Marine_Tank

Hi, Can you use tap water for topping up evaporated salt water in a FOWLR tank ? I understand that the chlorine and other chemicals i.e. phosphates, nitrates, copper, silica etc. are present in our tap water and these are detrimental to fishes let alone corals. Is there a DIY way to get rid of these unwanted chemicals from the top-up water ? I have been topping up with unfiltered tap-water directly from my tap and realise that this may have contributed to algae growth in a way or another besides the bioload. I heard you can buy some tablets off the shelf from NTUC to purify the tap-water before use. Pls enlighten me on the correct techniques besides using RO/DI or distilled water.

Hi All, Can anyone share their experience on below points regarding snails care ? 1. What to feed to snails i.e. astrae or cowries breed ? 2. How do you identify their breed and habitat ? 3. Can they survive in high nitrate environment like fishes i.e. abv 50 ppm or 100 ppm ? 4. Any other important things to know or I have missed out ? I have tried using lettuce (the one u get from wet market) but to no avail ? Heard that can throw in some dry seaweed from reading the mails here ? I have abt 5 snails in my 75 gallon tank and I am afraid they have nothing to eat as they have very voracious appetite for algae or marine diatoms.

Thanks AT. Aside to Air, My tank water will flow into a compartment (right side) which contains coral chips. It is linked directly to the pump chamber (left side). To be exact, my custom-made system filtration is working in a circular flow manner, so I don't have a sump like the wet/dry filter system. Really wish I can have a complete change to that....$$hahahahaa$$ Anyway, it is safe to top up with grade 0 or 1 sand and get rid of the grade 3 sand when the fine sand (grade o) has filtered down to the bottom. I think this process takes quite a long time. Bit is this feasible ? Another question is whether it is safe to do that when your DSB is more than 6 inches deep ? Will there be any complications for the livestocks etc. My tank height is about 2.1 feet. Let me know if you need more data abt my tank specs. Once again, thanks for yr great advice

Hi, Hope to get some more opinions abt DSB. Currently, I am using grade 3 sand for my substrate which is about 3.5 inch deep. However, I am trying to increase the depth to 5 inch or more so that my DSB will be able to work efficiently as a natural nitrate removal. I heard that grade 0 or 1 sand is the best for DSB. A few questions about this DSB:- 1. Can I use grade 3 sand and top up with grade 0 or 1 which is finer and better ? 2. Is there a way to change all the sand to grade 0 or 1 from my current grade 3 sand without having to move anything like fish etc ? 3. What must I do to carry out this topping up exercise and any precautions that I must take ? My FOWLR tank is currently abt 1 year old using coral chips as filtration and normal overflow with wool. Thanks for yr advice.

Hi AT, Have tried reading all the threads here but can't find the definite answers to my questions posed. Just wonder anybody have similar experience like I do. Thanks.

Hi Anyone, Pls advise the proper way to use Purigen. I have packed it into a ordinary cylindrical shape filter pump (size: diameter = 3.5 cm height: 9cm) one that you can easily purchase from an ordinary fish shop selling at $14) which I submerged it into my pump chamber. However, my nitrate reading is still the same i.e. around 50 ppm (using Salifert Nitrate test kit) after running Purigen for about 4 days. Here is my 1 yr old tank specs/fish bio :- FOWLR tank specs : 75 gallon tank with an effective tank size : 3.6 ft (L) x 1 ft ( x 2 ft (H). Bio Load: 1x Royal Angel, 1x Maroon Clown, 1x Regal Tang, 3x Electric blue damsel, 1x wrasse, 5 Astrae snails & 2 x tiny reef lobsters in my tank. My filtration system is just using normal overflow system (which flows into the biological chamber) + DSB (3.5 inch grade 3 sandbed) + coral chips (inside biological chamber) + live rock + pump chamber + 1 Orca 25 protein remover My tank nitrate is always very high and I am looking into other methods of using chemical / mechanical filtration i.e. ChemiPure and Poly-filter. Are ChemiPure and Poly-filter effective ? Can they be used together with Purigen ? How much nitrate can these 3 methods remove ? IMO, I guess my bio load is on the high side or the Purigen is not being effectively utilised by the filter pump in my water pump chamber. How long does it take before Purigen starts to work ? Or is there a more effective way of using Purigen. I have limited space and I can't use Eheim canister which is too big or external hang-on filter too as it can't fit into my tank. I heard it is normal for a FO tank to have a nitrate of btwn 10 - 40 ppm right ? Thanks fr yr kind advice.

Hi All, Thanks fr yr quick reply. Really appreciate that Will do another test again using this correct technique and see what will be the results again. Is it possible to get the nitrates down to 10 ppm after doing a 20 % water change. I have not changed my tank water for abt 10 months since setting up & recycled the tank. My FOWLR tank is a 75 gallon tank with an effective tank size : 3.6 ft (L) x 1 ft ( x 2 ft (H). There are 1x Royal Angel, 1x Maroon Clown, 1x Regal Tang, 3x Electric blue damsel, 1x wrasse, 5 Astrae snails & 2 x tiny reef lobsters in my tank. My filtration system is just using normal trickle filter + DSB (3.5 inch grade 3 sandbed) and live rock. I heard it is normal for a FO tank to have a nitrate of btwn 10 - 40 ppm right ? Btw, at what level of nitrate is considered dangerous to the tank inhabitants ? Thanks again : )

Hi, Need some help here on how to do a correct nitrate testing using Salifert. I have tested my tank water with this kit and the reading is always 100 ppm. The color reading is still showing 100 ppm (darkest pink) even after water changes of abt 20-30 %. I have followed the instructions as given by filling the vial with 1 ml of water and 1 level scoop of No3-1 powder and 1 level scoop of NO3-2 powder but to no avail. Is there anything wrong with this testing procedure or do I need to dilute the tank water specimen to test before I proceed ? Thanks alot fr yr assistance.