Jmc_fishkeeper Posted December 13, 2014 Report Share Posted December 13, 2014 hi there Im wanting to start a coldwater marine tank and what tips and setups can you guys give me adivice with ?I have a 200 litre tank that I want to convert it and several tanks to create a sump with if this is the best way for fitration. can I just go to the beach and take what I can find or do I have to have a license of some sort? really intetested in doing this as itd would be great for my kids too learn about our waters aswell , I am a beginner and this would be my first saltwater tank so any help would be much appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted December 13, 2014 Report Share Posted December 13, 2014 http://naturenz.wix.com/nzmarinekeepers ... grams/cee5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted December 13, 2014 Report Share Posted December 13, 2014 Only one thing I can add to the article that LA linked to - I consider a chiller is essential for those hot days and steamy nights. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted December 13, 2014 Report Share Posted December 13, 2014 My very first marine tank was very basic, I simply fossicked around the rock pools & chose a few rocks with awesome growths etc living on them, put them in the tank, and it worked. Cycling didn't happen because the rocks already were cycled. However our rocks are not porous in the right way for nitrate filtration but that happened via a deep sand bed. The sand was taken from a layer of coarser sand at the beach, it was definitely a budget tank. Even though the DSB had to cycle there was no spike in any part of the nitrogen cycle because it got seeded very quickly off the rocks, and the bio load was light only had one fish, a blennie, which quickly got very tame and would eat out of my hand. Other than that it was invertebrates such as shrimps and anything else I could find. Initially I used a canister filter out of ignorance and lack of good info in those days. Once I discovered that was wrong for marine and removed it, the health of the organisms in the tank did improve. Added a protein skimmer later which improved things. However to do a cold water marine right, coral rock should be used, it has the right type of porousness to achieve nitrate reduction and greatly increase the bioload capacity of the tank. Coral rock does not have to be cycled in the tank. I have cycled it by leaving it in a rock pool for a couple of months. That way it gets every bacteria type you would find in the sea in that situation, and comes back to the tank smelling good and ready to start work at purifying the water. In terms of water quality and filtration, the exact same rules apply to a cold water tank as a tropical one, what is described in the Basic Marine Starter Guide applies equally to cold water marine. Link here - viewtopic.php?f=5&t=23675 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmc_fishkeeper Posted December 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 15, 2014 Thanks for the reply :)my tank will be outside in my uninsulated garage out of sunlight , do you think i would still need a chiller ? Mite leave a thermometer in it and monitor its temps thru the weeks . As for water changes and that would you just use nsw? Or use r/o? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwiraka Posted December 15, 2014 Report Share Posted December 15, 2014 Get a temp reading, If the temp exceeds 20 degrees on a hot day you'd be best off getting a chiller. NSW is used by most people. r/o? (I've been researching saltwater tanks a lot recently (my next, next project, my friend knows where to get <4cm kahawai so as soon as I've sorted out a chiller for my FW natives I'll be saving up for a chiller and sump for a kahawai tank :ton: ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted December 15, 2014 Report Share Posted December 15, 2014 Where do you live - that has a bearing on what the temperature might get up to and remember that pumps etc generate heat as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmc_fishkeeper Posted December 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 15, 2014 im in Christchurch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted December 15, 2014 Report Share Posted December 15, 2014 You are most likely going to need a chiller as chch gets damn hot with the North Westers. Close your garage up for 48 hrs and then test the temperature of the water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmc_fishkeeper Posted December 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 15, 2014 ok cool will do that then hoping to get away without a chiller but just have to wait and see... just really on the bleenies and gobys they look like interesting fish... anyone know off good spots in chch to catch some smaller type fish? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted December 15, 2014 Report Share Posted December 15, 2014 I ran a local rockpool marine for a couple of years but lack of a chiller meant I could not keep the temperature down at the required level so had to give it up. All I did was set up a 3ft tank, went down the Kaikoura coast and gathered up rocks, water and rock pool inhabitants then took it all home and poured it in the waiting tank (the rocks were carefully placed first ;-) ) I had a HOB filter and nothing else. There were lots of shrimp plus little red jelly anemones, a triplefin or two and a rockfish, a sea cucumber, chitons, starfish, brittlestars, and for a while, a baby octopus that a fishing friend brought in for us. As the room sat at 28C in summer and the water needed to be 15C or below, the freezer worked overtime freezing 3L bottles of water and still didn't get lower than 18C. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmc_fishkeeper Posted December 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 15, 2014 Oh ok so basically you picked up some of the shoreline and took it home lol was your setup inside ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted December 15, 2014 Report Share Posted December 15, 2014 That's the way most local marine keepers do it. The ones with the bigger tanks and serious set ups seem to order or gather from Tauranga or down South. I gather there are two 'preferred' places for this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmc_fishkeeper Posted December 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2014 Oh ok sweet cheers for the info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted December 16, 2014 Report Share Posted December 16, 2014 For lighting leds are best as they add the least heat to the tank. To grow seaweeds you will need a decent amount and quality of light. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted December 16, 2014 Report Share Posted December 16, 2014 I grow green seaweeds under T5's, red weed needs less light. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmc_fishkeeper Posted December 17, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2014 Ok that sounds good i do have a spare t5 light i could use Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted December 18, 2014 Report Share Posted December 18, 2014 You will need marine tubes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puttputt Posted December 22, 2014 Report Share Posted December 22, 2014 Personally, I think you really need to setup any marine tank the same - just because you can collect animals for free at the local beach, doesn't mean you should care for them any differently. Would anyone buy tropical fish or corals, and throw them in a tank the same day with some beach water, no cycling of the tank, and throw in some incorrect and possibly toxic rocks, sand with who knows what in it, and cool them intermittitly with ice bottles, etc. As per Living arts article, a bit of patience and correct advise goes along way. No offence meant, something I'm quite stubborn about tis all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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