Im new and NEED help!!

Hi, I'm new to the whole saltwater aquarium thing. I just bout myself a 28g nano cube. I put about 30 pounds of live rock and 20 pounds of live sand in it. When I got it the man at the fish store told me to take out the filter cartridge it came with (it has 3 chambers). In the cartridge there was a filter sponge, activated carbon bag, and ceramic rings bag. He said to take ALL of that stuff out and fill it with live rock. I did what he said and got about two pounds in there.
Now I am wondering if I did the right thing or if I should put all the other stuff back.

Please help! Thank you

 

here is the chamber

 

Hello and Welcome to 3reef.

I have this tank and I put mechancial filter sponge, on top. Chemipure elite, carbon in the middle, sometimes purigen.

I tried the LR rubble thing, did not work for me. Basically it is like having the rings, it just collects detritus which may lead to elevated nitrate levels.

Hope that helps and congradulations on the new tank.

 

I would use the chamber for carbon only. You have plenty of rock in the main portion of the tank.

Welcome to 3reef and congrats on your new tank. Just follow our motto of "take is slow, let it grow" and you will be successful. Always feel free to ask questions of us before making a decision we are more than happy to help.

 

Thank you. So you are saying I should put the filter and carbon back in. Then should I have anything on the bottom shelf?

Sorry I'm really confused on everything.

 

That is just what I do.

If you have adequate live rock within the display you really do not need any rubble in the media basket. It just collects too much detritus and needs to be cleaned too often for my liking. I just to not see the real benefit.


Sponges top
Carbon second
And sometimes purigen in third space.

It is confusing but gets easier.

 

O ok thank you ALOT One more thing. In the manual it says to rinse the carbon for 30 secs. Can I just rinse it out with tap water in the sink?

 

Purigen is a chemical adsorbent made by Seachem. It help clean your water and can help keep your nitrates lower by removing chemicals that can increase nitrates before they breakdown. It is a good purchase and safety net.

 

Yes just get as much water out as possible.

 

Thank you for all your help