All the information to set up that tank of yours.  This section will give you basic ideas and tricks to get that tank running in the quickest of times.  If anyone out there has more (or better) info just e-mail me and it will be on.

PLACING THE TANK

This part is the easiest and shouldn't have to be said.  You need to find a good place in you home that you can enjoy watching it at all times.  The best spot would be somewhere in your living room.  You would be surprised at how much you will watch the tank and not the TV.  Once you have found you place, you need to put it on a nice sturdy surface.  Remember that once it is full with water...  your not going to be able to move that sucker (a gallon of water weighs about 8 pounds).  Make sure their is enough room behind the tank to hang all you equipment.  Just test it before you fill it with water.

This is a picture of my living room with my boy and dog.

SETTING UP EQUIPMENT

This is part is actually up to you.  It all depends on how you want it to look.  The powerhead and heater are the only thing that need be discussed. 

POWERHEAD

It is very important to have good water circulation in you tank.  It gives the water its needed oxygen as well as takes the dead spots out (dead spots are areas in you tank that are not being circulated).  A good idea would be to put the power head pointed behind the rocks so that it will push all the bacteria and other partials through the whole system.  This is extremely true if you have caves and such. 

HEATER

The heater should be place evenly on the back glass.  Don't put it in a corner or to high.  It probably wouldn't hurt but I would say put it in the middle...  even distribution.

This is the flow of the tank (I hope anyway).  It all seems to be doing really good.  The only thing I my do is get another power head.

WATER

This is a very important part.  Know that you tank has all the equipment setup, fill the tank 3/4 of the way full with either deionized water or r/o water.  Never use tap water, there are trace elements that can kill your live stock.  Get the temperature up to 75 degrees and then add your salt.  Do a little at a time.  Stir it up quite a bit so it will dissolve.  This whole process will take about a day.  One you have gotten the salinity to 1.023-1.024 let the tank sit for a day.  Know you are ready to start the rest of your equipment except the protein skimmer (no need yet, there shouldn't be any waist in you water).

LIVE SAND

This is by far the most annoying part of setting up for the cycle.  There are no tricks to this that I have heard or found.  After the salinity and temp have leveled off you need to carefully add the live sand.  Problem is, no matter how hard you work at it, the water will still be cloudy.  You need about 4 inches on the deck of you tank.  It will be about two inches above the wooden or plastic bottom.  A good rule of thumb is, a gallon of sand to a gallon of water.  I use a little more.

LIVE ROCK

Their are many types of live rock out there.  I like Fiji rock.  Yes its expensive but it will greatly help you out.  When picking the rock, look for a lot of color on it.  Make sure that it has been cured for at least a month at the fish store.  This will save you a lot of time for the cycle.  Also make sure you get about 5 to 10 pound more weight than you water.  For example, for the 25 gallon tank I am using, I got 30 pounds of rock. When you get it home, shake it off in a bucket of premixed saltwater.  This will get most of the dead stuff off that you don't need. 

Placing it is all up to you.  Make sure that their is room to clean the tank glass and that there are ledges and cave throughout your creation.  Below are some nice pictures that might help.

MORE COMING SOON