chbix

Well after 4-5 weeks my cycle is complete

The two table shrimp are pretty much gone, ammonia is 0, nitrite is 0, and nitrates are between 0 and 5 ppm.. Temp is 77-78 degrees, salinity is right on the mark. Calcium seemed high at like 480-500 but it was my first test and not sure if i did it right.

Did a 5 gallon water change today.

But im concerned as I havent seen any algae or diatom blooms.....i have read many start up threads with these and im wondering ...

So I came home, and found my return pump sucking air and blowing it into the DT.

Open the cabinet doors to find the water level in the return area was low....
now I know the water level didnt evaporate that much as I added like 2-3 gallons of top off yesterday.I adjusted the return pump flow down to allow the water to catch back up and then was able to open the valve completely open again and things stabilized and no issues....I added another gallon of top off just to be safe... ...

Well its been a long time in the making...

Started looking at a SW tank about 2 years ago....Did lots of research and actually had a tank and a lot of equipment already purchased to set one up.

But life got in the way and I ended up selling most of it.

Well I got the bug again and started over. Got a 60g acrylic tank off CL and started working on getting equipment and now its up and running.

DT is a 60g and Im running a 20L sump underneath. ...

Anyone ever heard of and or know how this thing works?

Got 2 protein skimmers for 20 off craigslist, the other is used and Its designed to where you cant really clean inside. The other is a Sea thru aquarium products, looks brand new, other than some scratches, but the lady knew nothing about it. I used a 350 pump with aeration attachment but the flow was so strong no bubbles formed and just blew water out the top. Then I got an air pump to add more air but having same problem. ...

Well life once again is hindering progress on getting my equipment and I had to replace the dryer so I lost some funds for my lighting. I was looking at getting two 24" MH/T5 lights for $200. But now due to funds im looking at a single 48" t5 set up that has 4x 54w T5 bulbs, two 12000k and two actinic bulbs. Will this be enough light to start with some beginner softies and fish? Should i buy one 24" MH/t5 combo for now and just light half of the tank until I can afford the 2nd ...