Best Practices/Ideas on the best pre-fish/coral tank cycling?

lactose · Oct 25, 2018

I am cycling a brand new tank system (build thread to come) and I just finished the bacteria and ammonia cycling part. I have a big system (~300 effective/true measured gallons) across 4 tanks & two sumps) that can process 2ppm of ammonia to zero in under 24 hours. It is all dry rock and bare bottom with abs sheets on the bottom and I have one of the back tanks with 30 lbs of Miracle Mud in it (closest to sand/substrate) I have.

This new system is my latest and is built on 15+ years of lessons learned (both the hard way and the easy way :)) and incorporates all of them so very happy with the build but it is the first time in a long time I am going through a net new cycle (most other systems started with media/rocks from existing tank etc.) I also have several tanks for QT/OT and have fish & corals (in separate tanks) who have gone through 76+ days or are in process and again in no rush to get them in main tank.

I have successfully run SPS, mixed, fish only and just about every combination before so I had lots of ideas to incorporate into the design of the tank and how to run/maintain it once it is 'fully live' but the cycle has me looking for other's thoughts so I can learn from you all and do it best.

So my question/thinking out loud here is: what is the best cycle / pre-fish phase? I have enormous patience so not in a rush. Proof of that is this buildout started with tear out of walls and ordering of tank 11 months ago!

So here's what I am thinking:
1) cycle with ammonia/bacteria booster to ensure I am fully cycled bacteria wise (~1 month, this is done, with no lights on)

2) introduce copepod, amphipods and other microfauna including coralline algae and feed with phyto and some fish food to keep tank going and grow out and fill in the micro ecosystem long before fish come. (starting this next week, will run for ~1 month with no lights on)

3) introduce some macroalgae in refugium to consume nitrates, be home for pods and be ready to help process fish waste etc. (~1 month with no lights on but ramping up refuge light as discussed in BRS ULM)

4) now I am about 3 months in, introduce some easy coral and others to build up tank and turn on lights - start this in connected frag tank and move to one of the display tanks after initial success (~1+ month)

5) after lights on has proven it is working and not an algae farm start to slowly introduce fish (slowly so I don't blast the tank with food and jumpstart algae) (~1-2 months)

6) start to intro sps corals (starting in connected frag tank) to verify they can grow and be maintained and then keep building up adding until I am complete and the tank can just continue to grow and evolve...

I would appreciate your thoughts. What can I do to make this better, eliminate algae/uglies and support long term success? I am very curious what all is involved in the WWC/BRS hybrid cycle plan but that video hasn't come out yet so all I know from that is existing live rock and time with lights out - which I already plan on.

Thanks in advance

JumboShrimp · Oct 25, 2018

“Enormous patience.” A very rare quality indeed— Best wishes in all your endeavors!

lactose · Dec 11, 2018

So the BRS video went up on Friday for the 4 month cycle and here is what I summarized it down to from their checklist:

1. Use all the Rock/Ceramic Media on Day 1
2. Add Bacteria Source & source of ammonia (starting on Day 1)
-- Wait 2 Months
3. Test at 2 Months
-- Assuming Ammonia & Nitrite are non existent
++ Add First Fish
++ Add Bacteria Boost
++ Introduce Coralline Algae Source
-- Wait 2 Weeks
4. Add Algae Fish + Turn On Lights
++ Add Bacteria Boost
++ Turn on Lights to Normal Schedule
-- treat/manage any outbreaks during "ugly phase"
-- Wait for consistent Coralline Algae Growth
5. When there's consistent Coralline Algae Growth
++ Add Test Corals

All in all pretty compatible with what I gathered up above.

lactose · Dec 11, 2018

So here is my cycle/startup to date (total system volume is 297 gallons - rounded to 300 for dosing ease of math)

Sept. 30 - Tank fully wet with all rock (dry Caribsea LifeRock Shapes) & ceramic media (MarinePure BioMedia Plates & Brick) and saltwater is maintaining consistent proper temp, salinity, etc.
Oct. 1 - Add Bacteria Source (blend of Dr Tims & Bio Spira) and start dosing Dr Tim's ammonia following their approach to dose to 2ppm, wait for conversion to Nitrite & Nitrate & repeat. A couple of times in here I added some more bacteria as I had it.
Oct. 25 - Verify Ammonia->Nitrate Bacteria populations established (I can dose 2ppm Ammonia and is converted to Nitrate in < 24 hours)
Oct. 27 - Add 3 containers (30 lbs total) of Miracle Mud in Back Tank, MicroFauna Starter from IPSF (wonder mud, amphipods, bristleworms, mini stars, etc.), Peppermint Shrimps, Apex & Tigger Pods from Reef Nutrition & 5280 Pods from AlgaeBarn
Oct. 28 - Start Daily "Ghost Feeding" of PE Mysis Pellets into Clownfish Display Tank (using AFS on lowest setting)
Oct. 28 - Start Daily Manual feeding of Flakes & Phyto into Back Tank for Pods and "Ghost Feeding" of Frozen Rod's & Mysis into display tanks & back tank
Dec. 8 - Start Daily "Ghost Feeding" of PE Mysis Pellets into SPS Display Tank (using second AFS on lowest setting), Also added in Dr Tims Eco Balance Bacteria Booster
Dec. 9 - Add Coralline Source (ARC Purple & Pink) following instructions
Dec. 10 - started Protein Skimmer running
[Planned] Dec. 13 - Add in first fish waiting 46 days fallow after the items added on Oct. 28th to hopefully avoid any possible parasites introduced then
[Planned] Dec. 23 - Add in first Algae Eating Fish (after Tank Transfer Method & QT tank time is complete) + Turn on Lights (reduced schedule ramping up)
[Planned] ?? - Manage any outbreaks of algae, etc. and overall "ugly phase"
[Planned] ?? - During/whenever in "ugly phase" introduce snails etc. as clean up crew (avoiding hermit crabs but including others) I have these in my Coral/Invert QT now so they are ready when I need them
[Planned] ?? - When I have regular levels of nitrate & phosphate introduce Macroalgae into Refugium (after dip/QT of algae)
[Planned] ?? - When I have consistent Coralline Algae try test coral in SPS tank and test RBTA Anenome in Clownfish Tank

