So I've been thinking of getting a saltwater reef tank for quite some time. Today I came across a post on a 55 gallon cube saltwater tank that comes with everything, even a clownfish. Only problem I have is how I would move everything, tank, live rock and sand, fish, etc. When I get to my house i'd obviously thouroughly clean the tank and and live rock/sand. I need advice on everything i need to do to keep the fish alive or its way home, and if i need to reuse the old aquarium water, throw out the sand and just buy sand, and just give me all the advice you have for a newbie. Thankyou!
New to saltwater aquariums. Advice needed.
- Thread starter zachpoff
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peterthegamer
Active Member
For the fish I would recommend setting up a small tank (around a 20 gallon) and place it there. If there are no corals I guess you can wash the live rocks and get new sand, other wise if there is coral it may be difficult to find a quick solution for them.
george1381
Active Member
I wouldn't throw anything out. It's important to preserve the beneficial bacteria. My suggestion is to rinse the sand and rock in some fresh salt water.
Salty1962
Wrasse and SPS Lover
You can keep the LR and livestock alive in any food grade container, you can re-use the old water. I would not re-use the old sand, it's not that expensive and the old would have too much junk in it you don't want in your new tank. I would just bag the fish and place the LR in a box with wet newspaper around it to keep in moist during the trip home. Good luck and keep us posted on your new build!
DLJTWO
Community Member
I fully agree on the sand, get rid of it. If you want peace of mind and to start your tank off with a solid foundation, get new sand. When I moved my 65g 5 years ago, I suffered a major crash and lost all of my corals and I know for a fact it was because I used my own recycled sand. And the sad part is, i knew better but did it anyway. This is debatable by many folks and that's fine but I know from experience what the losses can be when you don't start fresh. It cost me thousands when all I had to spend was about $80 on new sand. You can use some sand from the current set up to seed your new sand but make sure to take sand from the top and try not to dig down too deep where the nasty stuff is. Good luck!
mushroomrob
Active Member
The sand probably won't do you any good. I'd say get some new sand. Everything else should be okay, including the water. As for the fish, place them in a QT tank until you're set up. The sand is the only thing that should be replaced since it could contain a lot of nasty stuff in it. Even though there's some beneficial stuff, you don't to crash your tank. Get rid of it.
I would throw rock and sand away. Start with new rock and sand.
If your new to this hobby its probably better to start completely blank. Buying a used tank and reusing the rock/sand can come with unwanted pests/algae that you aren't familiar with yet. In this hobby, there are tons and tons of pests. You'll spend a ton of money to crash and burn because of something like this. I thought aptasia were cool until one day it became an aptasia tank~
You can buy bacteria these days so you can literally get new rock and sand going pretty quickly.
The fish is pretty easy to keep alive, especially since its a clownfish. Buy a bottle of bacteria and find a suitable container that can hold salt water. Dr. Tim's bacteria line gives you the instructions on how to specifically set it up.
If your new to this hobby its probably better to start completely blank. Buying a used tank and reusing the rock/sand can come with unwanted pests/algae that you aren't familiar with yet. In this hobby, there are tons and tons of pests. You'll spend a ton of money to crash and burn because of something like this. I thought aptasia were cool until one day it became an aptasia tank~
You can buy bacteria these days so you can literally get new rock and sand going pretty quickly.
The fish is pretty easy to keep alive, especially since its a clownfish. Buy a bottle of bacteria and find a suitable container that can hold salt water. Dr. Tim's bacteria line gives you the instructions on how to specifically set it up.
SBlisters
Active Member
I won a tank a week ago in a raffle that came fully stocked. I got everything home in its own water on very large, sealed, clean buckets. Since I didn't have a salt tank already going, and didn't expect the win, I had to re-set the whole ensemble up again as soon as I got home. For me, everything is still alive and seems no worse for wear, BUT, I really wish I knew more before I started instead of the crash course on the fly like I'm doing. For example, I dropped my salinity too low the very first night and just spent the last wk doing the slow march to correct parameters. Good luck!
Ok so, definitely throw away sand and keep live rock. Should I clean the LR or leave it as is? And if I get most of the old water back home and fill up the rest of the tank with new water, should i be set to put the fish back in right away?
Ok so, definitely throw away sand and keep live rock. Should I clean the LR or leave it as is? And if I get most of the old water back home and fill up the rest of the tank with new water, should i be set to put the fish back in right away?
DLJTWO
Community Member
I would say if you're comfortable with whatever life/hitchhikers may be on the LR, you can keep it as is. Your next move all depends on your patience level and whether or not you want to start completely from scratch with a cycle. Just give a good look at the rock for visible pests but you should be fine if you opt not to clean the rock. IMO, the sand is a no-brainer though, that's hard to come back from. 
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