Cycling an Aquarium

[serecheneric]

Very helpful article, just got done with my cycle.

 

[J747]

Great article, thanks for the information!!

 

[dstockwell]

I'm 18 days into cycling a 55, I started with StartSmart Complete, and did water test yesterday.

PH 8.0
Ammonia 0
Nitrate 0
Phosphate 2.0

I'm having difficulty reading Calcium, and Carbonate Hardness on the test kit. Anyway I did a 20% water change for the Phosphate (don't have RODI) so looking at a Phosphate reactor. I run two Viparspectra 165W 10" above the water @ 60 blue and 10 white, whites off first blue off 30 minutes later on a 12 hour cycle. I have yet to see any signs of ugly phase or any brown algae on 40lbs of dead rock. Is it just to soon, or is there something else I need to do, or just wait.

Thanks

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct...p/B007R5KUFQ&usg=AOvVaw1e-MGIxPse7TYwSIldjrTc​

 

[Mikey-D]

I may be kicking the can down the alley on this one. I do apoligize.

I didnt want to start a new thread and I searched for something relative to my question. Saw this thread and decided to give it a whirl. Moderators please tell me or guide me if i am in the wrong thread. Thank you.

My Plan.
40b using ocean rock and sand from TBS. Sump with fuge chamber(wont add cheato until tank is cycled) Skimmer and Bio reactor in second chamber and then return section where Triton method dosing will be added. Lighting will be a 36" T5 hybrid with 2 v3 noopsyche that will run on a ramp up and down schedule with the bulbs coming on right after and before the led peaks on/off. I plan on to hang 12" from the top. No coral at first, fish first and get the stabilty in check first. Then maybe lower to 10"

Question.
Since I will be running a pratically small bioload that I will aso be dosing Phytoplankton to feed the hitchhikers at the very beginning should I run the skimmer and reactor right away or let the tank fully cycle and stabilize and then run them and then test and stabilze....seems redunant to me, im thinking start everything from the very rip and get it all stable and dialed in at once. I have read dont run cheato until its stable, but if there are opininons on that im all ears.

Thoughts.
?

 

[vetteguy53081]

I may be kicking the can down the alley on this one. I do apoligize.

I didnt want to start a new thread and I searched for something relative to my question. Saw this thread and decided to give it a whirl. Moderators please tell me or guide me if i am in the wrong thread. Thank you.

My Plan.
40b using ocean rock and sand from TBS. Sump with fuge chamber(wont add cheato until tank is cycled) Skimmer and Bio reactor in second chamber and then return section where Triton method dosing will be added. Lighting will be a 36" T5 hybrid with 2 v3 noopsyche that will run on a ramp up and down schedule with the bulbs coming on right after and before the led peaks on/off. I plan on to hang 12" from the top. No coral at first, fish first and get the stabilty in check first. Then maybe lower to 10"

Question.
Since I will be running a pratically small bioload that I will aso be dosing Phytoplankton to feed the hitchhikers at the very beginning should I run the skimmer and reactor right away or let the tank fully cycle and stabilize and then run them and then test and stabilze....seems redunant to me, im thinking start everything from the very rip and get it all stable and dialed in at once. I have read dont run cheato until its stable, but if there are opininons on that im all ears.

Thoughts.
?

Skimmer and reactor can wait until bioload is added and producing waste. Once you fill up your aquarium with saltwater, powerheads, a heater and perhaps add sand for substrate, the next step is to cycle your tank. The purpose of a cycle is to create bacteria that will be consuming ammonia and nitrite from your livestock, but you have to get the bacteria from somewhere initially.
Why is it called a cycle? Because the tank will go through three phases: ammonia will rise and fall, then nitrite will rise and fall even quicker, and lastly nitrate will rise and fall. Once Ammonia reads zero and Nitrate is less than 20ppm, the cycle is complete and livestock can gradually be introduced. The bacteria population will increase with the new bioload, processing waste and converting it to nitrate rapidly. However, it is important to note that overloading the aquarium with too many fish initially can exceed what the bacteria can handle. This is why it is best to add new fish slowly over the next few months. The bacterial levels will adapt if you don't overload the system with too many mouths to feed.
How long does the cycle generally last? Using the three test kits to measure results daily, you'll likely see the process take about 21 days. No livestock of any kind should be placed in the aquarium as long as you have any measurable traces of ammonia or nitrite because these are toxic to fish and invertebrates.

