Need some help/advice. I have a 55 gallon tank with 35 lbs of live rock and 10lbs of live sand. I just filled it up with saltwater about 3-4 hours ago and hooked up my 4 216w bulbs. Also I have a SEio 1000 pump but that is it as far as equipment..
DO i need a powerhead? Protein skimmer? Filter system? The tank is extremely cloudy right now, how long will this last? Should my seio pump be on, lights on for just the live rock only? ( on all day or just a set amount of hours? )
All answers are appreciated and thanks for the help! I will post pics as soon as the clarity improves!
Just set up a 55 gallon tank...
5 posts
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gdeeber - Posts: 113
- Joined: Thu May 22, 2008 12:27 pm
Hello AlwaysImproving:
A skimmer would help in removing all the crap that is in a new tank, but it is not necessary. Keep the lights on for 10 hr per day and if you are going to use power heads you should put them in now so you have flow in your tank. Flow should be around 20-30X the amount of water you have in your tank. So buy power heads that can move 1100 - 1650 gal per hour (total). I have a 55 gal setup and I use 2 Koralia 4 power heads and a Koralia 2 in my tank. Use more than one power head so you can create turbulence in you tank. If you do not use a skimmer you should have some form a filtration. You tank will have to cycle which means it will look pretty band for the next 1-2 months. Go to your local grocery store and buy a shrimp and drop it in your tank and let it decay. This will start you nitrogen cycle and buy a test kit and test you water once per week. When you ammonia, Nitrates and Nitrites all read 0 you can start to put fish in your tank. This process will tank about 3-4 weeks. I suggest a cleaning crew (snails, hermit crabs, emerald crabs and shrimp) for your first tank mates. They will clean all the hair algae on your rocks. If you have any other questions just post them on the board and someone will guide you. There are a lot more knowledgeable people than me on this site.
A skimmer would help in removing all the crap that is in a new tank, but it is not necessary. Keep the lights on for 10 hr per day and if you are going to use power heads you should put them in now so you have flow in your tank. Flow should be around 20-30X the amount of water you have in your tank. So buy power heads that can move 1100 - 1650 gal per hour (total). I have a 55 gal setup and I use 2 Koralia 4 power heads and a Koralia 2 in my tank. Use more than one power head so you can create turbulence in you tank. If you do not use a skimmer you should have some form a filtration. You tank will have to cycle which means it will look pretty band for the next 1-2 months. Go to your local grocery store and buy a shrimp and drop it in your tank and let it decay. This will start you nitrogen cycle and buy a test kit and test you water once per week. When you ammonia, Nitrates and Nitrites all read 0 you can start to put fish in your tank. This process will tank about 3-4 weeks. I suggest a cleaning crew (snails, hermit crabs, emerald crabs and shrimp) for your first tank mates. They will clean all the hair algae on your rocks. If you have any other questions just post them on the board and someone will guide you. There are a lot more knowledgeable people than me on this site.
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AlwaysImproving - Posts: 2
- Joined: Thu May 21, 2009 11:29 pm
Alright thanks for the input. I just bought two aqueon 55 power filters...The flow rate is 325 gallons per hour so having two of them plus the seio pump should provide enough flow for the tank and filter the water, right?
On a side note as a fish newbie I made a huge mistake in putting my tank too close to the wall. When i went to get the power filters there wasn't enough room so I had to use all my might to wedge it out a few inches more which messed my stand up. The back piece holding it has kind of slid out and now im nervous its all going to come down soon :( I wedged two pieces of wood inbetween the wall and stand so Im hoping this should do.
On a side note as a fish newbie I made a huge mistake in putting my tank too close to the wall. When i went to get the power filters there wasn't enough room so I had to use all my might to wedge it out a few inches more which messed my stand up. The back piece holding it has kind of slid out and now im nervous its all going to come down soon :( I wedged two pieces of wood inbetween the wall and stand so Im hoping this should do.
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a1k8t31524 - Posts: 939
- Joined: Sat May 26, 2007 5:10 am
umm you should never try and move a tank full of water.....many many bad things can happen if you are worried about if falling over i would just empty all the water out move everything back in its place and make sure you have plenty of rom behind the tank and then fill it back up
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gdeeber - Posts: 113
- Joined: Thu May 22, 2008 12:27 pm
I agree with a1k8t3, you don't have to dispose of the water just empty the tank water into a container (leave 1" in tank) and move the tank and them pump the water back into tank. This should not be a problem since your tank is new and no fish in it.