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Hello all. Well I took the plunge to the "dark side". I'm trying it with a 30g that was collecting dust. Its been up for 2 weeks now, 11 days of that with about 12lbs of live rock. I used crushed coral(due to having enough leftover from a cichlid tank). I also had 5lbs of dead coral from the 125 I scored from ebay about 10 months ago(was told this would turn to live rock? ). Its run with a skilter 400(as I will do weekly H2O/as do all FW). Lighting is only 50/50 coral life bulb(15W)in standard hood till I can find better. I'm using a powerhead with rigged prefilter and running in reverse(down). I went to get some fish and more rock today. Got 5lbs more. Also some seeded substrate from LFS in mesh bags for a boost. I went with 3 Damsels to cycle(to be returned). Also have at least 1 brittle star? and a snail,both from rock. Sound like I'm on the right track? Its been a while since I've had to cycle anything due to the amount of FW tanks and seeded stuff I have. Also looking for stocking suggestions. Tank is for wife and she loves puffers and lions. I know tank is small,but maybe 1 dwarf lion,or 1 smaller puffer(6-8" )? I'll prolly switch 1 of my bigger FW's to SW(55/75/120/125), but not till I have at least 6 months under my belt. Let me know what you guys think. Also forgot to get marine food. Is FW flakes or NLS OK for damsels, or should I feed Mysis till I get some Marine food?

*there is no need to have damsels in there if you got LR dying off in tank, it should cycle its self off in around 6 weeks( a generalisation).

*FW food generally has no nutrional value for SW fish.

*Just letting you know it can take quite a while for you crushed coral to seed and become "live"

*In a 30g you can put a dwarf spieces of lions (ie fuzzy zebra, fu manchu) last is proberly not the best choice. i bigger tank will mean a happier fish but i always start my lions in small tanks till they feed properly. you can put a bigger bodied lion (ie radiata, russels etc) for a while but they grow very quick and i would say you would have 3 months max before you need to upgrade

hopefully if i missed anything someone will chime in

Someone earlier had inquired about keeping lions, and was told that a 55 gallon would be the min. size tank to keep even dwarf lions.
http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/General%20Marine/62397.html

Last edited by swiftshark88 at 11-Dec-2005 14:56

Nick
"Impossumable- unable to play dead"

Thanks guys. I realise I could cycle tank with rock only, but after 2 weeks, the better half was really pressing me. Thats why I went with the damsels($8 for 3 fish). I'm willing to bet I will loose some fish, but after tons of FW success, I hope too keep it at the 3 starters. IF all donot make it, I will leave alone till H2O readings are fully cycled. I realize a dwarf lion(fuzzy) is kinda small in a 30, but I think thats what I will go with. I will try to get it smallish, but not too small. I'm guessing my tank will be ready for him in about another 4-5 weeks. I have not decided on the 120g or 75g to be the next SW, but that will not go till next June or later. Need to do more research on how to use the 30 as a refugium under either tank I decide(no tanks drilled). But anyhow, I'm up to 22lbs of live rock(scored most for $5/lbs) and got some more seeded substrate also.Will hit you peeps back after a week of fish in there.

Problem with 55g and other standard tanks is they dont have much width. i think a 55g is diffently fine for a dwarf species 30g is the bare minimum. you want more floor space than height IMo too

This I understand Patchy. I've been keeping FW for years. I think I get more use out of my 40(breeders) then my 55. Thats why I will use my 75 or 120 for my next SW(18" ). But anyway I'm on day 4 with fish and all is good so far. LFS does not have test kits in yet, so no ammo or nitrIte readings, but nitrAte is still zero, so I should be seeing some spikes soon(fish show no signs of stress) . Hope to get SW kit tomorrow. BTW does anybody use Python for SW maintanece? If so , how? I'm planning on using the old 5g bucket method for now since tank is so small.

I use my python...sorta.

I use it to drain the tank. And I use the hose to move water from place to place.


