• Welcome back Guest!

    MARSH is a private reefing group. Comments and suggestions are encouraged, but please keep them positive and constructive. Negative threads, posts, or attacks will be removed from view and reviewed by the staff. Continually disruptive, argumentative, or flagrant rule breakers may be suspended or banned.

40B Lps and Zoa reef (1 Viewer)

Users who are viewing this thread

Erin

Supporting Member
Member Spotlight Contest Winner
Joined
Sep 16, 2016
Messages
1,357
Reaction score
829
Location
Spring, Texas
Well sand wasn't rinsed so I need to figure out how to clean that while its in my tank and the heater is shot so I need to find a Cobalt 150w heater and I need to get a piece of 1 1/2 in pipe for the secondary drain. I have pump set to 35 percent and the main drain all the way open.
The secondary drain shouldn't have more than a trickle. How tall is your primary drainpipe? Mine is a good 5 inches lower than the secondary... Are the drains are 2 different sizes (meaning pipe diameter)?

How many gph is your pump rated for? It may simply be too powerful.
I have a NIB Eheim Jager 150watt heater I can sell you - got it on sale a few weeks ago.

Regarding the sand, if it's what you got from me then you already knew it was rinsed but had been sitting in a bucket for months... That being said, the remaining gunk should help feed the bottled bacteria you add and help cycle the tank. Filter sock in your sump should take care of any manual cleaning. (If you're talking about other sand, ignore the above comment.)
 
OP
OP
H-D-Fatboy-16
Joined
Oct 21, 2020
Messages
275
Reaction score
80
Location
The Woodlands
I didn't know the sand had been rinsed. It smelled like something died. As far as the pipes the one I have is maybe 2 inches. There's nothing in the secondary.
 

Erin

Supporting Member
Member Spotlight Contest Winner
Joined
Sep 16, 2016
Messages
1,357
Reaction score
829
Location
Spring, Texas
I didn't know the sand had been rinsed. It smelled like something died. As far as the pipes the one I have is maybe 2 inches. There's nothing in the secondary.
Re: the sand smelling bad, yes, it did! Please refer back to our PM conversation.
I'm not sure I understand your overflow/pipe situation, but feel free to send more info or post a pic if you need assistance.
 

BigRick

OG Reefer
Supporting Member
Member Spotlight Contest Winner
Joined
Dec 22, 2009
Messages
2,758
Reaction score
1,440
Location
Cypress- Bridgeland
Well sand wasn't rinsed so I need to figure out how to clean that while its in my tank and the heater is shot so I need to find a Cobalt 150w heater and I need to get a piece of 1 1/2 in pipe for the secondary drain. I have pump set to 35 percent and the main drain all the way open.
Use a filter bed cleaner, commonly used in freshwater tanks.... dont stir it up. It'll release lots of bad stuff if its old.
 
Last edited:
OP
OP
H-D-Fatboy-16
Joined
Oct 21, 2020
Messages
275
Reaction score
80
Location
The Woodlands
I've been stiring it up once a day to help clean it I just added about a 1/4 bottle of bacter7 and ill keep stiring it its clear.
 

Erin

Supporting Member
Member Spotlight Contest Winner
Joined
Sep 16, 2016
Messages
1,357
Reaction score
829
Location
Spring, Texas
Use a filter bed cleaner, commonly used in freshwater tanks.... dont stir it up. It'll release lots of bad stuff if its old.
There's nothing in the tank yet... Perfect time to release the "bad stuff" and let the cycle take its course, with associated water changes, etc.
(Btw, I would not have thought anyone would add sand to their tank without rinsing it first...)
 

Erin

Supporting Member
Member Spotlight Contest Winner
Joined
Sep 16, 2016
Messages
1,357
Reaction score
829
Location
Spring, Texas
I've been stiring it up once a day to help clean it I just added about a 1/4 bottle of bacter7 and ill keep stiring it its clear.
If it's already in the tank, don't stir more than the top portion... Even a pristine new sand bed will develop an anoxic zone that you don't want to stir up manually (snails, etc are fine as they will only touch a small part at one time and won't release much at once)

If you plan to add more bacteria, Fritz turbo start 900 is a good option... Specific to SW.
 
OP
OP
H-D-Fatboy-16
Joined
Oct 21, 2020
Messages
275
Reaction score
80
Location
The Woodlands
I live in an apartment so I don't have access to a hose to rinse sand. So I'll be adding 2 bags to what I have already
 
OP
OP
H-D-Fatboy-16
Joined
Oct 21, 2020
Messages
275
Reaction score
80
Location
The Woodlands
I've been dosing microbacter 7 for about 3 days now, 2 cap falls 2 twice daily and I just tested for ammonia and there is barely a trace. Is that normal.
 

Erin

Supporting Member
Member Spotlight Contest Winner
Joined
Sep 16, 2016
Messages
1,357
Reaction score
829
Location
Spring, Texas
I've been dosing microbacter 7 for about 3 days now, 2 cap falls 2 twice daily and I just tested for ammonia and there is barely a trace. Is that normal.
Hard to say what normal* is... Not going to hurt to add more though. Just don't plan to add any livestock until you have 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite. A "trace" of ammonia at this stage means the tank is not cycled yet. What are your nitrite and nitrate levels?

* What do the bottle instructions say regarding how long it should take to reach 0 ammonia?
 

Erin

Supporting Member
Member Spotlight Contest Winner
Joined
Sep 16, 2016
Messages
1,357
Reaction score
829
Location
Spring, Texas
Nitrite not sure and I haven't tested nitrate yet
When cycling, it's important to test all 3 frequently so you understand where you are in the cycle. As the different kinds of bacteria grow, they will turn ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate. If you have been testing ammonia, you definitely need to know your nitrite level to know if that part of the process is happening. Once you have nitrites, you need to start keeping track of nitrates, again, to see how the process is working. It can take longer for some tanks to develop the right balance of the different bacteria strains so that waste (ammonia) is quickly broken down to nitrate and your tank is safe for inverts, coral, and fish.
 

foos

Supporting Member
Build Thread Contributor
Joined
Apr 25, 2018
Messages
505
Reaction score
644
Location
Katy, TX
Might want to make some fresh salt water and test for ammonia. Kit I used looked like low levels even when it was zero. I remember that years later because of how pissed I was when I realized it....
 

BigRick

OG Reefer
Supporting Member
Member Spotlight Contest Winner
Joined
Dec 22, 2009
Messages
2,758
Reaction score
1,440
Location
Cypress- Bridgeland
Might want to make some fresh salt water and test for ammonia. Kit I used looked like low levels even when it was zero. I remember that years later because of how pissed I was when I realized it....
Old kits not reliable.
 

Erin

Supporting Member
Member Spotlight Contest Winner
Joined
Sep 16, 2016
Messages
1,357
Reaction score
829
Location
Spring, Texas
I'm using salifert test kits my nitrate is .02
You still need to test for nitrITEs to be sure if the overall water condition. Ideally, as soon as you start to cycle, you test as I outlined above. Low nitrates can mean several things - one of which is that your bacterial population is still growing and is not robust enough to convert high nitrites into nitrates efficiently. As long as your system still has ammonia and or nitrites, it's not cycled. (Hopefully, your ammonia and nitrites are low to zero which will mean that you are close to or completely cycled, but without testing all 3, you just can't be sure the water is safe for critters).
 
Top