres alot of ways to beat it depending on how far gone this tank is...skimmer? U can do large water changed and siphon it out also... Sand beds are like diapers and need to be cleaned, my tank was 8months old and when i did a tank swap i used new sand and lemme tell u im very happy i changed the diaper, my tank was crystal clean but that sand bed was grosssss... That bein sed i would adress that issue also... If theres no fish u can keep liverock alive and manually clean it, leave it in water with a powerhead with no lights ... Basically kill the algae off of it, break the tank down, clean the sand, add new water and eventually put the liverock back in and your cycle will b minimal. If u kill the bacteria on the rock the cycle will b longer... This all depends what exactly is wrong with the tank to begin with.

Crooked Reef · 04/25/2014, 07:16 AM

You have a pic? Without seeing it I would agree that it is probably Cyanobacteria and not algae. Ditch the sand, manually clean the rock and scrub the tank both vinegar. Rinse it good and add new salt water made with ro/di and dry sand. Then put the live rock back in it and wait for the cycle to finish, if there even is one that you notice. Run a bag of carbon in it and a skimmer. You will be up and running in no time. The other option is to replace most of the live rock with dry rock and seed it with a piece of live rock from the current system. The cycle will take longer that way. Test for phosphates as well because the current rock may leach it, but new dry rock can as well. If you have high phosphates start running gfo and it will take care of it.

I would also highly suggest asking why your friend is getting out of the hobby. Ask about any unexplained fish deaths, popping noises from the tank. Find out everything you can about what is and was in the tank. You never know he may have a mantis shrimp killing his fish and just thinks he can't keep fish alive. If that's the case you will need to get it out of there.

Crooked Reef · 04/25/2014, 07:19 AM

Put a list of everything the friend is giving you. All equipment, lights, sump, power heads etc. we can give you tailored advice specifically to what you will need to keep and replace or add to make your system great. You are already way ahead of the game considering what the tank alone would cost.

04/24/2014, 11:40 PM	#1
TexasTim Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Plano, TX Posts: 18	Tank from a friend Just been given a 29 BioCube. Not in such good shape! Live rock has red algae as does the sand. I think I should break it down and toss the rock and sand and start over. Anyone agree or disagree?

04/25/2014, 07:16 AM	#3
Crooked Reef Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2014 Posts: 1,765	You have a pic? Without seeing it I would agree that it is probably Cyanobacteria and not algae. Ditch the sand, manually clean the rock and scrub the tank both vinegar. Rinse it good and add new salt water made with ro/di and dry sand. Then put the live rock back in it and wait for the cycle to finish, if there even is one that you notice. Run a bag of carbon in it and a skimmer. You will be up and running in no time. The other option is to replace most of the live rock with dry rock and seed it with a piece of live rock from the current system. The cycle will take longer that way. Test for phosphates as well because the current rock may leach it, but new dry rock can as well. If you have high phosphates start running gfo and it will take care of it. I would also highly suggest asking why your friend is getting out of the hobby. Ask about any unexplained fish deaths, popping noises from the tank. Find out everything you can about what is and was in the tank. You never know he may have a mantis shrimp killing his fish and just thinks he can't keep fish alive. If that's the case you will need to get it out of there. __________________ “In wine there is wisdom; in beer there is freedom, in water there is bacteria.” - Benjamin Franklin Current Tank Info: 90 gallon reef. Biocube 29 lionfish tank. Mantis tank.

04/25/2014, 07:19 AM	#4
Crooked Reef Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2014 Posts: 1,765	Put a list of everything the friend is giving you. All equipment, lights, sump, power heads etc. we can give you tailored advice specifically to what you will need to keep and replace or add to make your system great. You are already way ahead of the game considering what the tank alone would cost. __________________ “In wine there is wisdom; in beer there is freedom, in water there is bacteria.” - Benjamin Franklin Current Tank Info: 90 gallon reef. Biocube 29 lionfish tank. Mantis tank.

04/25/2014, 04:01 AM	#2
Every1jockzjay Moved On Join Date: Nov 2013 Posts: 515	Ehhh its probly cyano is there a powerhead or any flow in the tank? Starting over is good sometimes depending on how bad it is, post pics and water params... If its just some cyano from lack of care u can fix it by running gfo, water changes and leave the lights off for two days... I mean theres alot of ways to beat it depending on how far gone this tank is...skimmer? U can do large water changed and siphon it out also... Sand beds are like diapers and need to be cleaned, my tank was 8months old and when i did a tank swap i used new sand and lemme tell u im very happy i changed the diaper, my tank was crystal clean but that sand bed was grosssss... That bein sed i would adress that issue also... If theres no fish u can keep liverock alive and manually clean it, leave it in water with a powerhead with no lights ... Basically kill the algae off of it, break the tank down, clean the sand, add new water and eventually put the liverock back in and your cycle will b minimal. If u kill the bacteria on the rock the cycle will b longer... This all depends what exactly is wrong with the tank to begin with.