15Gal Nano reef

[smellyangryman]

A couple of hours ago i set up a little saltwater tank.
I have 1kg of live rock, and 2 corals (of which i got for free)
The corals arnt out yet, i dont even know what they are. I will get pics.
I also have a cleaner crab that i got from a mate.
How long till i can put fish in? what temp do i have it on? i have a protein skimmer, a heater and a light. Is that it?
Info would be awsome please.

 

[parker313]

What size tank?

What wattage is your lights?

Do you have any kind of filter on it?

The temp should be around 77-78F.

Edit - nevermind, I see it's a 15g tank. You should get more liverock. Ideally you want about a pound per gallon. If you add 15lbs all at once and it's good cured LR, then you can add fish pretty much right away. I'd wait a day or 2 to make sure everything's stable but the addition of that much LR would mean that the tank is ready to handle fish, if the LR is cured. If you got it from your LFS straight out of the water and got it back in water within an hour or 2 then it should be good to go.

What fish are you considering?

 

[Max]

yeah, I would get more liverock also.

But IMO I would wait a week(or two) to add fish.

 

[damia713]

You should need a power head for current.

I would also say to wait a week before adding fish. Make sure you can test your water for nitrate and stuff.

and if this is your first salt water you should practice balencing the salinity and testing every thing. Good luck

 

[smellyangryman]

hey guys! thanks for your help.
My mate bought a damsel just to see if it would live, it went through a ruf stage but now is doing great and has really nice colours!
My crab is alive also. I put a nice new shell in and he jumped into it straight away! it was awsome to watch.
I have quite a big Protein Skimmer for my tank, no sign of algea yet.
I just bought one live rock, and i got alot of little creatures in my tank! I got a star fish that i know nothing about!
Well so far so good!
If you guys have any suggestions please let me know, thank you!

 

[canyoubelieveit]

Just a kind word... Please don't buy stuff you don't know anything about

It sounds like you tank is doing fine, but if you want to keep it that you, you should check stuff out before you purchase them.

If you have questions before you want to buy something, come post on here and I'm sure you will get some replies! Don't be in a hurry!

Good luck... keep us posted!

 

[keane]

yeah, I would get more liverock also.

But IMO I would wait a week(or two) to add fish.

sorry to hijack.. )

just clear my mind...how would this work?

If there are no fish in the tank to provide a bioload what does the liverock feed on??

I am guessing it's the same concept as a tropical wherein you cycle a tank and the beneficial bacteria develops. If though. once the tank has cycled, you don't put fish in for a week the bacteria would have nothing to feed on and will die off.

I am therefore confused!!

thanks....and sorry again!

steve

 

[steelhealr]

Hi Baldranger...sometimes the LR has some dieoff that is high enough to keep bacteria going but low enough that it only shows in nitrate levels. HOWEVER...you are correct..if you leave the LR in there forever without any ammonia source, it WILL diminish the bacteria...so, you're right. SH

 

[smellyangryman]

Just a kind word... Please don't buy stuff you don't know anything about

It sounds like you tank is doing fine, but if you want to keep it that you, you should check stuff out before you purchase them.

If you have questions before you want to buy something, come post on here and I'm sure you will get some replies! Don't be in a hurry!

Good luck... keep us posted!

i dont think you red it right.
I bought a kg of live rock, and i added into the water, and to my suprise there was a starfish. I had no idea it would be on it....
I know it is a brittlestar now anyways.

 

[canyoubelieveit]

My mate bought a damsel just to see if it would live

That concerned me...

I just bought one live rock, and i got alot of little creatures in my tank! I got a star fish that i know nothing about!

I suppose your writing isn't the most clear there and that created a misunderstanding on my part (sorry ). It says that you found a lot of little creatures on your LR, but it doesn't state directly that the starfish was found on the rock.

I didn't mean for any hard feelings. Best of luck!

 

[keane]

Hi Baldranger...sometimes the LR has some dieoff that is high enough to keep bacteria going but low enough that it only shows in nitrate levels. HOWEVER...you are correct..if you leave the LR in there forever without any ammonia source, it WILL diminish the bacteria...so, you're right. SH

Understood !

cheers SH

steve