adding live sand

At long last, i am about to make water for my 150 gal DT!! I was planning on starting by adding aragonite and live rock. My question is, when should i add live sand and a CUC? Should i do that from the very start? (I'm thinking no) Towards the end of the cycle or after the tank has completely cycled. If i wait till the tank has completely cycled, will this begin another cycle? Also, what should my ratio of non live to live sand be? This is my first tank and i don't want to screw it up before i even get started!!

 

Adding the live sand after the cycle probably won't start another cycle, but you'll have to deal with cloudy water. There's no real benefit in waiting, either.

Honestly, 1 or 2 cups of live sand is all you need to seed the dry aragonite. If you have a fellow reefer nearby, you could just get it from them. Otherwise, a small bag won't raise your sandbed level in a 150g tank.

As for the CuC, you should at least wait until there's something to feed on-- somewhere near the end of the cycle so that you will be adding and feeding livestock as the initial algae blooms are being depleted.

 

Just as a little note, the "live" sand that comes in a bag at pet stores usually isn't any different than regular
Sand. It usually isn't "live" anymore. Just sand in water.

 

Thanks for the input. That lines up with what I was thinking, but wanted to make sure i was not missing anything that should have been obvious!!

 

That's an old myth that most likely got started from someone who assumed it had no shelf life, and sadly, continues to be spread by those with no experience with the product. Fact is, I divided 1 bag between 3 tanks I had initially started with dry sand and dry rock. In only a couple months, my tanks were teeming with live critters and coralline algae that had no other way in. I also experienced no ammonia spike, indicating little to no die-off.

Obviously, a way has been found to feed or otherwise preserve the life forms.

 

Really? What I said was just from other people and lfs. I guess your right, bacteria can live in extremes. Please excuse my ignorance

 

I would setup from the start with a little bit of live sand and maybe a little bit of live rock. Once you've added you saltwater the cycle starts. Before the cycle finishes you'll notice that the sand is crawing with little beasties (especially if you turn you lights off for a wee while) Once you have checked that your cycle has completed, start to introduce you CUC then slowly add a hardy fish or two.