florix

Hello all,
This is my first time here and also my first marine tank.
I own a 280Ltre tank and for over 5 years i have used it for fresh.
As a first Marine tank i am kinda a bit anxious as to what the **** is going on. i have done my research and i keep up on the checks now its coming to about week two (started 2/8/10) soon and i want to speed up the process of the break down of ammonia and also nitrate. any info would be great. also my water is cloudy and has been from about day 3-5. i know new tanks get it and its new sand/shell but it was flushed previously. i made the mistake of not adding my salt before hand so it was done in the tank. once my filters have set them selves up will it stop or is this something i need to address?

Now i dont have nor have i heard of a QT before. my local aquarium is literally the best in australia. and i have bought in a lot of shops. i trust the fish there. do i still need a QT?

at a later stage how painful/hard is it to change to a reef tank? i know about tank set up i just want to know whats the effects on the tank its self.


thanks guys and gals. i know like any forum its already mentioned. and i am sorry if its right in front of me too.

Cheers
florix

lanlesnee

Welcome to FL. I would just be patience and wait on the tank to cycle. I wouldn't worry about the cloudy water right now.

I would also recommend a QT. It only takes one sick fish to infect everything in your tank. With that said I don't have one either. I've always relied on luck, but now I'm getting a good amount of fish in my tank, so a QT is in my near future.

Going to a reef is the next step if you already have live rock. It's not that hard, just get corals that are easy to care for at the begining. You'll need a good lighting system for coral and I recommend going metal halide right from the start. To me it doesn't make since to go less and have to up grade later. So get a light that's going to allow you to grow what ever you want or at least try.

Meenu

Hi, florix. I keep freshwater, so I can't help, but I did want to stop by and welcome you to fishlore. Enjoy the forum.

MizRamzi

First of all your water may be cloudy due to the fact that you did not pre mix your salt, which is how it's supposed to be done. Adding salt directly to your tank does not allow it to mix properly. Therefore it will do nothing but sit on the bottom and ever so slowly dissolve, leaving you with a cloudy tank. Your going to need to up your water flow. Get the salt in the tank mixed.

new_sw_gurl

Hi Florix! Welcome to Fishlore!! I can't help much, but I can answer a couple of questions!

First, be patient during the cycling process. Anything you may do to speed it up may come to bite you in the future. Let it go and just wish it to be faster. Did you add a raw shrimp or anything to get the cycle going? Have you noticed the ammonia, nitrite, Nitrate spikes happening??

As for the QT...I know I may get blasted on this one...I don't have one. I buy all of my fish from the same LFS and I have a good relationship with them. They stand behind their product if something happens. So absolute necessity...no. But totally up to you. Most people will say YES!

Switching to a reef tank: You'll probably need to upgrade your lighting, add some live rock and a few other things. So, it'll be pricey, but you can upgrade slowly over time. Adding live rock here and there will help make the cost less painful (make sure it's cured!!) It's only a pain if you don't enjoy the hobby. If you love the hobby...it'll be constantly making fun improvements. It depends on how you look at it.

Enjoy your new tank!!