First SW attempt - 5.5g Pico!

[GrimReefer]

cool. how long have you had it set up for??

[andsoitgoes]

Originally Posted by genix

cool. how long have you had it set up for??

LOL - a day and a half?

Never realized SW could be SO addictive, my wife isn't as interested in it as me (she likes FW tanks stocked with fishies, rather than tanks with corals and such) - but man, I can see this turning out very, very bad. hehe, glad my wife doesn't frequent THIS forum!!

[GrimReefer]

Originally Posted by andsoitgoes

LOL - a day and a half?

yeah i thought that was about right from the cloudy water. way, way too soon for corals or inverts. you want to wait for your live rock to cycle, and then a good week or so (at the very least) before adding inverts. too many toxic compounds and dramatic shifts in water chemistry to support anything sensitive. a little late for that advice now, but now you know for next time!

[andsoitgoes]

Originally Posted by genix

yeah i thought that was about right from the cloudy water. way, way too soon for corals or inverts. you want to wait for your live rock to cycle, and then a good week or so (at the very least) before adding inverts. too many toxic compounds and dramatic shifts in water chemistry to support anything sensitive. a little late for that advice now, but now you know for next time!

that's odd - the LR, Water and Sand was all cycled prior to me adding anything in (Anthony made SURE that everything would go smashingly well when I started it up ) = I'm making sure to keep a close eye on all params during this period

[WWWD]

It dosent look like there is much to cycle, there is only one small piece of live rock. Do yourself a favor and get a lot more *live* rock for that tank and some better lights, then you will be going.

[andsoitgoes]

There's 3 pieces in there, 1 with coraline algae on it, and the other two with some attached randomness.

I have 1x15w 65k and 1x27w 65k w/ a 24w led bulb added on.

I figured that would be more than enough for a 5.5g tank, that's pushing 8.4 wpg and it's a very shallow 5.5g tank.

I may add in s'more live rock, but I thought this would be a good start now

[WWWD]

Sorry man but that piece in the middle looks tuffta rock from a fw setup.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Yes, I told him about taking it slow but everything is from my established tanks & the live rock was fully cured in my sump & then transported in a bucket filled with 5 gallons of saltwater from my reef tank. The rock was out of the water for a couple minutes max. He has prepared extra water & is testing parameters. He also knows that if something happens, he can bring the frags back & recycle the tank & wait the normal period (like I originally advised).

When I set up my wife's nano, it was also done the same way without going through a cycle so this method was "tested" prior to Mr. Too-Excited came over. Not the best way (rushing like this) but we've discussed what to do already.

[GrimReefer]

Originally Posted by SeaHorse_Fanatic

Yes, I told him about taking it slow but everything is from my established tanks & the live rock was fully cured in my sump & then transported in a bucket filled with 5 gallons of saltwater from my reef tank. The rock was out of the water for a couple minutes max. He has prepared extra water & is testing parameters. He also knows that if something happens, he can bring the frags back & recycle the tank & wait the normal period (like I originally advised).

When I set up my wife's nano, it was also done the same way without going through a cycle so this method was "tested" prior to Mr. Too-Excited came over. Not the best way (rushing like this) but we've discussed what to do already.

ahh...okay. i set up a .5 gal pico in the same fashion and it was successfull as well, although not the safest start.