"Chronicle Marina del Filón de los Carlos"

[in_a_days]

Originally Posted by CAVINCA

01/15/08

UPDATE
I recieved my two heaters, maxi jet, and my 160 cfm monster of a fan...

my ACjr will be coming later straight from neptune.

Love those Maxijets!

[CAVINCA]

17/01/08
So i got my new stand today...YAY. I put it together and its pretty sturdy and nice looking.. I dont know what ill do with the other, maybe turn it into small matching bookcase? anyway, i got band practice so ill update tommorrow.

18/01/08
Well i got home lastnight and forgot to submit the entry sooo there ^ it is.
My RO/DI unit should come in today... I can finally start making water. And ill be seriously shopping around for LR. My ACjr combo has been at the UPS facility in San Pablo since the 16th. While my RO departed from the same place the same day and is finally on truck for delivery here... I wonder whats going on. My next purchase will be a Refractometer, i wanted to use a hydrometer for a little while to familiarize myself with one. I want to be able to help should someone need it. anyway after work ill get some pics up of the stand and possibly set the tank up in its location.

[CAVINCA]

How do you guys think 30#s of Tonga Deepwater show sized rock would look in my 28 gallon?

[panmanmatt]

Full

Show size is usually rather large pieces.

[CAVINCA]

Originally Posted by panmanmatt

Full

Show size is usually rather large pieces.

yeah 8 to 20 inches... thats where the trusty old hammer and chisle come into play. would that be enough for the 28 gallon? the # per gallon ratios that im find are huge... anywhere between 3/4# to 1 3/4# per gallon.

[michael_cb_125]

It will look BIG. The term show at the beggining means it is good rock, but Very Large Rock as well.

[panmanmatt]

That would depend on how dense ad heavy the rock is. I have personally never used it so can't say if it would be enough.

As for pound per gallon, it is more up to personal preference than anything else.
If you like the look of a big rock pile than go with more rock, if you like a more open look then use a little less rock.

[michael_cb_125]

Personally I really like an open tank. It allows for more coral growth and fish swimming room.

[CAVINCA]

a couple people i talked to said to put in like 50 pounds... that just seems like a lot..oh well i can always add more.

[michael_cb_125]

Fifty pounds of Rock in a 30 gallon tank would put you with like 8 gallons of water.
Have you looked at the Kaelini, and Branch type rocks? They give you alot of diversity, and some really cool shapes. I am just not a fan of standard round bulky rock.

[BigAl07]

I like the Open Look as well.

As for lb per gallon rule that's a very general rule of thumb. I'd try to come up with a general "theme" for the tank and make THAT happen. I find the look of the rock VERY important because if you aren't happy with the look it doesn't matter if it's 100lbs or 5lbs. It's not going to stay.

Also right now the "ideas" of rock and quantity are up in the air. We have the tried and true school of (avg) 1 - 1.5 lbs per gallon. Some are now saying that's over kill and it needs to be cut back. WAY back. I'm shooting for less in my new tank. I'm thinking when it's all said and done I'll have maybe .5 - .7 lbs per gallon. I'm going for LOOK. Remember some of your biological filtration will take place in your sand bed but that does NOT take the place of Live Rock. Have you decided on how DEEP you want the sand bed to be. That will also affect the "Fullness" of your tank.

Keep in mind that you're working with a cube which means you may have VERY tight size restraints when doing your design. Maybe take a piece of paper, sketch out your ideas and see how they "look" when incorporated into the CUBE restrictions.

Good luck and above all else.. ENJOY the process....

[CAVINCA]

Im thinking 2.5 to 3.5 inch sand bed. thanks for the input everybody...

[panmanmatt]

I too like the more open look. That is also another reason to have a good sized sump. You can add all the extra live rock to it that you want and still leave the display tank open for growth and swim room.

[CAVINCA]

so ive been working on my setup today and i have a few pics to upload. ill do it later cause i gotta run to the lfs. Im gonna get some live sand and salt. i have a quick question... im gonna run a full cycle without my cermaic rings and bioballs and spunges.. will it cause problems to run the water through these materials b4 i add live rock and cycle the tank? and will putting in live sand be a good idea or bad idea while doing this initial run through?

[CAVINCA]

anyone?