Hii!! New here and new to aquariums. Background is marine science with emphasis on microbiology and water quality.
Decided to get a tank on a whim over an adorable starfish I didn’t want to leave behind. Guy at PETCO (I know, I’m learning) helped set me up and said it *should* be okay to keep starfish and a snail. Obviously learned the hard way and now I’ve found a LFS. My tank is in the process of cycling. However, it is taking longer than expected. LFS guy told me my tank could cycle in a few days, but we are closer to a week with no living macrofauna.
I’ve had the tank for 2 weeks and the snail and starfish died within a day. Was given macroalgae propagules and accidentally left them in there for a week. Took them out once they started to die. Since I don’t have anything providing them with their phos.
I’ve been testing my water and my ammonia finally dropped. Waiting for nitrite and nitrate to do their thing. Now I have some sort of orange-ish algae growing on my rock, sand and glass. It is hair like on my rock.
Okay enough about my journey so far and more about how my tank is set up.
I purchased most of my tank set up from PETCO / PetSmart, again, I was aliment and on a whim or impulse purchase. Over $300 later…. Determined to make it work.
It is a 6gal TopFin corner tank that came with a filter, heater, thermometer and a lid with a LED light and feeding opening. I purchased boxed saltwater, oolite aragonite sand and the purple rock from these stores. The guy from petco modified my filter by removing the filter the tank came with and bio filter medium and fluval water polishing pad or filter floss (I think that’s the same). I did purchase a fan, but it was too much circulation and stirring up the sand. So I replaced it with a air stone bubbler.
I still a refractometer and a better water testing kit. I plan to keep this a FOWLR tank, sorta. No reef, but maybe a small fish with different invertebrates. I definitely want a starfish or two, cleaner shrimp and maybe this super chill mantis shrimp from the LFS. Still trying to decide who I want.
Anyways, this is my journey and learning the hard way!
Best fishes,
Hunter
Decided to get a tank on a whim over an adorable starfish I didn’t want to leave behind. Guy at PETCO (I know, I’m learning) helped set me up and said it *should* be okay to keep starfish and a snail. Obviously learned the hard way and now I’ve found a LFS. My tank is in the process of cycling. However, it is taking longer than expected. LFS guy told me my tank could cycle in a few days, but we are closer to a week with no living macrofauna.
I’ve had the tank for 2 weeks and the snail and starfish died within a day. Was given macroalgae propagules and accidentally left them in there for a week. Took them out once they started to die. Since I don’t have anything providing them with their phos.
I’ve been testing my water and my ammonia finally dropped. Waiting for nitrite and nitrate to do their thing. Now I have some sort of orange-ish algae growing on my rock, sand and glass. It is hair like on my rock.
Okay enough about my journey so far and more about how my tank is set up.
I purchased most of my tank set up from PETCO / PetSmart, again, I was aliment and on a whim or impulse purchase. Over $300 later…. Determined to make it work.
It is a 6gal TopFin corner tank that came with a filter, heater, thermometer and a lid with a LED light and feeding opening. I purchased boxed saltwater, oolite aragonite sand and the purple rock from these stores. The guy from petco modified my filter by removing the filter the tank came with and bio filter medium and fluval water polishing pad or filter floss (I think that’s the same). I did purchase a fan, but it was too much circulation and stirring up the sand. So I replaced it with a air stone bubbler.
I still a refractometer and a better water testing kit. I plan to keep this a FOWLR tank, sorta. No reef, but maybe a small fish with different invertebrates. I definitely want a starfish or two, cleaner shrimp and maybe this super chill mantis shrimp from the LFS. Still trying to decide who I want.
Anyways, this is my journey and learning the hard way!
Best fishes,
Hunter
