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JD_Duval87 View Drop Down
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    Posted: May 26 2017 at 9:09pm
Hello all! I'm going to be setting up a 24 gallon nano, I've been out of the hobby fpr awhile, some stuff i can recall, but other stuff i cannot. Any help on these questions is much appreciated! Just a side note i only plan on having about 3 or 4 smaller fish, but I'm planning on having a nice zoa garden, on a few other LSP corals.

1. How much rock should i use (lbs wise)?
2. How big of a clean up crew should i get to start?
3. How deep of a sand bed should i have?

Thank you in advance!
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Mark Peterson View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mark Peterson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 27 2017 at 9:24am
Welcome back.

My answers:
1. However much you want. Tanks with less rock and more open sand can look really cool but offer less hiding places for skittish fish such as Firefish Gobies, which actually do very well where there are caves in the sand or a thick stand of Caulerpa on the sand. (Note: the type of rock used can either make or break a reef aquarium environment, but you didn't ask that question, yet. Wink )

2. Start with a few snails. As more algae becomes noticeable on glass and rock, add more snails. In the end, one snail per gallon is a good rule of thumb. When fish are added, uneaten food may start to sit on the sand. This is the best time to add one or two hermits.

3. That depends on what look you like AND what type of sand you use. It also depends on what other biofiltration is in the system, like beautiful Caulerpa or other Macroalgae which eats N and P pollution like crazy. Smaller particle sand, Oolitic Sand for example, harbors a larger bacteria population so 1/2" of Oolitic sand does the same job of biofiltration as 1.5" of large chunks of crushed coral. A DSB (deep sand bed) can be unnecessary. I typically use Oolitic on the bottom and larger sand on top, but in the tank pictured below it was about 4" of Oolitic sand for the benefit of a soft sandy beach with ample biofiltration for my all time favorite fish. If you haven't read the Reefkeeping Tips linked below in my signature line, I would highly recommend it.

Aloha,
Mark  Hug


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote JD_Duval87 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 04 2017 at 11:10am
Ok thanks! Ive got a 2in sand bed in it now, and about 15lbs of live rock. It's all curing right now. I had the rock set up in a nice display, it fell over, now i cannot remember how i had it lol. So when i do a big water change I'll rearrange it again.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mark Peterson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 04 2017 at 7:31pm
You know that "curing" is an old school method, right? We have developed much improved ways to start a reef aquarium. Do you know about that?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote JD_Duval87 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 04 2017 at 7:35pm
No! Please elaborate!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mark Peterson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 05 2017 at 9:21am
The last line of text of my first post in this thread:
"If you haven't read the Reefkeeping Tips linked below in my signature line, I would highly recommend it."

Read that thread and read also the first "Tip" on the list to discover how, within a week or two, you can have the start of a healthy reef aquarium with lots of coral and a couple fish. It still takes time for a bacteria population to grow large enough to process the waste of more than one or two fish. In the mean time, because Macroalgae is cleaning the water, a new tank can quickly become beautiful and active. After 6-12 months as the populations of bacteria, bugs and worms become mature, the macroalgae can be harvested and reduced until the point that it can be either entirely removed, or left as part of the beautiful aquascaping. Either way, algae does an awesome job right from the start, eating pollution to keep the water clean and the tank healthy with animals to enjoy. Big smile

Aloha,
Mark  Hug
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote JD_Duval87 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 05 2017 at 1:19pm
Awesome, I'll read that thread tonight, thank you for the info!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Reefer4Ever Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 05 2017 at 9:18pm
I will throw this out there. I just setup a 120 with new sand 40lb dry rock and added Fritz Zyme. I am huge on water testing and never even saw a bump in ammonia, nitrite or nitrate. I then on day 2 took down my 90 with well over a 100 corals and 19 fish (Yes, 2 tangs, rabbit and a huge yellow corris wrasse) which all were added to the new 120. I've now been up and running with no deaths coral or fish. I will never setup another tank without using the Fritz Zyme. I didn't put this up here to say one is better than another just that I would have never done it this way in the past, it works and 19 fish is a huge instant bioload. I did use my old rock which I know maintains a huge part of my nitrifying bacteria. Just what I experienced.

Edited by Reefer4Ever - June 05 2017 at 9:20pm
90 gal reef w/refugium
24 gal softie tank
11 gal nano anemone tank
5 gal fresh water
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote JD_Duval87 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 06 2017 at 2:45am
That's awesome! I'm big on water tests myself, i don't slack off with them. I've never heard of fritz zyme.... so much has changed since i was last in the hobby!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mark Peterson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 07 2017 at 11:34pm
This has been on my mind for several days and now I have a quiet moment to add my 2 cents regarding the post by Dennis/Reefer4Ever. Because the contents of the 90 were moved into the 120 on day 2, I find it very probable that the living organisms in the tank were the cause of it's success.

I believe that successfully moving/upgrading a tank is very similar to starting a new tank when it's done with lively LR, LS, Macroalgae and coral. It's my opinion that the algae (including coralline algae and algae growing on the glass) along with the live animals (bacteria, bugs and worms) handles essentially all the pollution created when a tank is moved. When supplemental bacteria is not added, there might be a little bump in pollution, but nothing serious nor prolonged. Maybe Fritz stopped the bump? We may never know. Sometimes these little bumps don't happen until weeks after a move.

When it comes to moving/upgrading, Bob Carlson did it right and wrote about it. His thread about the flawless move of his tank is listed right at the very top of the Reefkeeping Tips list. Dennis' success may be partly due to having learned from Bob's thread?

I'm in favor of using bottled bacteria. A long time ago I edited the Reefkeeping Tips & Quick, Easy Setup Tricks to include my recommendation of bottled bacteria. 

Aloha,
Hug
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