new as the day I was born

Mouse

Mouse

Joined
21 Oct 2008
Posts
853
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16
Location
Blouberg by the sea
Hi all :wave2:

I've been watching these forums for a while and reading up a lot about keeping marine tanks.
I've kept freshwater tanks since I was a kid and when I moved back from UK last year, I had to sell them.

I've finally decided to take the plunge into the world of marine (since I can't dive every day, I figured a bit of the ocean in my lounge would be the next best option).

I got my tank set up yesterday and so it's very early days...

Here's what I have -

300l tank
metal halide light (the one with the tank wasn't strong enough)
TS1 Reef Octopus Skimmer
Eheim filter
Resun wave maker 150 000
Thermometer & hydrometer & heater
and all the filter trimmings & 20KG coral sand - need more so will need to head off to LFS soon.

Hope you'll all be as kind and patient with me as you have been with all the other newbies...I've got lots to learn
 
A very WARM WELCOME to MASA Mouse! Many thanks for joining us! I am very glad that you found MASA.

Please have a look around at our other "New Members" threads - many of your questions will be answered there. If not - please feel free to ask as many questions as it takes to make you a successful reefer.

PLEASE JUST DON'T JUST BELIEVE ANYTHING a LFS might tell you - please come and double check everything here. We do not have vested interests in "Selling" you things....

We are here for the hobby, and for conservation.

Good luck with your journey into the world of marines.

BE WARNED: it is addictive, and it is also a change of lifestyle!
 
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The engine room:
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So that's it folks, a few pics of my new beginnings....

To be honest I'm really nervous of this new venture, I've read lots of horror stories and it's also quite intimidating being so new to it. It's like learning a new language when I read some of these posts.
If you have any suggestions, recommendations, ideas etc, I'd be happy to listen to them alllllllllllll :thumbup:
 
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hey mouse:) welcome to masa (again:))
thats a real nice system by the look of it:)

love the light you have in there, whats the depth of the tank? looks like good penertration though.

welcome to day one of the cycle:)
 
Welcome to MASA!! Nice tank!
 
Welcome to the forum Mouse, stunning tank.

Now that your tank has got water in you need to wait out the cycle (4 to 6 weeks) before adding any livestock. You can load up on the liverock so long.
 
Welcome to MASA. Don't be nervous, the cycle will take 1-2 months, so you'll have lots of time to read up on stuff you need to/want to know. Ask as many questions as you like. Like Viper said, add more live rock - can only be beneficial ;)

Very nice tank that, I like!

Did you use RO water to make up your salt mix?
 
Thanks guys!! Yes...as everyone says, patience is the key (although it's really hard waiting out 1-2 months, but I guess it's got to be done)....I can't wait to see something live in there..I'm so excited - and so is my cat who has already found his favourite position next to the tank and spends hours staring at the water circulating :goofy:. I can only imagine what he'll be like when there's something real moving inside. I guess I'll just settle for watching my rocks in the meantime like Thomas (the cat) does.

I'll be getting some extra rocks this week to help with the cycle.

Sadly no, Tobes, I used tap with a gazillion (OK not quite) gallons of salt, so I'm waiting for hideous algae bloom. I know this will also delay things more... hey ho, we continue to learn.:y1:
Any suggestions on what I can do to "fix" this (other than of course not using tap water again & getting RO water?)

Mike, I lived in London for 11 years...quite a shock to the system being back but at least the sun shines here which is a HUGE bonus (and the meat tastes real).
 
Hi Mouse

I also used tap water for my set up and no good ..... Nothing has worked out .
My tank was a disaster. I now am startin all over again:(
 
Mouse a few questions for you:

1) What salt did you use?
2) What do you use to measure the specific gravity?

Bio-balls, coarse crushed coral and ceramic rings etc is not good for a marine system. Detritis (fish poo and uneaten food) gets trapped in them and can cause high nitrates later on which will be a big headache. Corals and other invertebrates don't like high nitrates and you will have nuisance algae problems.

I would say get RO water, get a refractometer - if you don't have one (much more accurate than a hydrometer), get a well known trusted salt brand and mix to 1.025-1.026. Replace all the water now already if you can or use phosguard like Jacques said in the other thread - will only be beneficial later on and you don't have to empty a panado bottle everyday ;)
 
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