somethingcorp904
New Member
ok i just purchased the eclipse 12 gallon....a heater...live sand...salt...and about ten pounds of live rock.....what else do i need/buy ...to get this tank up set up and start the cycling...
Alright ready to set up my new tank.tips on what to do from
- Thread starter somethingcorp904
- Start date
r00onmac
New Member
i bought ocean water to start up the cycling... my thoughts were that ocean water would help the cycling process because its natural... with the salt mix you need to make saltwater with RO/DI water and can be a hassle to mix, test, mix, etc... and basically its man-made saltwater so i figured its not as good to start with....
somethingcorp904
New Member
ok awesome....thanks for you help....anybody have any other input.on things i need to get set up ....and what should i do about the stock lighting..i wanna start a reef tank with 2 clown fish...
A
Anonymous
Guest
All I use is reefcrystals/instant ocean (almost 15 years now) no problems the bacteria and critters will come from your rock not the salt water. lighting minimum should be 2 32 watt (I think thats the size that fits the eclipse) but don't worry about that for a while the stock light is enough to cycle it and don't look to add any critters for about a month. You may want to add a hob filter - one with carbon - and a power head or two right now though.
I've had great results with crystal seas bioassay salt. For a nano tank I don't really think it's necessary to buy an RO/DI unit. Most LFS will sell you both saltwater, and RO/DI water.
As mentioned you'll need a filter, and water, that's about it. You'll need a hydrometer, or refractometer, (refractometers are more expensive, but also a lot more accurate, so I think they're worth the extra money), to determine if you've mixed your salt to the correct level. You'll need a basic, (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH), test kit. I use fastest, and salifert kits.
That's it. The cycle time is a bit boring, but you're on your way.
B
As mentioned you'll need a filter, and water, that's about it. You'll need a hydrometer, or refractometer, (refractometers are more expensive, but also a lot more accurate, so I think they're worth the extra money), to determine if you've mixed your salt to the correct level. You'll need a basic, (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH), test kit. I use fastest, and salifert kits.
That's it. The cycle time is a bit boring, but you're on your way.
B
Since most have been mentioning the sea salt mixes they've been using, is there any thread or chart on sea salt comparisons? Like which has more of this or that...I've been using Sera ever since, not because its better but because thats what my LFS recommended, "it the same thing as tropic marin"....the only thing I noticed and as admitted by my LFS, the calcium content is quite low...but the pH and alkalinity is fine. Anyone with info on salt mixes? Not that I'm unhappy with what I'm using, just curious about it.
somethingcorp904
New Member
hah thanks so much guys..the waiting begins!
somethingcorp904
New Member
they recommended me the retro kit for the lighing...do you guys agree with this?
Master here is something that I found awhile ago not sure how old or good it is
http://www.aquacraft.net/s9910.html
http://nanotank.com/forum/viewtopic.php ... =poll+salt
http://nanotank.com/forum/viewtopic.php ... =poll+salt
http://www.aquacraft.net/s9910.html
http://nanotank.com/forum/viewtopic.php ... =poll+salt
http://nanotank.com/forum/viewtopic.php ... =poll+salt
There have been a few salt studies done. The problem is that they're relatively expensive to do, and need to be repeatable.
Eric Borneman is trying to get one off the ground here in Houston. It's been nearly a year in the planning stages, and hopefully will get started in the next couple months. It'll take nearly a year to run if things go like the original plan called for.
Just sending a sample into a lab to have it analyzed doesn't really tell you anything, because there's no way to determine if one batch's mix is identical to one 100 pallets later.
The goal would be to get the salt manufacturers to install quality assurance steps, to make sure that every batch is the same, and publish what the levels on their brand should be. So far none of them have really stepped up to the plate on this.
Here's a couple links.
http://www.inlandreef.com/Testing/SaltStudy.html
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002- ... /index.php
B
Eric Borneman is trying to get one off the ground here in Houston. It's been nearly a year in the planning stages, and hopefully will get started in the next couple months. It'll take nearly a year to run if things go like the original plan called for.
Just sending a sample into a lab to have it analyzed doesn't really tell you anything, because there's no way to determine if one batch's mix is identical to one 100 pallets later.
The goal would be to get the salt manufacturers to install quality assurance steps, to make sure that every batch is the same, and publish what the levels on their brand should be. So far none of them have really stepped up to the plate on this.
Here's a couple links.
http://www.inlandreef.com/Testing/SaltStudy.html
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002- ... /index.php
B
somethingcorp904
New Member
hey incysor..i posted a question in the lighting section of the forum....do you have any links you could send my way..
somethingcorp904
New Member
another question..yous guys probably hate me by now...but i cant seem to find a decent fish store yet in atlanta to help me....what is a good powerhead you guys reccomend for water movement.....thanks so much
