Marine Setup

[G7EG]

Hi all,

Hope everyone is ok..

Im just getting my tank setup for my marine fish (live rock and fish only)

Currently it's setup for tropical but i've now bought most things to make the change, anyway do i keep all the green, blue and white jewel filter pads for the marine setup or do i loose them all and let the live rock do its job?

Also i see people talking about RO units, what exactly is this and is this something I need considering my tank is only 3 foot and im not going with coral???

When im ready to go what fish should i get to help the cycle and get me going?

Cheers

 

[@ombomb]

Currently it's setup for tropical but i've now bought most things to make the change, anyway do i keep all the green, blue and white jewel filter pads for the marine setup or do i loose them all and let the live rock do its job?

Chuck them out and replace them with LR.

Also i see people talking about RO units, what exactly is this and is this something I need considering my tank is only 3 foot and im not going with coral???

An RO unit produces RO water (RO = Reverse Osmosis) which is basically pure water. As you know tap water is filled with chemicals, nitrates, phosphates etc etc all of which are a big thumbs down for a marine tank but can be removed by an RO unit. Although some people do use tap water (even in Nanos) IMO you're definitely better off spending a bit of cash and going for RO water instead. The units themselves are pretty small and can be either plumbed in or attached to a tap as required.

When im ready to go what fish should i get to help the cycle and get me going?

Don't add any fish until the tank is 100% cycled and stats are stable. Die off from the live rock will provide enough ammonia to cycle the tank.

 

[SkiFletch]

Also i see people talking about RO units, what exactly is this and is this something I need considering my tank is only 3 foot and im not going with coral???

If your going fish only you can get away without RO water, despite the fact that its not necessarily reccomended. Test your tap water for nitrates and phosphates though, because if it is high in those, you may need to look into a commercially available water purifier

 

[G7EG]

Thanks for your help mate, thats brilliant info!

Just a little unsure on what to do with the ro unit / water.

Do i buy loads of RO water or do i get the unit (sounds like a mission)

 

[@ombomb]

Up to you really.

Personally I don't have a car so carting round big containers of water would be a real pain on public transport.

Also RO units aren't that expensive and pay for themselves fairly quickly.

 

[G7EG]

Yeah I see your point, problem is the tank is in my room and not sure parents would like fixed cables from the tank running into a tap, unless you can hook them up just for water changes which i guess is whats it for anyway ?? and then take it all down after?

How do they work then buddy?
They expensive to purchase?

 

[G7EG]

Also i see people talking about RO units, what exactly is this and is this something I need considering my tank is only 3 foot and im not going with coral???

If your going fish only you can get away without RO water, despite the fact that its not necessarily reccomended. Test your tap water for nitrates and phosphates though, because if it is high in those, you may need to look into a commercially available water purifier

Hi, sorry mate I didn't see this reply!

Ahhhh didn't realise I could get away without it, everyone talks about RO water so i assumed i had to have it. So if I purify our tap water would that be good? im not sure if this is a silly question or not but what about normal drinking water like evian ? or is that pointless.

 

[@ombomb]

unless you can hook them up just for water changes which i guess is whats it for anyway ?? and then take it all down after?

That's exaclty what I do, connect the unit to the tap, leave it till the container is filled, disconnect the unit and put it in the cupboard till next week. Have a look on ebay, you can easily pick one up for less than £50.

 

[SkiFletch]

At that price, an RO unit is probably pretty close to a quality water purifier, didnt know they were that cheap over there... Maybe only a couple pounds different, so given the choice, I'd get an RO unit