Hello all!
This is my first post.
Finally committed to start a small reef tank by buying a BioCube 14g (well, it's on back-order). The store suggested some essential starting supplies, so I bought those. Among them was live sand. He said that by using live sand, it would cut my cycle time drastically. The water in the bag looks a tad cloudy, but I'm not sure whether that's just normal or not. Although I'm in no rush, I'm curious if anyone has started with live sand from the get-go. Other goodies I bought included a hydrometer, thermometer, bag of salt and chemicals for tap water. Still need a test kit for ammonia, nitrates, etc.
Also, what are the benefits of mixing initial water yourself versus just buying water from the local store? Where we live the tap water is very hard...lots of mineral deposits end up everywhere.
I bought 2 water chemicals and a bag of salt at the recommendation of the local shop, but am wondering if instead it'd be best to just buy water? Is the water that shops sell usually something they mix locally, or actually have delivered to them? If so, then they'll be using the same hard water I have to.
Thanks for your input!