setting up a saltwater tank

[finleyz]

Hi,

I'm making the switch from freshwater to saltwater and I have a ton of questions. I'll start with this one. I'm planning to buy Live Sand, LR, and fish all at once from an established tank. I currently have an empty tank. My question is, do I still need to cycle my tank before adding everything? Will the nitrifying bacteria on the LR and Live Sand be enough to skip the cycling process? I'd appreciate any help.

[MindBurst]

Even with the addition of pre-cured live sand and live rock, there will still be some die-off of the creatures. I would still recommend cycling the tank for a few weeks, around three, and make sure to skim during this period. What type of fish are you looking to introduce, and what's the size of your tank?

[floralix]

if you're literally transferring everything from an established tank to yours, and you keep the live sand and live rock in water the whole time, you probably wouldn't have to worry about a cycle

[finleyz]

Even with the addition of pre-cured live sand and live rock, there will still be some die-off of the creatures. I would still recommend cycling the tank for a few weeks, around three, and make sure to skim during this period. What type of fish are you looking to introduce, and what's the size of your tank?

Thanks for your reply. I have a 55-gallon tank with a 20-gallon sump, and I'm curious about the potential die-off. If I buy everything from an established tank that's over two years old and keep it in water during the 30-minute transport, wouldn't that minimize the risk? The seller has a few fish, including clownfish and a goby, and I'm worried that if I have to cycle the tank first, he might not want to wait.

floralix said: if your just transefering everything from an established tank to ur tank, if you keep every thing in water the whole time (ls and LR) you wouldnt have a cycle

Hi floralix, thanks for your input. Have you had any personal experience with transferring live sand and rock? I'm really concerned that I'm starting off on the wrong foot. I've been asking around on other forums too, and some people are warning me about the risks of poison gas from the live sand during transport.

[MindBurst]

I've had a similar experience transferring live rock from my 29 to my 55 gallon tank, and I can see why you're worried. If you transfer the sand and rock along with the old water, you should be okay, but I still had an ammonia spike the next day in my 55 gallon tank. I think it might've been due to temperature or salinity changes, so I'd advise you to get your new tank's conditions as close to the old ones as possible.

[floralix]

ive relocated tanks within my home, all under 20 gallons, and never encountered any issues, how deep is the sand in the established tank you're purchasing from?

[MindBurst]

I'm just sayin, give the live rock a bit of time to settle, you know, before you go addin' fish and all that.

[finleyz]

Even with the addition of pre-cured live sand and live rock, there will still be some die-off of the creatures. I would still recommend cycling the tank for a few weeks, around three, and make sure to skim during this period. What type of fish are you looking to introduce, and what's the size of your tank?

I see what you're getting at now. Transferring the old water isn't an option for me, so I'll try to match the conditions as closely as possible. Thanks for sharing your experience, it's helpful to know what could go wrong.

floralix said:

ive moved tanks around but just in my house, and they were all under 20 gallons and never had any problems, how deep is the sand be in the other tank?

The sand bed in the other tank is only about 1 inch deep. I'm curious, what's the threshold for the gas problem to occur? Just want to be prepared. You've both been really helpful, thanks again.

[floralix]

A 1 inch sand bed should be fine, it's not like there's a magic depth that causes gas bubbles. If you have enough inverts or fish sifting through the sand, you should be good to go.

[axonify]

I was under the impression that you were going to try and cycle the tank like you would for freshwater, using ammonia. I just wanted to make sure that's not what you were planning. In saltwater, the live rock is what cycles the tank, so there's no need to add ammonia.

If you keep the live rock and sand in water the whole time, I really don't think you'll have any die-off. As long as there aren't any huge temperature changes, you should be fine. The old water might add some nitrates, but that's about it. I would get the live rock, live sand, and fish, and keep them in the old water for now. Then, put the live rock and live sand in your tank without the old water, and carefully acclimate the fish to the new tank.