 

[Mikey-D]

Skimmer and reactor can wait until bioload is added and producing waste. Once you fill up your aquarium with saltwater, powerheads, a heater and perhaps add sand for substrate, the next step is to cycle your tank. The purpose of a cycle is to create bacteria that will be consuming ammonia and nitrite from your livestock, but you have to get the bacteria from somewhere initially.
Why is it called a cycle? Because the tank will go through three phases: ammonia will rise and fall, then nitrite will rise and fall even quicker, and lastly nitrate will rise and fall. Once Ammonia reads zero and Nitrate is less than 20ppm, the cycle is complete and livestock can gradually be introduced. The bacteria population will increase with the new bioload, processing waste and converting it to nitrate rapidly. However, it is important to note that overloading the aquarium with too many fish initially can exceed what the bacteria can handle. This is why it is best to add new fish slowly over the next few months. The bacterial levels will adapt if you don't overload the system with too many mouths to feed.
How long does the cycle generally last? Using the three test kits to measure results daily, you'll likely see the process take about 21 days. No livestock of any kind should be placed in the aquarium as long as you have any measurable traces of ammonia or nitrite because these are toxic to fish and invertebrates.

Thank you for answering me!

I dont want to be just another guy who buys a saltwater tank and hires someone for maintenance. I want to know this hobby and understand as much as possible and take from what others have learned and try out a few things of my own. So I truly do appreciate it.

 

[Lasse]

Since I will be running a pratically small bioload that I will aso be dosing Phytoplankton to feed the hitchhikers at the very beginning should I run the skimmer and reactor

I would personally go another path than what vetteguy53081 suggest.

I would run the skimmer and the biofilter from the start. This because the nitrification process demand an high oxygen content in the water and the skimmer is the best equipment you have in order to bring in oxygen in your aquarium. The biofilter (if you do not use biopellets and use normal plastic - type bioballs in it) is the best part for your nitrification bacteria to settle down. If you with bioreactor mean a biofilter that use biopellet - do not use it in the beginning. Biopellets content organic carbon and this favour other bacteria than nitrification bacteria. I would not turn on the light before establishing a disent CUC. My ideas will be more clear here

15 Steps to Starting a Saltwater Aquarium: The Lasse Method

15 Steps to Starting a Saltwater Aquarium: The Lasse Method Display Tank. Photos are all courtesy of Lasse Forsberg. ©2019, All Rights Reserved. INTRODUCTION There are many methods to start a saltwater aquarium--each major aquarium product manufacturer has its own. Common to most, however...

www.reef2reef.com

And yes - I introduce a fish day 2

Sincerely Lasse

 

[Mikey-D]

I would personally go another path than what vetteguy53081 suggest.

I would run the skimmer and the biofilter from the start. This because the nitrification process demand an high oxygen content in the water and the skimmer is the best equipment you have in order to bring in oxygen in your aquarium. The biofilter (if you do not use biopellets and use normal plastic - type bioballs in it) is the best part for your nitrification bacteria to settle down. If you with bioreactor mean a biofilter that use biopellet - do not use it in the beginning. Biopellets content organic carbon and this favour other bacteria than nitrification bacteria. I would not turn on the light before establishing a disent CUC. My ideas will be more clear here

15 Steps to Starting a Saltwater Aquarium: The Lasse Method

15 Steps to Starting a Saltwater Aquarium: The Lasse Method Display Tank. Photos are all courtesy of Lasse Forsberg. ©2019, All Rights Reserved. INTRODUCTION There are many methods to start a saltwater aquarium--each major aquarium product manufacturer has its own. Common to most, however...

www.reef2reef.com

And yes - I introduce a fish day 2

Sincerely Lasse

Thank you Sir,

I do agree with your method more but I also see benifits of Vetteguy as well and the "holistic" approach is what I am after, so I may steal a bit of both your ways to create "The Duffy Process", lol. I like the idea of the CUC right away because I will have hitchhikers in the tank day 1 the rock goes in since it will be pulled right from the Ocean and delivered to my door. Yes I apoligze, the biomedia reactor I have will be used with pellets (I will wait for the tank to mature before starting). Fish will be introduced slowly as well as some softies. SPS and LPS I am going to wait on a bit just so I can get one facet down at a time.

 

[Mikey-D]

P.S. It's an honor and privlage to have both of you comment, I have checked out both of your threads and builds. Thank you very much.

 

[AngiGiles]

This may be somewhere, I'm probably not looking in the right spot. But I finally have a sump! I'd like to cure some dead rock.. I know it will leech things, is there some "standard" for how much you can add at once? And how long it takes to be ready for the display? Thanks in advance!

 

[vetteguy53081]

This may be somewhere, I'm probably not looking in the right spot. But I finally have a sump! I'd like to cure some dead rock.. I know it will leech things, is there some "standard" for how much you can add at once? And how long it takes to be ready for the display? Thanks in advance!

place in a tub or preferably brute type can with heater and circulation pump and add liquid bacteria such as Micro Bacter XLM and run for about 7-10 days and then put to use

 

[AngiGiles]

place in a tub or preferably brute type can with heater and circulation pump and add liquid bacteria such as Micro Bacter XLM and run for about 7-10 days and then put to use

Oh shoot, I meant to cure some pieces IN the sump.

 

[BillFish Coral Lover]

Agreed. Note: the longer the better.

