setting up a new tank. Kinda..

[TAXMAN]

Hows it been guys and gals. Long time no talk to. Well I still have a couple of small reef tanks. 20 and 40 gallons. So heres what I need help or advise with.

I am picking up a 110 tank that is full of Liverock this weekend. There hasnt been fish or corals in this for about a year. He has kept the pumps running just for the liverock. But no lights in a while. He says it still has good color to the rocks. I doubt he has been feeding it either. It also has a sand bed that has been in there for about 10 years. Also has a wet dry with balls that I can keep in it for now to help the startup. This will be used as a refugium later without the balls and an added tank for a fuge too.

I am going to move my 2 small tanks into this new tank. I'll need to get it going on Monday for the liverock that he has in it now. I'll save as much water of his that I can but it wont be much. I'll have about 40 gallons total from my existing tanks to use if this will work out. Can I use the water saved from his tank along with mine and then add new water and put all my Liverock into the new tank? Fish and corals included. OR. Should I set up the tank with only his liverock and new sandbed and get it to cycle first? Or put in only my LR that doesnt have colals on it so nothing will be killed and then add my stuff later.

So with all of this I think it's enough that you understand what I have to deal with.

Thanks for all the help in advance.
Johnny

[erikharrison]

You should be fine, just check the levels of his water and your water first. Temp is a big concern! Also check salinity levels. If you have to, drop down the larger volume's salinity to match the lesser. You do not want to raise the salinity quickly, but lowering it is ok. Check all of the params and make sure it is reef safe. You could wait a few days, but if everything is in order you should be alright. Seed your new sandbed with sand from your other tank(s)... oh yeah, be a little weary of putting the corals in too quickly!

[Bill S]

Well... If I were doing it, I'd get his tank all set up, pretty much as it is, along with any changes you were going to make. I'd give it a few weeks to make SURE it doesn't cycle - or if it cycles, there's nothing in it. How are his parameters? THEN I'd combine tanks - a few items at a time. But, I'm kind of conservative, too.

[TAXMAN]

Yea. I am thinking of putting all my fish and corals into 1 of my existing tanks until I know the new one is ready. Then put them in. THis guy hasnt done anything to his tank in a year except run the pumps. I doubt seriuosly he has done any water test or treatments. I was suprised when he said the rock still looked alive and well.

[TAXMAN]

ok. Picked up the tank last night. Suprisingly the rock looks great and alive. Lots of corraline on it. I am going to get rid of all his sand and not use any of his water. So I'll get it set up today hopefully with new sand and fresh water ad only his rock and some of my sand. Then let it sit for a while to see what happens since I'll be running the lights on it too. I dont know if the lights and new water might cause a spike but we'll see.

[hobogato]

at the least, you will probably get a bit of cyano or other algae bloom for a couple of months.

[TAXMAN]

Ok. Looks like I am going to keep his sandbed and add to it. I've been talking to some that s going to be helping me with this venture. But all freshly made water. I also have his Bio Balls in the wet dry he was using. I'll leave those in for now until it cycles. and I start moving stuff over. Then they come out and it will become a refugium.

[TAXMAN]

Ed bought it and I got a 40 gallon from him. The big tank was evaporating so much water that my AC wouldnt stop running. Too much electricity to pay for.

[hobogato]

johnny, you may want to rinse the used sand thoroughly with some tank water. if you arent going to use the water that is in the tank now, i would get everything out of the tank execpt the sand and the water. then, stir up the sand constanly as you syphon the water out to throw it away. you will lose some of the sand in the process, but it should take alot of the toxins out that tend to build up in the sand.

[TAXMAN]

mmm. Too late. But it wasnt too bad. It was only about a half bag of sand that I used and in the drive home it was actually washed pretty good. All the mud settled to one end of the tank and I took the cleaned sand from the other end. Kinda cool really. All I have left is about 30-40 more gallons of water and then turn the pump on. I ended up using about 1/2 bag of the old sandbed from the tank, I'll add some of my current sandbed from my existing tanks, and it will end up with about 15 gallons of water from my existing tanks today after I do my water changes. The rest will be new water and 4 bags of new rinsed southdown.