New to saltwater Help**

[SammyDee]

OK guys my 3 GSP are doing well in their brackish environment but Im not so happy with the way the landscape looks. So what Im think is a smooth white sand and dead rock. What sand and type rock do y'all recommend? Plus I was wondering what else I may need as far as filtration when I do this landscape overhaul. Right now I have a HOB and a Canister. I do want it to be full marine in the future and since I have no clue about marine tanks I need some help. Do I have to use a sump/overflow/protein skimmer? And also since things are tight now thats why I dont want live rock or live sand. I really dont think it'll be beneficial since this is a puffer only tank. I did read that I could eventually add live rock to seed the dead rock is this true? And is that when i have to have an overflow/sump system? I do want to do corals but only easy ones I dont want to be feeding them and watching calcium and Ph alot like I hear about with reef tanks since Im not experienced and broke. So is it possible to have dead rock and dead sand and eventually introduce corals without a sump like system? Also whats the best way to maintain clean sand? And the dead rock cant grow the pretty purple stuff on it right it has to be live? I just want the tank to look like natural marine waters and also be mostly similar to maintenance I do now for this Brackish tank.

[DarkStorm]

any porus substrate can be turned to live rock/sand,(just takes time) you would want a protein skimmer. so if it were me I would do a sump system (most come with everything you need )so you can hide all the fugly apparatus. im not sure how gsp's do with corals . they tend to eat whatever looks tastey.
what size of tank are you talking about.
after typing this I rememberd a forum on similar subject. and it can be done. I guess all puffers are hit an miss.


reference. http://www.3reef.com/forums/tropical-fi ... 54235.html

[By_a_coo]

SammyDee,

Your question is my question. At the moment I'm looking for those informations, because I also want convert my GSP's tank to SW. And I want the new tank as easy as BW tanks. I don't care about LR and corals, I'm focused in my GSP.

[Dadof4]

Yeah, the best way to go is to start with dead rock and start aquascaping your tank for the future. You can use the dead/base rock and an argonite sand to begin with and once you get over 1.018 you can then start to add well cured live rock. It will seed the sand and the dead rock, it takes a few months but it dies t nicely. For filtration you should be fine with what you have for a little while. Once you start to get to the 1.018 range you will need to change to a sump with a skimmer. The live rock becomes your biofilter at that time.
This is an excellent article and site in general on sumps and how they work. http://www.melevsreef.com/allmysumps.html

[SammyDee]

Thx Ill check the link but I want a super soft smooth white sand and isn't argonite like a fine gravel?

[Dadof4]

You can get it in a finer sand if you really look.

[SammyDee]

How do you clean the sand without sucking it all up, plus I want to make sure it wont get discolored at all either? Do you just risk sucking some up and replace it as time goes by? Plus how deep should the sand bed be? I heard something about gases getting built up in the sand and to be careful not to disturb it. Is it poisonous to the fish or beneficial or are the gases only in live sand.

[SammyDee]

I know 3 gsp in a 55 gal isnt enough but these guys are still small. My main objective is to have the white smooth sand with a large amount of dead rock for plenty of territories and then maybe introduce some small marine fish later like 2 clown fish and maybe a starfish or a small stingray, something thats an attention grabber and maybe some different colored mushrooms for some color. Can I do the mushrooms on the dead rock or does it have to be live?

[Dadof4]

Before anyone starts in about tank size Sammy knows where things stand, we've had this discussion before and he knows what's in store in the future.
On that note, I would not add any fish to that particular tank, especially something like Clownfish as they can be pretty aggressive and you may end up with fish bits instead of a nice display tank. GSP's are not reef safe fish but I know there are a few corals that the GSP will leave alone and someone else will have to tell you which ones.

Cleaning the sand is a crap shoot. I usually end up sucking a bit up and replacing it after a while. Something cool I did was to take an old canister filter and put a sponge in the tray before the return impeller and I use this as a vacuum. The sand doesn't get sucked in to the impeller but the gunk gets filtered out. To avoid the gas build up keep the depth under 1" and stir occasionally. in my arrowhead tank I keep sand about 4 inches deep so he can bury.

[By_a_coo]

I don't think sandy substrate is a PITA. I only use sand in my tanks, in my GSP's tank I stir the sand and syphon the debris and dirt water.

[Pufferpunk]

Once the sand is in SW & you add live rock, the sand will become "live", teeming with tiny sand-sifting creatures & you will no longer need to (nor should you) stir the sand. Lots of folks use pool filter sand. Be sure you rinse it well & it still may cloud the tank & take a few days to clear. No deeper than 1".

[SammyDee]

I was hoping to put a little bit more sand like 3" B/C the tank sits an inch down inside the stand. I probably wont be live rock put in for like a year or so just dead rock while its brackish. I guess I want it to look more marine like even though it brackish for now.

[Pufferpunk]

Either 1" or less or 4"+ for a DSB. Nothing in between, IMO.

[SammyDee]

DSB?

[Pufferpunk]

http://www.ronshimek.com/deep_sand_beds.html