fish...finally!!

Hi again!
Well ,first let me say thanks to all of those here who have given me their advice. My 46 gal. bow front is done cycling and I got my first two fish today...a clown and a damsel. So far I only have an emperor 400 running on the tank...any ideas as to what else to add or remove would be great. I have 40 lbs of base rock, 6 lbs of live rock, and 30 lbs of dead sand.
My main question is when should I do my first water change? Both fishes are very small now so not much waste...and what should I get for a cleaner pack?

Thanks for all the help..I really appreciate the insight!
Matt

 

A good protein skimmer would be a good next move.

It's best to do the first water change right when the cycle is finished. There should be some nitrates built up from the cycle that you will want to knock down a bit.

Fill out the custom clean up crew form at:

reefcleaners.org

They know there stuff and will hook you up for amazing prices.

 

good to hear the cycle is over. right now would be a good time for a water change since the cycle is over.

now what do you have in terms of powerheads. we need to have flow moving throughout the system leaving no dead spots. also enough to get significant surface movement. this will help with gas exchange.

johnmaloney would be the guy to contact for a clean up crew. many 3reefers used john's services for a custom clean up crew that he puts together given your tank specs.

good luck with the rest and ask all the questions as they come to mind.oh and another thing you need to add are some pics to this thread! cmon 2 new fish with no pics is not fair

 

I will do a water change today. I hope to get a hob skimmer soon and guess I'll keep the power filter running too. I have one maxi jet 900 in the tank to keep the water moving. And sorry...pictures soon..a soon as the Damsel comes out of hiding!
Thanks for the help!
Matt

 

How much of a water change?

 

Did a 5 gal water change. Filled with clean saltwater I have had made or a few weeks.

 

it's best to not let mixed salt water sit for more than a few days without a power head, air stone, heater, etc in it. It can go bad pretty quick otherwise. It's best to mix it 24 hours or so before you add it to the tank.

I'll also offer a +john to the thread, got my CuC from reefcleaners and it was a great price, very little die off, and the penny macro algae turned out to be a nice chunk of gracillia in my order.

Oh, and as for upgrade path...decide if you want all components to be HOB style or Sump style. I recommend a sump/refugium. On a small tank a good sump/'fuge can double your water volume and that's always beneficial to the overall health of the tank.

As for equipment ideas... a skimmer is a great addition, Koralia propeller pumps (power heads), a good heater controller if you find you need to run a heater. Depends a lot on your budget as well. If you have a healthy budget a Vortech or Tunze wavemaker would be nice, a reef controller/monitor like the Reef Keeper or APEX system, fancy lights, large canister sediment filters and carbon/calcium/phosphate reactors are good... sky is the limit.

And is this a FOWLR or Reef tank? If the latter, what kind of lighting do you have?