65g reef

[SuperFudge]

Melina,


Your ammonia/nitrites may not spike at all, depending on where the rock came from.
If it was already cured, likley you will avoid the cycle altogether.

The skimmer is different for everyone, ive seen them start skimming 10 minutes later, and ive seen them take a week to start.

Make sure the air intake for the skimmer is just about fully open, and the water level in the skimmer is adjusted to (usually) about the base of the cone.

Usually the skimmer is unstable in a new system as the water is pretty much sterile, so i wouldnt expect it to perform normally this soon.


Marc.

[Melina]

Originally Posted by SuperFudge

Melina,


Your ammonia/nitrites may not spike at all, depending on where the rock came from.
If it was already cured, likley you will avoid the cycle altogether.

The skimmer is different for everyone, ive seen them start skimming 10 minutes later, and ive seen them take a week to start.

Make sure the air intake for the skimmer is just about fully open, and the water level in the skimmer is adjusted to (usually) about the base of the cone.

Usually the skimmer is unstable in a new system as the water is pretty much sterile, so i wouldnt expect it to perform normally this soon.


Marc.

Hey Marc, the rock came from Hidden Reef but it came by bus and was in transit for almost 36 hours so when it got to me there was some die off on a couple of the rocks... I had to scrape some black stuff off and I know I didn't do as thorough a job as I should have done. (I asked for the rock to get here on Thursday because my husband was going to be home that day and I wanted him to watch the kids while I cleaned the rock. But instead of arriving in the morning like I had hoped, it only came in on the evening bus, 30 minutes before Patrick had to start his night shift. So, I was alone to clean the rock and take care of my two young kids, which was more than I could handle (my son is 5 months old)... so anyway, I swished the rock around in a bucket of saltwater and scraped off what I could with my fingers but I can see now that the rock is in the tank, there is still some stuff dying on the rock.. I was going to scrape it off with a new toothbrush and do a 20% waterchange... it's not a lot of die-off, just in the holes (pores) on a couple pieces of rock, there is still some greyish dying stuff. So I'm thinking I am going to have a cycle, maybe it just hasn't started yet? I'll check my ammonia/nitrites again today.

I see a thin brownish film forming in the neck of the skimmer now, I guess this coating is what's going to allow the skimmate to rise up through the tube... good sign.

[Melina]

couple pics.

Hey guys how do you know live rock is healthy? I look at mine and see no life in them (except for the cucumbers which are dead now)... I hear about people finding crabs, mantis shrimp, etc, all sort of critters in their rocks but I'm staring at mine and see no signs of life at all (not that I want a mantis shrimp, but you know, I just want to see something!)... the rock looks so barren & dead. Is this normal? How can you tell if live rock is "good" live rock, or if all the life in it is dead?

[Mik_101]

Hey melina its looking realy good. Keep us updated.

[0sprey]

Your rock will come alive, not to worry. It just takes a little while for the critters that have survived to multiply. With good lighting, a little food, and clean water, the rocks will surprise you with the different lifeforms that sprout. I have had my rock for almost a year, and just recently discovered a black limpet, living undetected all that time (too bad the miserable peon decided to eat my GSP... he was kinda pretty until I peeled him off the rocks). Eggs, algae spores, etc, will sprout after a long time.
I would expect the first visible signs to be bristleworms and aiptasia... but then you might start to find pods, tubeworms, and various macroalgaes, most of which are fun. If you see a choice bit of rock in the store with dusters or something else hardy you want, buy it. The lifeforms on that rock will spread through the tank.

[Melina]

OK people, need some advice! We want to add a refugium. To have it beside the tank. We have no idea how to plumb it in. Any advice/ideas? Any links to suggest?

[Redrover]

My Refugium is integrated with the Sump which I believe is the way to go.
The big thing would be room...I've seen them on the outside of the main tank.

I had Marc [ SuperFudge ] build mine, great workmanship

[Melina]

Is it possible to have it on a table beside, and at the same height as, the main display?