-
******* To read about the changes to the marketplace click here
cycling tank, need advice
- Thread starter mpsteve
- Start date
swreef103
Non-member
bury it in the sand and put some live sand in the tank...
no skimming for at least a month unless ur liverock has
alot of die off...ammonia should be 0ppm but its not uncommon to have
with a new tank.a water change won't hurt.u should put a cheap damsel in the tank to get the nitrogen cycle going...usually nitrates will be present but not a major concern.
new tank always have some but keep an eye on it so they don't jump too quick.under 20ppm nitrate,0ppm nitrite,0ppm ammonia,ph 8.1-8.4,salinity 0.025
no skimming for at least a month unless ur liverock has
alot of die off...ammonia should be 0ppm but its not uncommon to have
with a new tank.a water change won't hurt.u should put a cheap damsel in the tank to get the nitrogen cycle going...usually nitrates will be present but not a major concern.
new tank always have some but keep an eye on it so they don't jump too quick.under 20ppm nitrate,0ppm nitrite,0ppm ammonia,ph 8.1-8.4,salinity 0.025
OP
OP
i thought my ammonia is spoced to spike? also i can shut my skimmer off? and i thought i wasnt spoced to put any fish in till i get it cycled. also i bought some bacteria stuff for when my ammonia spikes, i guess its the bacteria that eats the ammonia and turns it into nitrate, or nitrite, i forget witch one comes first, but both nitrates, and nitrites are at 0, and ammonia is at 3ppm. and i have live sand in the tank, got it from a fellow reefer, along with live rock, names arda
Reeferer
Non-member
If you put a fish in I would remove the shrimp. It has served its purpose. Also note that a damsel is territorial and aggressive towards other fish, especially when it has lived in a tank first. you may have to trap and remove it before you add other fish down the road. A damsel will def help ur cycle and give you something to look at for the next month+. Do you have any live rock or sand? A small live rock will also help.
IMO I would also not bother to change the water until your ammonia and nitrites are 0 and all you have is nitrates.
IMO I would also not bother to change the water until your ammonia and nitrites are 0 and all you have is nitrates.
cycling with a fish is not necessary and IMO bad husbandry........i know its only a damsel but if naso tangs were $8 would we use them too?.......you can get the same exact results by using some seed live rock and live sand and put in a cube of frozen fish food every couple days for a week depending on system size the cycle will be the same as with the fish and you dont have to put the fish through unecessary stress......and IME i have run the skimmer from day one on all my set-ups
Last edited:
swreef103
Non-member
i've been jumpstarting peoples tanks for quite some time now.take it from me,i've never had any ammonia during the so called cycling period!thats wut ur skimmer pulls basically.when u use liverock and livesand that was already in another tank why would there be any ammonia?u should be wet skimming right away and their would be no ammonia.the best way to go about it is start skimming now bcuz ur already behind wut should have already taken place in ur tank.the sand will do its job breaking down the shrimp being exposed is the reason for the spike.the process is not that difficult to understand ammonia gases turn into-nitrite-nitrate...i'd focus more on phosphates and nitrates in combination in the 1st few months...nitrates r not bad under 10-20ppm but if phosphate is 0.10-0.25 this is critical with the two...i know u must be thinking ur lost cuz i tend to use to many words but trust me the faster the better...just don't be too rushed into ur new and expensive addiction...
OP
OP
ok so what should i do, slow for me. i have been skimming, it keeps getting brown water. like i said i do have live rock and sand. so should i just push the shrimp in the sand, and let it be, or burry the shrimp in teh sand, and add a damsel
delta
Impatient Reefer
If you are getting ammonia readings you are cycling away no need to add or do anything. I would definitely advise against adding fish at this point.
Let it cycle, once the ammonia drops to zero and your nitrates are below 10ppm you can add a fish or two depending on your system size. Ultimately you want your nitrates to be undetectable.
Every time you add livestock watch for a mini cycle to come and settle down before adding more.
Let it cycle, once the ammonia drops to zero and your nitrates are below 10ppm you can add a fish or two depending on your system size. Ultimately you want your nitrates to be undetectable.
Every time you add livestock watch for a mini cycle to come and settle down before adding more.
