substrate question (added pics)

[naesco]

Originally Posted by randy123

Do you think the different colored-stuff on top is sand, or something else precipitated out of the water?

It could be just dirty sand. Most reefs wash the sand to remove any impurities and get rid of the fine dusty stuff that takes a while to settle.
Or it could be the beginnings of diatoms which is normal.

Add some nice fresh live rock (not too much) and get a couple of scoops of live sand from a fellow reefer and everything will settle down.

This hobby requires lots of patience, but, the rewards are out of this world.