Corals before fish?

[Easto]

I have most of my equipment and supplies to get my tank running in the new year to cycle my dry rock.

I am going on vacation in March for 2 weeks so I would rather add fish after I get back so I don't have to deal with an automatic feeder, etc.

I was thinking (and I think it's a little ass backwards from the norm) would there be any problem adding some beginner easy to keep corals in the tank when it's done cycling before the fish go in?

[Aquattro]

I see no problem with that, and not really a bad idea at all. It gives the tank a chance to become established at an easier pace without overloading nutrients right away. I would add a bit of fish food every other day though, just to give the bacteria something to eat.

[Frynoodle]

Once your N-cycle is done. (No/Low KH, No2), make some water change to keep the No3 in low level, then you could introduce some corals in tank. Like Brad said, you'd add a bit of fish food daily for bacteria. But don't add too much corals in tanks, your tank and n-cycle still too weak and not stable yet, it may not handle the amount of fishes you may add later.

[Myka]

Since you're using dry rock, you will need to go very slow stocking corals and fish anyway, so I don't think it's a bad idea at all. Did you add some pieces of live rock to seed or use a bacteria product to help?

[Easto]

I haven't done anything yet. I'm still in the planning stages and getting the last pieces together.

Trying to figure out how to get started with the vacation already planned.

[Craigdillman]

I would really look into cleaning the dry rock in some vinegar or (acid) and then maybe curing in a Tupperware in some heated saltwater help with phosphates and other biofilm and stuff that comes on the dry rock there are lots of people who run into algae problems using strict dry rock
Most goes away with time but its nice if it can run threw that cycle in the Tupperware container than in the tank. And your probably still collecting and planning and getting everything ready for set up anyway.

Just my 2 cents I had really good luck doing this with my 125 set up using mostly dry rock

[Easto]

How much vinegar? Dilute with water?

I also have muiatic acid leftover from pool stuff, can I used that (diluted or regular) to wash the rock?

I'm on my cell so it's tough to search right now.

[Craigdillman]

How big is your tank?

Not 100% sure on the acid ratio would look that up

But for the vinegar what I did was just regular 5% white vinegar. Fill a tub with 3:1 ratio (vinegar to water hot is best), and throw the rocks in and make sure they're all covered. The rocks will "bubble" because the vinegar is dissolving the calcium the rock is made of. So what happens is that the outermost layer of the rock is dissolved off, along with the organics that are stored on the outside of the rock.
Once the rocks stop bubbling, that means the acid has been neutralized and the "magic" is pretty much over. But I'd leave it in the vinegar for a full 24 hours just to be sure you get the most effect out of it. For the second bath, If you want to go this far i rinsed the rocks quick then did another bath of 3:1. After a couple baths the rock should be bright white since the outer layers are gone and what you're left with is extremely clean base rock.

Then I rinsed the rocks and put them a few weeks (Mine stayed longer cause my tank wasn't ready to get running yet the longer the better) in saltwater with a heater and powerhead in the bin, and I'd put it in my tank. It's very simple, but requires some effort and time. But it's cheaper than fresh live rock without all the curing and die-off. It will take a good 4-6 months in your tank to look great, but it's well worth the wait. Oh, and you need a few pounds of good, quality live rock in the tank as well so you can seed the dead rock with all the good life forms and bacteria you need in/on it.

This is the process I went threw and by the time they were in my tank i had a brief diatoms stage but didn't go through any algae blooms and id like to think this is why

Hope this helps

[Easto]

Perfect!

Thanks for the help

[Easto]

Originally Posted by Craigdillman

How big is your tank?

Not 100% sure on the acid ratio would look that up

But for the vinegar what I did was just regular 5% white vinegar. Fill a tub with 3:1 ratio (vinegar to water hot is best), and throw the rocks in and make sure they're all covered. The rocks will "bubble" because the vinegar is dissolving the calcium the rock is made of. So what happens is that the outermost layer of the rock is dissolved off, along with the organics that are stored on the outside of the rock.
Once the rocks stop bubbling, that means the acid has been neutralized and the "magic" is pretty much over. But I'd leave it in the vinegar for a full 24 hours just to be sure you get the most effect out of it. For the second bath, If you want to go this far i rinsed the rocks quick then did another bath of 3:1. After a couple baths the rock should be bright white since the outer layers are gone and what you're left with is extremely clean base rock.

Then I rinsed the rocks and put them a few weeks (Mine stayed longer cause my tank wasn't ready to get running yet the longer the better) in saltwater with a heater and powerhead in the bin, and I'd put it in my tank. It's very simple, but requires some effort and time. But it's cheaper than fresh live rock without all the curing and die-off. It will take a good 4-6 months in your tank to look great, but it's well worth the wait. Oh, and you need a few pounds of good, quality live rock in the tank as well so you can seed the dead rock with all the good life forms and bacteria you need in/on it.

This is the process I went threw and by the time they were in my tank i had a brief diatoms stage but didn't go through any algae blooms and id like to think this is why

Hope this helps

It is a 75 gal.

I have some dry Pukani and Tonga Shelf.

With the vinegar do I add RO/DI water or will tap water work for this purpose?