Non-reef nano setup...

[sadielynn]

Yes you will still get a cycle so you are a few weeks out from a fish just yet . It is a good idea as mentioned to use lr to help cycle the tank and to also filter the tank ......... I also failed to say that when you rinse you filter sponge do so in old tank water after a water change I rinse mine in the sink but soak it 20 minutes give or take afew in old water from the tank to dilute the tap water ....Tim Mantis shrimps do stay fairly small however they are in my opinion a bit dangerous in that they do bite as well as hard ....they can also shatter a tank if they want to ......JMHHO :mrgreen:

 

[ccaragol]

>Yes you will still get a cycle so you are a few weeks out from a fish just yet .

Ok, allow the cycle. In that case, I'm thinking aragonite sand, a piece of live rock, either replacing the bulb and getting a aquaclear HOB or moving to the Eclipse 6. A single fish yet to be determined, leaning towards the smallest saddleback I can get, two snails and maybe a blue leg hermit crab or something more interesting. Weekly 1g water changes and filter rinsing (then soak in the removed tank water).

 

[sadielynn]

I use the live sand just cause I think that it has a more natural feel to it ....the one thing to watch for is if you get "regular" it is hard to sink and can clog up power heads and filters quite easy ...you also want to make sure they arent silicates based either as this can cloud the water and cause algae problems down the road
you may wish to add a few hermits to help eat ditris ect that would help you a bit and control left over foods