new aquariums

[goodoleboyz250]

if you start a aquarium with live rock and live sand that has been in a well established aquarium, how long should you wait to add fish, coral, and anemones?

 

[cameron]

How long will the live rock/sand be out (exposed to air) of the donor aquarium?

 

[goodoleboyz250]

couple hours

 

[cameron]

You will want to cycle then. If you can cut down the exposed to air time, the cycle will be shorter. I transported some in a garbage can with a drive of over two hours and I didn't have any cycle at all, but we kept the rock submerged the entire time.

 

[maveri9720]

If it were me, I would still wait at least 4 weeks and keep a close eye on your param's. No sense rushing into it and buying corals and fish, just to have them die b/c you had a mini-cycle, or have them stressed out and prone to disease b/c of bad water quality.

Give it a good month and keep track of your water param's and when Amm, Nitrite, Nitrate are all 0 and have been for a couple weeks, then start looking into what you want to get. Plus, that will give you plenty of time to figure out what you want, what you need to buy or do to maintain those specimens and if they are all compatible together. There is plenty of reading to keep you occupied in the mean time. A knowledgable aquarist will be able to keep their animals happy, colorful and for a long time, which in turn makes you happier and saves you money.

Just my opinion though.

 

[reefman61686]

ok would this not be like buying a tank that is setup and moveing it because if so i have done that like 4 times and like everyone said just watch your levels

 

[ms_ k]

The only other thing that I'd add is that you whould wait on the anemone. I know you really want one, but they do much better in aged tanks. At bare minimum, you should wait six months before adding an anemone.

 

[xyzpdq0121]

Rock exposed to air for two or three hours is going to have some die off. I agree with everyone, error on the side of caution and wait the 3-4 weeks. Spend that time reading up on all thing things you should know before you spend all your life savings on corals and fish. (or mortgage your house to pay for you fish addiction..)