Getting set to go ... need some advice ...

[VolitanVixen]

I'm in the process of setting up my 140 as a FO tank ... i will be keeping a red volitan, as well as a few types of tangs (thinking 1 each of yellow, blue/hippo, and naso) as well as a pair of clowns (clarkii or tomato ... not sure yet) ... i will be setting it up with a 5" DSB and seeding it with some live sand from an established tank (Scott ... gotta buy some from u soon :) ) and using lava rock instead of live rock (ala Big Al's Shark tank) ... what i need to know is this:

given the fact that i've decided to run a hang-on protein skimmer with the tank and i won't be keeping any corals in it, should i still grab a couple pieces of LR to hide in behind the lava rock wall and use it to assist in the biological filtration, or would the live sand and skimmer be enough?

thanks a bunch! :thanks:

[ajx22]

Get some LR for sure. It has the bacterial colonization and surface area that you want/need.

Also be careful as you will be having a LARGE bio-load with those fish. I don't know of any Hang-On skimmers that will really work well enough to handle this sized tank with that type of bio-load.

You are also very close, if not over (opinions vary a little) the limit of how many tangs you can house in a tank this small.

I only had 3 (medium) in my 8ft long 220Gal - and that was pushing it.

[VolitanVixen]

okay ... well i'm going with about 200lbs of lava rock (have 150 now) will 25lbs of LR be okay? i don't know if i'll have much more room without it poking out LOL

i'm kind of undecided on the tangs ... the lionfish is my main priority and the only reason i decided to go with a skimmer on the tank ... i'll probably be happy with just a yellow or a blue/hippo ... they're just my 3 faves and choosing one over the other is tough :)

the tank isn't drilled and i don't want to get it drilled because i don't really have the room to expand with refugiums, sumps, etc ... not only that, but it was a hassle to get into the basement in the first place, and to lug it up and down stairs again would not be too great (scared of it getting broken) ... and i'm no good with plumbing ... i don't know the first thing about it and have no desire to learn, therefore, it's hard for me to understand.

is there any way that i can run a skimmer then that's not a hang-on without running a sump? if there is, i can go that route.

thanks for your help! :)

[kentracey]

Please tell me you made a mistake...... you're not really going to use LAVA ROCK are you??? :eek1: :eek1: :eek1:
Originally posted by VolitanVixen
okay ... well i'm going with about 200lbs of lava rock (have 150 now) will 25lbs of LR be okay? i don't know if i'll have much more room without it poking out LOL

i'm kind of undecided on the tangs ... the lionfish is my main priority and the only reason i decided to go with a skimmer on the tank ... i'll probably be happy with just a yellow or a blue/hippo ... they're just my 3 faves and choosing one over the other is tough :)

the tank isn't drilled and i don't want to get it drilled because i don't really have the room to expand with refugiums, sumps, etc ... not only that, but it was a hassle to get into the basement in the first place, and to lug it up and down stairs again would not be too great (scared of it getting broken) ... and i'm no good with plumbing ... i don't know the first thing about it and have no desire to learn, therefore, it's hard for me to understand.

is there any way that i can run a skimmer then that's not a hang-on without running a sump? if there is, i can go that route.

thanks for your help! :)

As far as the skimmer goes for a hang on for use on a big tank I'd use the Turboflotor Multi. It's a needle wheel design and should do a great job.

[Dman]

First off, Lava rock for a FO should be fine..just don't put anything other than the occasional softie or 'shroom. Also, skip any inverts for the first little while, just in case there's any metals in the Lava rock.
Secondly, without a sump yer pretty much limited to a hang on skimmer and kentracey pretty much nailed the best one.
Dman
:spin:

[kentracey]

