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**TheOldSalt** · 08-28-2007, 01:59 AM

If you live near the coast, your tapwater may be high in silicate and/or phosphate, which will give you constant algae problems.
You say you have a water purifier, but what exactly does that mean? As much as I truly detest RO systems and their wastefulness, they're still a good way to go if you want a reef.

If you want a bunch of fish, though, then don't worry about it. You'll have a whole different set of problems which negates the need for worrying about trace minerals. In fact, I wouldn't even worry about fancy lights, live rocks, or RO/DI if I were you. I've been at this since 1972, and the best advice I can give you is to try fish-only first before even thinking about a reef. Yes, you could start a reef from day one, and people do it all the time. Those people often have a ton of hassles, though, which they could have avoided of they had only known a few things they didn't, which they would have learned if they had kept the fish before trying their reefs.

Live rock, or more precisely CURED live rock,, in sufficient quantity, will pretty much instantly cycle your tank. GETTING cured live rock is the hard part. If you want to cycle the old fashioned way, though, then know that there is no timetable for this per se. Instead, you have to conduct the tests and watch things, and when it's cycled, it's cycled. Of course, every time you add a fish you have to start a new cycle, which is one of the first things you have to learn and understand. A for replacing water during the cycling... you don't if you can avoid it. That would only take away the bacteria's food, thusly slowing down the process considerably.

Get some books, and good ones at that. Read them several times. You have a lot of very fundamental things to learn before you'll be able to understand the more complex things that people will toss at you online without even thinking about it.

Oh, one more thing: when you set up a saltwater tank, you have to set up TWO saltwater tanks. The second one is the quarantine tank. Pay attention, for this is important---> EVERY SINGLE FISH in the petshop's saltwater section is riddled with disease. These fish don't come from farms, by and large, and they're kept under less than exemplary conditions while traveling around the world on the way to your tank. They pick up a lot of nasty bugs from each other, and if you don't remove them you will fail utterly as a saltwater hobbyist. This is one of the primary differences between fresh and saltwater fishkeeping, and if you try to cut this corner you'll only get what you deserve eventually.

08-28-2007, 01:59 AM	#8
TheOldSalt Darth Ichthyos Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 4,202 User Feedback: (6)	If you live near the coast, your tapwater may be high in silicate and/or phosphate, which will give you constant algae problems. You say you have a water purifier, but what exactly does that mean? As much as I truly detest RO systems and their wastefulness, they're still a good way to go if you want a reef. If you want a bunch of fish, though, then don't worry about it. You'll have a whole different set of problems which negates the need for worrying about trace minerals. In fact, I wouldn't even worry about fancy lights, live rocks, or RO/DI if I were you. I've been at this since 1972, and the best advice I can give you is to try fish-only first before even thinking about a reef. Yes, you could start a reef from day one, and people do it all the time. Those people often have a ton of hassles, though, which they could have avoided of they had only known a few things they didn't, which they would have learned if they had kept the fish before trying their reefs. Live rock, or more precisely CURED live rock,, in sufficient quantity, will pretty much instantly cycle your tank. GETTING cured live rock is the hard part. If you want to cycle the old fashioned way, though, then know that there is no timetable for this per se. Instead, you have to conduct the tests and watch things, and when it's cycled, it's cycled. Of course, every time you add a fish you have to start a new cycle, which is one of the first things you have to learn and understand. A for replacing water during the cycling... you don't if you can avoid it. That would only take away the bacteria's food, thusly slowing down the process considerably. Get some books, and good ones at that. Read them several times. You have a lot of very fundamental things to learn before you'll be able to understand the more complex things that people will toss at you online without even thinking about it. Oh, one more thing: when you set up a saltwater tank, you have to set up TWO saltwater tanks. The second one is the quarantine tank. Pay attention, for this is important---> EVERY SINGLE FISH in the petshop's saltwater section is riddled with disease. These fish don't come from farms, by and large, and they're kept under less than exemplary conditions while traveling around the world on the way to your tank. They pick up a lot of nasty bugs from each other, and if you don't remove them you will fail utterly as a saltwater hobbyist. This is one of the primary differences between fresh and saltwater fishkeeping, and if you try to cut this corner you'll only get what you deserve eventually. Last edited by TheOldSalt; 08-28-2007 at 02:02 AM.