the-obstacle Posted July 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 and so it begins... I had to throw the extra rubble and the big bit of left over rock in to cycle so it doesn't look quite as good at the moment. For the next few weeks it'll look like a black blob on a table as it's currently wrapped in a black rubbish bag to keep the light out for the cycle. Exciting times! I've got enough rock and new buckets to make a sweet diy turf scrubber too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirio Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 Looking good man! Keep us updated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anthony law Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 cool :happy1: :spop: :spop: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 can't wait till you put some neon tetra in there Dan :cofn: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anthony law Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 can't wait till you put some neon tetra in there Dan :cofn: :rotf: :rotf: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshlikesfish Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 !drool: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-obstacle Posted July 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 :rotf: :rotf: I thought this was how you breed cardinals? I've blacked out the tank and everything! :lol: actually, if I could get some bengai cardinals to breed in there it'd be sweet! Not a hope in hell of course... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anthony law Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 I thought this was how you breed cardinals? I've blacked out the tank and everything! :lol: actually, if I could get some bengai cardinals to breed in there it'd be sweet! Not a hope in hell of course... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougstark Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 Ahh, good point! There's a beginners guide on nano-reef.com that mentions hermit crabs, in the US of course, that spend their time cleaning the sand a grain at a time. I'm not sure if we can get tropical hermits here but I haven't read anything else that manages to clean like they do. edit: it seems you can get tropical hermits here. I'm planning to go crushed coral/shell sand to increase the amount of bio filtration. Never going to be adding silica to the marine tank. Looks like hermit crabs may be available from http://www.coralreef.co.nz/ soon. Hoping to get ablue one myself. :happy2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#!CrunchBang Posted July 2, 2011 Report Share Posted July 2, 2011 there's also http://www.aquaworld.co.nz/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia Posted July 2, 2011 Report Share Posted July 2, 2011 hermit crabs rule the world you could get 2 and have Crab Wars Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-obstacle Posted July 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2011 wow! Who knew decaying organic matter could smell so bad?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-obstacle Posted July 3, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 3, 2011 Just did the first parameter test on the tank water and WOW! I have never seen those colours come out of my test kit. Ammonia - 2ppm Nitrite - 1ppm Nitrate - 20ppm pH - 8.2 I'm assuming this is normal for early on in the cycle. If anybody has any suggestions on what i should change let me know otherwise I'm'a-leave-it-alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-obstacle Posted July 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2011 I bought an aquaone hydrometer/thermometer to make sure I keep the salinity the same throughout the cycle by adding pure dew top ups. It seems I've added a lot more water than was in there originally as the water level is up to the black rim now vs. what it started at. Is that to be expected? I would have thought the goal would be to keep the water level the same. Maybe I should try the hydrometer on the bucket of NSW that has had the lid on it for a week or so and compare. Should I do a NSW water change to reset everything? Current water results show ammonia, nitrite and nitrate are all through the roof. I'm hoping the ammonia starts to drop soon but I'm expecting to wait a few more weeks for that. I have built an algae turf scrubber in a 30L sump to give it a go but need to get a return pump to finish it off. That one's going to have to wait until pay day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted July 9, 2011 Report Share Posted July 9, 2011 using a deep layer of sand in the sump? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-obstacle Posted July 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2011 using a deep layer of sand in the sump? Wasn't planning to but now that you mention it I'll see if there's enough room. I'll be putting as much live rock/rubble in there as possible. Actually, since deciding this afternoon to add the sump it has freed me up to try many different options. In theory the algae scrubber and live rock should remove all the nitrates but a dsb wouldn't hurt as a backup. I have an el-cheapo aqua one skimmer here too but apparently they're a nightmare to get working well so I'll leave that out to start with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted July 9, 2011 Report Share Posted July 9, 2011 i run DSB on all my marines now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-obstacle Posted July 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2011 i run DSB on all my marines now That's good to know. I'm just not sure I have the footprint for it in the current sump or the cabinet it's going in. I'll do some measuring tomorrow. Like the algae scrubber I really like the idea of the dsb as it's just doing stuff that happens in the wild. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted July 10, 2011 Report Share Posted July 10, 2011 oceandose posted this on DSBs on reefkeepers http://www.reefkeepers.co.nz/forum/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=538 easy to read Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-obstacle Posted July 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2011 thank you very much. I've read a few but this is the best description of how and why. Now to befriend some local reefers that will be kind enough to swap a couple of handfuls of sand with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted July 10, 2011 Report Share Posted July 10, 2011 oceandose posted this on DSBs on reefkeepers http://www.reefkeepers.co.nz/forum/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=538 easy to read For anyone that doesn't have a reefkeepers acc. try this link Thanks Google Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-obstacle Posted July 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2011 Next question - dare I drill overflow/return holes in the back of this tank? Seems like I might be getting too detailed for what was supposed to be a nice easy project. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshlikesfish Posted July 10, 2011 Report Share Posted July 10, 2011 I've drilled tanks. Its easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squirt Posted July 10, 2011 Report Share Posted July 10, 2011 Yeah I've seen people drill tanks Have running water running over the tank Start the Drill real slow Drill through Maybe google for more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-obstacle Posted July 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2011 Yeah, I've got the technique sorted, I'm just wondering whether or not I should or if I'm going too far with what was meant to be an easy setup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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