-Ferret [img src='/images/forums/halo.gif' border=0]

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

to be honest in a 30g a fuzzy wont leave much room for much else. you relise fuzzy's dont do a whole lot of swimming? they kinda just hang upside down and turkey walk between caves. i love my 2 but i have plenty of room for swimming fish to.....just a warning

Keep in mind that with Dwarf species of lions....they normally are very tough to get to eat prepared foods. Be prepared to train it to take foods that are not live....and if feeding live foods, dont feed FW fish!

Thanks Ferret, I will NOT use it to fill then(salt levels). And yes Patchy, it will be the only fish till upgrade(unless she decides on a small type puffer instead) . Thanks for the heads up DRO, I'm in good with LFS, so maybe I prepurchase and let him get it adjusted LOL. I'll make sure whatever I get, atleast eats.

Well I,ve got test kits now. Ammo is 0? NitrItes are .25-.50 inbetween, nitrAtes are 0. All test kits are new. But I'm skeptical bout the nitrAte kit, as I've been using for years, but this NEW kit is giving me zero readings on all tanks I've tested. I usually read 5-40ppm on most FW depending on tank, before weekly H2O change. But anyway all 3 damsels are good and I'm up to 2 snails(via live rock), also did net out what appeared to be a 1/4" dead "ghost shrimp". Seems to be going well, but I'm unsure as the #'s are not what I expected to see. I'm going to add SW Biozyme for the next week of so, so test results may not be accurate.Does this sound like its "cycling" to you folks?

ok so your ammo is converting to nitrite which sounds good but 0 nitrate, i would be worried about the test kits. either get a different brand or get your lfs to give your water a test just to make sure all is accurate. i would of thought after 2 weeks you would show some sort of nitrate but im proberly wrong.
ghost shrimp are FW, every batch of LR i get i always end up with tiger pistols in abundance. my lions love them for lunch

Thanks Patchy. I know the nitrAte kit is bad. Its AP brand that I've been using for years. It is brand new and all my FW tanks are coming in at 0. So I know the new kit is bad. I wish it wasn't, as 0 nitrAtes would be nice LOL. I'm going to exchange for a new one today, so I will shoot you some readings tonight. I just expected to see a bit of ammo. Maybe there was a small spike before I got the kits?

Batta bing folks. Ammo=0, NitrItes=0, NitrAtes=5-10(prolly 7) . I'm guessin I was close to cycled this weekend, and nitrItes were on the downswing. Maybe the SW biozyme helped a bit, but did not treat with yesterday.A question to all you darkside gurus. I can start a FW tank, and have it fish safe INSTANTLY. Seeded filters/deco/yada yada. Can this be obtained in SW? Lets take my 30g as an example. If one were to go get 30lbs of cured live rock, and put it into a tank at correct temp and salt levels, wouldn't this be enough "seeded" stuff to basically forgo the "cycle"? FW has been simple to me, and SW so far appears to be the same(just a few more tests).Is there a loophole, if you have the resources?

like moving any tank, their is always a chance of a mini cycle starting.
I just converted a 57g and a 12g reef into my cube using all filter media, cured live rock, 40g of water and substrate. and still got a little bit of a spike of Ammon.
even if moved into a new tank, there will always be so much die off in live rock. cured just has alot less

I see. The die off prolly makes a difference. My biggest FW jump was from 55 to 125, and did not see any spikes. But I overfilter every tank I have and have lots of texas holy everywhere. Dont think I will push that button when I switch the 120(for sure) to SW. Well the wife is undecided on stock so far. Possibilitys= 1 Dwarf fuzzy lion or 1 Saddle Valentini Puffer. She is interested in Erectus seahorses also. I've not researched much yet. I do have copper pipes, use PRIME for declor, so not sure what limit this has on stocking/or possibly making mini reef. Now the fun part. What would you folks do with this tank? This tank will more than likely become a refugium under the 120 in 6-10 months. Still do not have the light power for reef(1 50/50 coral life in standard hood) . So suggestions for both lighting and critter/s is greatly appreciated. Also I stand at 22lbs live rock, so how much more and when(I'm guessing the sooner the better). Sorry for the long post, thanks peeps.