I just thought I'd put a quote here that I found on www.wetwebmedia.com . This is a great site and usually has good info. I'm not trying to start anything here Dman I just knew I had read this many times and thought I'd get something to back it up. Actually I have so much respect for you that I was second guessing myself. Anyway, here it is. I just thought Krys should have all opinions and then make her decision. Lava rock
Hello - I've just bought and read Fenner's TCMA. I'm concerned about the
possible slow leaching of various 'bad' things from some kinds of lava that
he mentions could cause slow, chronic poisoning of my reef critters.<yes, have heard of this before>
Great. I read this just after I used about 15 lbs of a very porous, rough
pumice-like 'bowl rock' as a foundation for my Fiji Live Rock. The LFS staff
insisted that it was safe for salt water usage...but you know how that can
go sometimes.
Can you tell me (please) a.) what exactly leaches into the water with this
problem, and b.) how to test for it?<Personally I do not know exactly what elements, etc "leach"
out from the live rock. But I have heard that this does occur.>
I almost yanked this entire lava foundation out of the tank as soon as I
read this ... but if you knew just how long I spent getting all the Fiji LR
to balance on this lava, and having the whole thing look very sharp indeed
(not to mention very stable for a non-epoxied or otherwise secured
arrangement), you would understand that I don't want to impulsively do this.
<I agree, I know how long it takes to aquascape an aquarium. Try aquascaping a 180 gal
aquarium with 200-300lbs of LR. takes hours to do :(>
Any further advice would be most appreciated.<If it were me I would remove this lava rock post-haste
to be on the safe side. Wouldn't want all of your livestock to mysteriously die one day because of a few pieces of
rock. IanB>
Cheers,

[Bri-Fli]

My Seahorses think Lava rock is just fine.
It is home to a lot of "critters".
I have used it for two years. LFS uses it in
the shark tank.
Hawaii is all lava rock and there are lots of healthy fish
around there.

IMHO

Bri-Fli

[little-reefer]

I love seahorses :) :) Those are beautiful.

[VolitanVixen]

Nope, I didn't make a mistake LOL ... After seeing the shark tanks at Big Al's, i've decided that it's the way i want to go ... the light sandy colour of the substrate and the perfect red of the lava rock will complement the lion's colours beautifully ... you'll see the tan when he's near the rocks and see the red when he's near the bottom ... not only that, but i don't want any corals at all in there, so it's not worrying me about corals not attaching or thriving or anything.

thanks for the concern involving the lava rock, but what i really needed advice on was the LR and how much i should use ... i don't want it showing, but at the same time, would like enough of it to help with biological filtration. :)

as for the aquamedic skimmer ... anyone have a used one ;) how much do they usually run for new? i'm trying to save some $ by buying used, so if anyone knows of someone getting rid of one, or has one they're letting go ... please let me know :)

[VolitanVixen]

anyone have any idea what the absolute minimum amount of LR i can have in there is? AJ? 1 piece? 2? 20lbs?? i've gotta get this thing going to start it cycling before i leave for nova scotia! :)

thanks!

[Mckitrick]

For 140 Gallon FO tank with 5" DSB and 16" (at a minimum) of fish, I would suggest as a minimum about 50-60lbs of Live Rock.
With 200lbs of Lava Rock in there, you're not going to have a heck of a lot of water however. :)

[ajx22]

Originally posted by VolitanVixen
anyone have any idea what the absolute minimum amount of LR i can have in there is? AJ? 1 piece? 2? 20lbs?? i've gotta get this thing going to start it cycling before i leave for nova scotia! :)

thanks!

Honestly...put as MUCH as you can. If you can only get 20lbs in there...then put 20lbs. If you can get 30lbs...then put 30lbs.

ESPECIALLY considering:
[list=a]
Sloppy eating fish (Lion)
No sump :eek1:
[/list=a]

You are going to NEED as much natural filtration as you can get. I would seriously consider adding a sump to increase your water volume as if you have an ammonia spike...it could easily wipe-out the entire tank!!! Talk to Flavio & Tom @ ORG. They can come to your location and drill the tank!!

[afss]

If you are going to be putting the lava rock in along with the live rock. I would suggest maybe getting a few pounds of live rock in small pieces. Place these small pieces throughout the lava rock as you stack it. You plan on leaving it for a while before you add fish anyway so the lava rock should colonize fairly quickly with the bacteria for the filtration part, and the worms, pods will spread with time. The less rock you start with the longer i would wait to add fish. Get some live sand. Transfer some of that macro you got to bring more pods and worms, and you should be doing OK.

Scott

[VolitanVixen]

yeah, i plan on leaving it a good 6-8 weeks before adding anything living other than the LR and LS ... just want to get it up and going, then focus my attention on working to get $$ for the rest of it :)

any chance i can buy some LS off u soon?

[afss]

sure thing.. not a problem at all