initial cycle finished

[Krim]

If possible, get a cup or more of live sand and a piece of live rock from an established tank. It will add biodiversity.

 

[molsen187]

i just put some sand from another memebers tank in there. his tank is 4+ years old. i've been looking for a couple of pieces of rock but havn't found one i like yet. i had all the rock from my old 55g so i used all of that about 60lbs worth and added a couple of peices from my lfs that i liked when i first started the tank up. i want to leave room since most of the coral you buy is on a rock or plug and i want to have some room to manuver them.

 

[Krim]

I can see how your tank cycled fairly quickly. Makes a big difference when you are using established rock and sand. I did that many years ago and had a very short cycle and never lost a thing in that tank. Sounds like your off to a great start.

 

[molsen187]

thanks here's hoping. my last tank was off to a good start then i moved and my roommate was suposed to care for it while i set up at my sister's place and he killed everything. my fault for leaving it in his care but none the less i had to start over. i definitly had a good jumping off point this time.

 

[molsen187]

i have what appears to be a diatom outbreak. i thought it might just be some dead spots but i looked around online and found pics of the diatom outbreaks. that is definitely what it looks like in my tank. will the nas snails eat this when i put them in the tank or is there something else that eats it.

 

[stingythingy45]

i have what appears to be a diatom outbreak. i thought it might just be some dead spots but i looked around online and found pics of the diatom outbreaks. that is definitely what it looks like in my tank. will the nas snails eat this when i put them in the tank or is there something else that eats it.

Negative,nassarius wont eat diatoms.
It's just part of the aging cycle.It should go away after a couple weeks.If not,and I hope you are using ro/DI water.Then it will be there as long as silicates are introduce via tap water into the system.

 

[molsen187]

ok i use rodi water that i buy at jays. i'm saving up to get my own rodi setup but i live at my sisters house for the time being so i might wait until i get my own place. i wasn't sure if something got rid of it or if just went away on its own. last time i didn't really notice it cause i had black sand but this time my sand is super white so it stands out more.

 

[molsen187]

since i used marco's argonite sand will i have a longer diatom bloom from the silicate in the sand or do people think it will only last a couple of weeks.

 

[stingythingy45]

since i used marco's argonite sand will i have a longer diatom bloom from the silicate in the sand or do people think it will only last a couple of weeks.

It really makes little difference if you use calcium based sand or silicate based sand.Silicates leaching out of the sand is just false info.
But, I believe aragonite sand is calcium based anyways.

 

[molsen187]

ok i wasn't sure if the sand would contribute or not. thanks for the help.