Last edited:
swreef103
Non-member
no shrimp for at least 2months after ur levels are consistant.the crab might die if he doesn't have plenty of algae to grave on.but thats part of the process...i'd use a green chromis or 2.non-aggressive damsel..readily cheap too...if u cant control ur new habit like most of us then u'll learn the hard way...not being rude but i've dealt with too many people who just can't wait so i've been there done that...i'm kinda a reef mentor so if u need some rehab feel free to ask wutevers on ur mind....u'll never have a perfect reef so keep that in mind too...
swreef103
Non-member
no live shrimp but delta has a good point too...skim it out till the ammonia is under 10 then slowly add stuff...fish do stress out in new tanks so i'd say save ur money for a week or so...a word to the wise is to invest in some more accurate test kits too.i recommend saliferts.my favorite and always accurate..
Anny ammonia reading is a "spike" 
FWIW, (recap of the basic cycle process)
1. You should see an ammonia "spike" which means some will be detectable.
2. Next you will see the ammonia drop to 0, and a nitrite level will start to rise.
3. That nitrite level will drop to 0, and you may see some nitrate start to accumulate.
The 1 - 2 - 3 process is because 2 different types of bacteria have to develop, one after the other.
When live rock is used, the above process is quite different. The rock will have some of all the needed bacteria present, so they will very rapidly grow and you may not see the distinct 1 - 2 - 3 process as clearly if at all.
BUT,
when adding LR, you should see somewhere between a tiny bit, and a massive amount, of die off. If it's "fresh uncured" LR the whole room will stink from the die off. If it's seasoned LR you got out of an established tank, there may be near no die off, and everything could settle in in a week or two.
I'd say you may not have needed the shrimp (or sacrificail damsel) since you did add a good amount of LR. I think you could remove it or leave it. Either way would be fine, but leaving it might be unnecessary and gross.
As far as the traditional 1 - 2 - 3 cycle - forget about it, it's kind of irrelevant when you use LR.
I would suggest just waiting and testing the levels periodically for at least a month. You should see consistent 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite levels, and nitrate may start accumulating.
From there, still TAKE IT SLOW. The initial cycle happens over a month or so in a sterile tank. It happens faster with LR, but there is no specific time table. THEN, the tank will continue to mature and stabalize for up to a year before a lot of reefkeepers would consider it "stable".
Just sit back and wait for a while
FWIW, (recap of the basic cycle process)
1. You should see an ammonia "spike" which means some will be detectable.
2. Next you will see the ammonia drop to 0, and a nitrite level will start to rise.
3. That nitrite level will drop to 0, and you may see some nitrate start to accumulate.
The 1 - 2 - 3 process is because 2 different types of bacteria have to develop, one after the other.
When live rock is used, the above process is quite different. The rock will have some of all the needed bacteria present, so they will very rapidly grow and you may not see the distinct 1 - 2 - 3 process as clearly if at all.
BUT,
when adding LR, you should see somewhere between a tiny bit, and a massive amount, of die off. If it's "fresh uncured" LR the whole room will stink from the die off. If it's seasoned LR you got out of an established tank, there may be near no die off, and everything could settle in in a week or two.
I'd say you may not have needed the shrimp (or sacrificail damsel) since you did add a good amount of LR. I think you could remove it or leave it. Either way would be fine, but leaving it might be unnecessary and gross.
As far as the traditional 1 - 2 - 3 cycle - forget about it, it's kind of irrelevant when you use LR.
I would suggest just waiting and testing the levels periodically for at least a month. You should see consistent 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite levels, and nitrate may start accumulating.
From there, still TAKE IT SLOW. The initial cycle happens over a month or so in a sterile tank. It happens faster with LR, but there is no specific time table. THEN, the tank will continue to mature and stabalize for up to a year before a lot of reefkeepers would consider it "stable".
Just sit back and wait for a while
OP
OP
ok will do, i will take it out tomorrow. thats all i wanted too know, now when do i start to add a clean up crew, because i have some algea forming most of it is white hairs, tiny, and on one rock a little patch of green hairs, i know not for a few weeks, but how o i know, after nitrites reachs 0, and i start to get nitrates?
OP
OP
already added like 3 cups
Similar threads
