My 90 Tank

[Cliff]

I’m very happy to see the ammonia jump up to .50 ppm.

I’m amazed at how much live stuff is on these formations (live rock) in the ocean. I mean that it’s one thing to read about it, but its another to experience it. In the below pics you can see the darker coloured rock is the live, uncured rock. After two days of being in the tank, ammonia is .50 ppm. Also, the water got very cloudy over night. Another thing that caught me off guard was the smell. You’d swear I have a 4 day old dead salmon hidden in the basement. I filled my reactor with carbon to help with the smell. It should pass on its own in a few weeks but I can’t wait that long.

I spent a few hours moving the live rock around until I found a look that I like which also allowed for good flow and lots of hidding places for the new live stock (when the tank is ready). But I will likely change it a few more times as I look at it more.

After making many adjustments to the sump, I’ve made up my mind to up grade the sump before adding any livestock. I found a really good deal on a 55 gallon so I bought it today. Going to get some plexiglass sheets and put the baffles in this weekend so I can hopefully have it up and running a few days after. There just isn’t enough room in my sump anymore after getting the Vertex 180 skimmer.