Setting up New 5 Ft Tank

[eDen]

I am in the midst of setting up a 5 feet tank...... planning not to put in too much stones and corals so to have more space for fish.....pretty new to marine fishkeeping..........had been keeping tropical fishes in the past, only tried keeping a basic DIY 1.5 feet tank for 6 months......would really appreciate any tips/advice in getting the proper setup.

Myth or truth?

1) Was told that all live rocks have be in placed from start and it is not advisable to add more live rocks after.......???

2) Bought some live rocks from an aquarium yesterday.....went back today and the owner told me that the batch that he sold to me may have some problem as certain part of the rock turning whitish (abit fungus like)......he is also unfamiliar with the problem and so ask me to monitor the development!!!??? Any idea what could be the problem?

3) I only bought about 20kg of live rocks for a 5 feet tank.....probably going to increase it to 30kg. Is that amount of live rock sufficient for a 5 feet tank? Would that affect the alkalinity of the water?

4) Notice that there ferns / plants growing on the rock.......doesn't look very nice....... should I remove them? Are there live rocks that do not have these plants? Notice that most display tanks use rocks without......wonder how they do it?

5) Any other tips for a beginner??? All advice welcomed! Thanks!!!

[dradttg]

Hi eDen,

I am in the midst of setting up a 5 ft tank too.

1) It is better to cure all the rocks at one go. New rocks added to a tank may cause a spike in nitrate and ammonia.

2) The rock is turning white because of died off. It should be ok.

3) To use LR as a biological filter, you will need about 0.6 kg per gallon. I have a 5 x 2 x 2.5 ft tank and I am getting at least 150 kg of LR.

4) Should be removed to minimize died-off.

5) Read more SRC articles.

[eDen]

Hi Dradttg,

Thanks for your reply! Notice that the white cotton-like stuff on the rocks seem to be spreading.......can I ignore it?

[dradttg]

I think it could be dying off. Can ignore?

Would expert please advise?

[Tanggy]

30kg of live rocks in a 5ft tank is way too little. The live rock are not just for look. it serve as a form of filtration by providing a place for nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria to grow and convert waste products into nitrate and nitrogen gas. Usin a skimmer and live rocks are know as a berlin setup.

Not unless you do not plan use live rock as part of you filtration.

Give the rock a smell. if smell like rotten eggs then there is alot of die off and will increase the time required to cure.

As for the plants, just cycle without lights and they will die off.

Live rocks required for a 5ft min should be more than 100kg.

[SpiderOne]

1) Was told that all live rocks have be in placed from start and it is not advisable to add more live rocks after.......???

U can place as much cured LR as u want in the future(after cycling) for uncured LR. best if u place a few pieces at a time to minimize contamination by dieoffs. for 5ft. maybe 2 or 3 kg at a time would be fine.

2) Bought some live rocks from an aquarium yesterday.....went back today and the owner told me that the batch that he sold to me may have some problem as certain part of the rock turning whitish (abit fungus like)......he is also unfamiliar with the problem and so ask me to monitor the development!!!??? Any idea what could be the problem?

its the die offs on the rocks causing this white patches. can try scrubbing your LR's with a toothbrush if its a pretty severe case. water will smell pretty bad. rocks will smell worse if u take them out to smell.Ammonia will shoot through the roof (when ammonia spikes and hits 0 again. cycling complete.find a better informed LFS )

3) I only bought about 20kg of live rocks for a 5 feet tank.....probably going to increase it to 30kg. Is that amount of live rock sufficient for a 5 feet tank? Would that affect the alkalinity of the water?

Depends on what u want the LR for. To force the cycle. probably enough. for bio filtration .probably not. LR's dont really affect the alkalinity of the water.

4) Notice that there ferns / plants growing on the rock.......doesn't look very nice....... should I remove them? Are there live rocks that do not have these plants? Notice that most display tanks use rocks without......wonder how they do it?

use tweezers/fingers. rip the plants out. macroalgae in display tank is not really recommended.

5) Any other tips for a beginner??? All advice welcomed! Thanks!!!

read up sticky threads or websites. dont ask too general questions.hard to answer