 

[AngiGiles]

Agreed. Note: the longer the better.

Again, I'm asking about pieces I've put in to the sump, how long do they have to stay in there to be "ready" for the display.

 

[brandon429]

it does not matter where you place them at the start, they can easily go into the display. you're adding inert material that uptake a filtration biosystem because they're submerged/in contact with reef water. they don't have to begin with anything to take on the filtration capacity in about 20 days submersion time, or less.

there is no benefit to adding them into either the sump or display, the uglies are coming to them because they're not coated in coral, barnacles, coralline, coral and about ten years of maturation like good live rock would have.

and by the same token

in ten years if you want to remove these rocks, they're not a required portion of bacteria, they're still expendable you can remove them and your cycle does not become undone. extra rock is just extra rock, thats not core requirement rock. core requirement rock is about 30% of what you have, we're all about 70% over requirement for filtration in any reef display. live rock surface area is this powerful when fully accreted with reef animals (that's what increases it's surface area, every new poke and whorl)

 

[TonyHarper]

Sorry guys if I'm asking question already answered. I'm newbie. I just started 75g saltwater with live sand and 35 lbs of live rock bought at local retailer about 3 weeks ago. Added couple clown's this weekend. Numbers look good after 3-4 days. Three questions:
1. will this reduce cycling time because of the live sand and live rock?
2. Should I add a product like Dr. Tim's one and only to increase bacteria load?
3. Would I be ok to add a fish next weekend if numbers ok, or should I wait a couple weeks?
Thanks, Tony

 

[vetteguy53081]

Sorry guys if I'm asking question already answered. I'm newbie. I just started 75g saltwater with live sand and 35 lbs of live rock bought at local retailer about 3 weeks ago. Added couple clown's this weekend. Numbers look good after 3-4 days. Three questions:
1. will this reduce cycling time because of the live sand and live rock?
2. Should I add a product like Dr. Tim's one and only to increase bacteria load?
3. Would I be ok to add a fish next weekend if numbers ok, or should I wait a couple weeks?
Thanks, Tony

You want/wanted to add the bacteria before and not after. Live rock will help but you would want to verify Ammonia is steady at zero and nitrate steady at 20ppm or less in which you would have added ammonia chloride or a piece of shrimp to see numbers climb then come back down.
You will want to add no fish as this is considered rushing for at least 3-4 weeks to assure bacteria is keeping up with new BioLoad.
Cycling accomplished before fish introduction But feed sparingly and allow their waste to help with continued cycling event.
What test kits are you using ?

 

[brandon429]

Tony

here’s an exact thread for your setup

A thread tracking pure skip cycle instant reefs, no bottle bac

THE GOLDEN EXAMPLE OF A SKIP CYCLE DAY 1 REEF https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/octo-high-end-sps-skip-cycle-build.713256/ read that entire thread before you read ours. that's the heart of skip cycling. Everything we do going forward in this thread reflects on that ability above, in the #1...

www.reef2reef.com

- it will skip cycle, not quick cycle. Instant ready.
- yes you can add fish it’s ready
- don’t add bottle bac/redundant


35 pounds of rock carries its full bioload it doesn’t need ramp up. If you stock too fast you’ll get fish disease, not ammonia control issues, the rock is full power day one.

there is no testing required, we show, when the origin of the rock can be accounted for.


this thread we are reading from Brew isn’t about live rock skip cycling, that’s a separate kind of cycling we cover above uniquely with about thirty tank examples.

 

[kmarine]

Hello all,

Im new to the hobby and just started cycling my tank. I am using Dr.Tims ammonia and API quickstart. I'm on day 2 and my ammonia is 2.0ppm, nitrites 0, nitrates 0, pH 7.8. I'm following Dr.Tims instructions for a fishless cycle and for day 3 it says to add more ammonia. Since my ammonia is currently at 2.0, should I still do this or wait until it goes down?

Thank you!

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hello all,

Im new to the hobby and just started cycling my tank. I am using Dr.Tims ammonia and API quickstart. I'm on day 2 and my ammonia is 2.0ppm, nitrites 0, nitrates 0, pH 7.8. I'm following Dr.Tims instructions for a fishless cycle and for day 3 it says to add more ammonia. Since my ammonia is currently at 2.0, should I still do this or wait until it goes down?

Thank you!

Typically you want to add your bacteria and then ammonia chloride or a piece of shrimp (shrimp for 48 hours). Then you want to monitor ammonia , When your ammonia is steady at zero for 5 days and Nitrate is steady at 20 or below- You are cycled. Ignore nitrIte Unless sky high
The tank will go through two phases in which ammonia will rise then fall and nitrate will rise and fall which is normal. When fish are added, the bacteria population will increase with the new bio load, converting waste to nitrate.
Overloading tank with too many fish up front will exceed what the bacteria can handle which is why its best to stock fish slowly over the next few months so that the bacterial levels can adapt to the new loads