deeveus Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 Hi there, name is Clinton and am from Dunedin, NZ. I have just converted from fresh water tropical to marine tropical and am in the third week of curing my tank so that the fish can go in. However I am a complete newbie when it comes to the in's and outs of marine. I've got my live rock in the tank at the moment and only 3 weeks in I'm getting algie, quite long 1-2cm long in places most exposed to light as I have a small 10 watt bulb which sits in the middle of the rocks. The tank I've got is a Aqua 1 AR-620T which is the tall version. I've heard all the lingo with protein skimmmers e.c.t. Would someone please care to explain as the pet shop have only really told me the basics. Cheers, Deeveus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RnB Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 http://www.hawkfish.org/snailman/skimmer101.htm this is how they work.... protien skimmer will not massively reduce phosphate levels... which is prob where your algae coming from....... pretty essential for removing nitrates tho Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 welcome, i believe you are the only marine keeper in dunedin on the board. what did you want an explanation of?? was it the way protien skimmers work or cycling the tank? both are fairly easy to understand experiance plays a large part of it, and getting good advise is the best way to save money in the long run (usually form people that have made the mistakes for you) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deeveus Posted May 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 welcome, i believe you are the only marine keeper in dunedin on the board. what did you want an explanation of?? was it the way protien skimmers work or cycling the tank? both are fairly easy to understand experiance plays a large part of it, and getting good advise is the best way to save money in the long run (usually form people that have made the mistakes for you) Yes indeed Brianemone. Marine tropical has only just hit the scene in Dunedin, whereas 4 months ago there was no supplier of fish at all, maybe the odd part e.c.t so I believe alot of items were shipped from Christchurch. What I didn't understand was the how all these gadgets work and the gadgets that I need for my tank. **EDIT** Sorry, I forgot to add. These protein skimmers are $80 in the local petshops. Is this reasonalbe as its just a piece of plastic with an airstone e.c.t or is there more to it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 cool, well first of all that link above is good reading as far as the skimmers go. I personally dont feel confident in my knowledge of skimmers to make one, but its an option for those who are that way inclined. imo a skimmer is a great investment for a marine tank, i know a guy here in hamilton that ran a big aquaone tank stock and it did ok as a fish only tank but none of his corals prospered due to water quality issues and the level of light. my advise to him was to get rid of the stock filtration as it is more suited to fresh water, and to put a hang on the back skimmer on the tank. other than that it depends on what your plans are for the tank. Full reef, fish only, soft coral tank, hard coral tank. the gadgets you need will depend on your preference Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 how many litres is your tank??? sorry not to sure on the specs of the aqua ones Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deeveus Posted May 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 Hey again. I am going to start at the bottom and not go heads first into it like I did with fresh tropical and what a disaster! I'm just starting with 2 nemo's atm and will look at changing the lighting and filtration system for live corals later on down the track and ONLY when I have mastered the art of just keeping the nemo's alive lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RnB Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 good idea, fish as so easy as they tolerate quite high nitrates, how much rock you got in kg and is it pure base rocks straight into you tank.... add beeter kit then move into corals, def the best path mate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deeveus Posted May 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 Heres some pics of the rocks, tank. There is currently 7kg of rock in the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deeveus Posted May 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 Hi again Brian. I'm not sure because there is a AR 620 and a AR 620-T, the T being my one (taller) Yet on the aqua one site for the normal 620 it says 90 litres yet the 620T is much taller and the yet the same dimensions e.c.t So I'm not exactly sure but iwll have to find out before the fish go in to obtain the correct salt additives. I currently have 60 litres worth (salt) in the tank due to gravel and rocks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 looks good so far. Are those bubbles??? it might be a good idea to take out the bubble maker as salt creep might cause problems in such an enclosed space Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deeveus Posted May 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 Hey again, yep bubbles, whats salt creep lol? :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 salt buildup that comes from evaporation, more bubbles=more buildup Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 Looks good so far. I take it that the bulb is an incandesent if so get rid of the bulb now even if you don't have a replacement. The algae will thrive under that thing Put a Flouro in 10k if it will fit a 2' tube. Aaron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TM Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 Put a Flouro in 10k if it will fit a 2' tube. Aaron Tey don't fit a 24 inch bulb. The only bulbs they will fit are 23 1/4, the only bulbs that you can get are BLUE and the 10k. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petplanet Posted May 13, 2005 Report Share Posted May 13, 2005 The 620T holds 130 litres. IMO not the best shape for marines since the are tall. There will be no easy way to add a protien skimmer as the filter/light hood system is not designed to take one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deeveus Posted May 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2005 Yes petplanet, there are a few places to house the skimmer. Thanks for the exact litre reading too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetskisteve Posted May 14, 2005 Report Share Posted May 14, 2005 there are a couple of other salties in Dunedin, ask around see if you can look them up for help etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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