30g half cube

[eliramos]

A solid cycle is usually from 2-4 weeks
Everything should be zero
Ph at 8.3
And salinity between 1.023 and 1.028 max

 

[m88a2]

i havent had ammonia or nitrites in a about a month but you may be right about it being too young. my most recent parameters are as follows

ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrates: 0
phosphates : .04
alk: 8.8
cal: 410
mag: 1600
ph: 8.1 +1
salinity 1.026

RO/DI test at 0 and all tests done with hanna or redsea test kits except the ammonia is w/ API

 

[Harold Green]

You're right about the nitrogen cycle but I think the real issue (assuming there are no contamination or temperature problems) is the fact that your tank appears to have very little in the way of areas for the bacteria to colonize. With no sand bed and a small amount of live rock balanced against feeding several times a day plus the ammonia the fish excrete you can quickly overwhelm the capacity of the tank. A good way to judge on a new tank is the rise in nitrate. Before water changes it should get to a fairly high level and that shows lots of bacteria converting lots of ammonia and nitrites. You had a very short cycle producing a small amount of bacteria and it takes time and a constant ammonia source to create a larger volume of bacteria and that bacteria needs a place to colonize. I don't recommend my method but for me I simply start a tank with fresh live rock. Then allow a couple of months before adding fish. In the mean time I sparingly feed the animals on the live rock, normally phyto. Over the months the bacterial colonies will grow and at the same time the water parameters get a chance to get into a stable configuration. Just as it's a good idea to allow a tank to age before adding an anemone it's a good idea to allow a tank some running time before adding fish. Here's a 54g corner tank I set up last week. There will be no discernible cycle unless I add more food or lose animals on the live rock, yet the bacteria levels will slowly build and the water become more stable. As a side note many aquarists are able to quickly cycle a tank and run a full load of fish in a very short time, but they are experienced at how to prevent a crash in the event something goes wrong.

 

[m88a2]

those are many good points, thanks for the insight. this tank had several firsts from me especially in the was of less rock/bare bottom. I recently added a large piece of dry rock to the sump along with the rubble i had in there. I've also been looking at the marinepure media to try and increase the area for bacteria to live but i want to do a bit more research before i commit. Anyone have any experience with their product?

 

[Flameback Pair]

So you have the leds and T5s together in the hood? Can you show a picture?

 

[m88a2]

sure, here you go. you can see 1 T5 on either side of the hydra

 

[Flameback Pair]

Thanks for the pic. I often wonder how I can do that myself on a big tank.

 

[m88a2]

np. my light hood is super simplistic and turned out to be much easier to make than i thought. there's even enough space to put a 2nd hydra or 2 more t5s if i feel its needed later on.

 

[Tahoe61]

There are more aspects of a cycle than the detection of Ammonia and Nitrites, the nitrogen cycle.

Personally I think the minimalist look you have going is perfect and I would not add anymore rock.

It's not your first rodeo, it's not just the typical cycle values, it's the swings in general water chemistry.

Following, tank looks awesome. I like the more shallow cube type tank.

 

[m88a2]

Ty, its my third tank but i have been away from the hobby for a while and even longer since i last cycled a tank and i def forgot/overlooked some things. The large piece of rock i added was placed in the fuge so the DT remains the same. I researched the marinepure media balls and decided to go ahead and order some due good reviews and the fact that it didnt seem like it leeched much if any aluminum (my original concern).

 

[MTWiley]

That was my impression too and it's worked fine for me in the past and currently

 

[m88a2]

Someone recently put up their triton results from before,which had elevated aluminum, and then again after adding more. I think he doubled the amount of marine pure and the 2nd result had hardly any more aluminum. I got the 2 quart amount coming in on wed

 

[helldiver]

what is the manufacturer if that tank I am looking for something like that

 

[m88a2]

its a 30 gallon deep blue "frag tank". you can get it reef ready or just the tank and drill it yourself

 

[renato120]

Updates?