So far to date this has worked well and there have been no negative side effects. I have been watching Ammonia with seneye and there have been little spikes on occasion that clear up quickly like when I added each of the "ghost feeding" additions to the schedule. Nitrate hasn't climbed too high and I am actually seeing reductions so some denitrification and/or bacteria export via skimmer is happening in the tank. Phosphate got up to .7 ppm and then a couple of days later was .45 (assumed bacteria export when I fired up skimmer and got skimmate coming out) and I dropped that down to .09 via Phosphate Rx and 10 micron sock for a few hours.

I am targeting < .1 ppm Phosphate (ideally .05) and < 10 ppm Nitrate (ideally 2) but am not fully chasing the number as much as keeping it low. This may haunt me during the 'ugly phase' but we shall see. I can get more aggressive then if I have to.

lactose · Dec 11, 2018

As stated above, I added some extra bacteria as I went both because I had it and because I figured it couldn't hurt as I ramped up feeding etc. That being said I am confident that the bacteria in the tank would have ramped up to the task and adding was probably unnecessary.

Dr. Dendrostein · Dec 11, 2018

lactose said:
I am cycling a brand new tank system (build thread to come) and I just finished the bacteria and ammonia cycling part. I have a big system (~300 effective/true measured gallons) across 4 tanks & two sumps) that can process 2ppm of ammonia to zero in under 24 hours. It is all dry rock and bare bottom with abs sheets on the bottom and I have one of the back tanks with 30 lbs of Miracle Mud in it (closest to sand/substrate) I have.

This new system is my latest and is built on 15+ years of lessons learned (both the hard way and the easy way :)) and incorporates all of them so very happy with the build but it is the first time in a long time I am going through a net new cycle (most other systems started with media/rocks from existing tank etc.) I also have several tanks for QT/OT and have fish & corals (in separate tanks) who have gone through 76+ days or are in process and again in no rush to get them in main tank.

I have successfully run SPS, mixed, fish only and just about every combination before so I had lots of ideas to incorporate into the design of the tank and how to run/maintain it once it is 'fully live' but the cycle has me looking for other's thoughts so I can learn from you all and do it best.

So my question/thinking out loud here is: what is the best cycle / pre-fish phase? I have enormous patience so not in a rush. Proof of that is this buildout started with tear out of walls and ordering of tank 11 months ago!

So here's what I am thinking:
1) cycle with ammonia/bacteria booster to ensure I am fully cycled bacteria wise (~1 month, this is done, with no lights on)

2) introduce copepod, amphipods and other microfauna including coralline algae and feed with phyto and some fish food to keep tank going and grow out and fill in the micro ecosystem long before fish come. (starting this next week, will run for ~1 month with no lights on)

3) introduce some macroalgae in refugium to consume nitrates, be home for pods and be ready to help process fish waste etc. (~1 month with no lights on but ramping up refuge light as discussed in BRS ULM)

4) now I am about 3 months in, introduce some easy coral and others to build up tank and turn on lights - start this in connected frag tank and move to one of the display tanks after initial success (~1+ month)

5) after lights on has proven it is working and not an algae farm start to slowly introduce fish (slowly so I don't blast the tank with food and jumpstart algae) (~1-2 months)

6) start to intro sps corals (starting in connected frag tank) to verify they can grow and be maintained and then keep building up adding until I am complete and the tank can just continue to grow and evolve...

I would appreciate your thoughts. What can I do to make this better, eliminate algae/uglies and support long term success? I am very curious what all is involved in the WWC/BRS hybrid cycle plan but that video hasn't come out yet so all I know from that is existing live rock and time with lights out - which I already plan on.

Thanks in advance

Pods first to complete with unwanted algae, little raw egg for pods and see an explosion of pods. Wish at first I started slow. Learn the hard way, have a graveyard of coral rock, which once had softies on them, I keep at bottom of DT, to remind me of my past children of the sea and my mistakes. You're doing great. Thanks for sharing.