New Member says Hello! & Help!!
Hi I'm very new to the Saltwater hobby. I set up a 52 gallon straight back hex that i purchased used along with a canister filter, cyclone skimmer. I've made every possible mistake since I set up my tank, but I'm trying not to get discouraged. (Wrong mix of livestock, dumping live rock in without curing, ammonia spikes, cloudy water, etc, etc.) I'm getting things under control now and I want to eventually move towards converting to a reef tank. (Recently ordered a 265 watt power compact so I can get start on collecting corals.) I guess my big question is how can I tell if I have live rock or live sand? I've had the tank up for 2-3 months but I've messed up so many things along the way, I'm not sure if I've cycled successfully. I've sifted through the sand and looked under some of my live rock, but didn't see anything that looked like it was alive or moving around. How do i tell for sure whether my rock or sand are "live" and how do i tell i have a healthy tank? and whether I'm ready to start adding corals? Any suggestions for a total newb?
Fish
2 Percula Clowns
Yellow Tang
Blue Hippo
Kole Tang
Pearly Jaw Fish
Fire Goby
5 Emerald Crabs
1 Peppermint Shrimp
50lbs of Rock
1.5 inches of sand