Cycling Question 60 Gallon Tank

[tech_reefer]

Hi,

So I started to cycle my tank September 16 and I added some Fritz Turbo Start 900 that was for 100 gallons my tank is roughly 60 gallons minus the rock and other media. I haven’t done a water change and I use Brighwell ammonia. I have some fish coming tomorrow. What can I do to make it easy for them to finished up the cycle?

 

[brandon429]

That's a done cycle it's ready now for them but you're breaking disease protocol as the real risk to them

Even if these fish are qt prepped, you'll need to fallow prep all the corals coming in, anything wet can bring in fish disease. The cycle isn't an issue that's two day bacteria given more than two days

 

[LBCBJ]

What’s your concern? I’m seeing nitrite near 0 and ammonia of ~0.50ppm. When did you last add ammonia and how much? Have you ever had a positive nitrite reading? (Guessing yes based on your nitrate).

Depending on those answers, not sure your tank is fully cycled.

I just finished my cycle also using Fritz and Brightwell quikcycle. It took 14 days to fully cycle and I added a round of Bio-Spira around 10 days in as I thought my cycle had stalled (more in my tank build).

Worst case, it never hurts to have an extra bottle of Fritz/Bio-Spira/Dr Tim’s to add and even ammonia remover if you get in a pinch or need it during acclimation.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Hi,

So I started to cycle my tank September 16 and I added some Fritz Turbo Start 900 that was for 100 gallons my tank is roughly 60 gallons minus the rock and other media. I haven’t done a water change and I use Brighwell ammonia. I have some fish coming tomorrow. What can I do to make it easy for them to finished up the cycle?

How many fish? It looks like the tank *might* be *nearly* cycled, but a significant increase in bioload may overwhelm your biofilter (aka the ammonia and nitrite processing bacteria).

 

[Spare time]

I always like to add an extra bottle of biospira when the fish arrive as a just in case measure. However, 0 nitrite would make me believe the ammonia is actually just a testing error since nitrite should dissapear last unless you added more ammonia. However, as brandon mentioned, if the fish are not quarentined, I would set up a QT tank as soon as you possibly can (with a very oversized fritz turbo or biospira). If you choose not to QT the fish (which is a risk), consider at least doing a treatment of prazipro in tank since flukes are extremely common imo.

 

[tech_reefer]

What’s your concern? I’m seeing nitrite near 0 and ammonia of ~0.50ppm. When did you last add ammonia and how much? Have you ever had a positive nitrite reading? (Guessing yes based on your nitrate).

Depending on those answers, not sure your tank is fully cycled.

I just finished my cycle also using Fritz and Brightwell quikcycle. It took 14 days to fully cycle and I added a round of Bio-Spira around 10 days in.

Worst case, it never hurts to have an extra bottle of Fritz/Bio-Spira/Dr Tim’s to add and even ammonia remover if you get in a pinch or need it during acclimation.

My concern is whether the clownfish will be okay to ride out the cycling. I added the ammonia on September 16 after leaving it alone

 

[tech_reefer]

How many fish? It looks like the tank *might* be *nearly* cycled, but a significant increase in bioload may overwhelm your biofilter (aka the ammonia and nitrite processing bacteria).

Just two small clownfish will be in the tank for two months no more fish for the time being

 

[brandon429]

I clearly covered this is a done cycle, with no other details needed.

here's forty pages of practice, and this is just one thread. there's about ten of these:

How to unstick any seemingly stuck cycle

non digital ammonia test kit readings (api, Red Sea, nyos, seachem badges) make you think you aren’t cycled when indeed you are if you owned a $200 expensive seneye meter, you’d never be doubting your cycle status. since .01% of the reefing population owns these, we need a way to help the...

www.reef2reef.com

number of cycles not done by day ten: 3 years worth of 0%

nobody here had a 14 day cycle

they just had a 14 day cycle on a non-seneye test, which isn't really 14 days. this thread we're posting in has already been seen hundreds of times, see the study above about predicted cycle timing. it's not that we are bad at predicting cycle completion dates, it's that we are 100% spot on every time and there's the tanks above to peruse for outcome details

did their stuff live or die

 

[brandon429]

Fritz works in one day. see any study thread on it. see Dr. Reef's thread on it. those test kits above didn't register a one-day completion because that's beyond the capability of api, but not for seneye or any controlled study.

when it comes to carrying initial tank life added, that's easy to predict. see the work above, this thread today was easy / that's a really clear api ammonia reading above even with it's inherent delay and misread potential. no need to reverify

did we reverify or hesitate or stumble on any single cycle in that entire thread? no reason to start today. doubt has no place in updated cycling science, we show by link and forty pages of work on the matter.

 

[tech_reefer]

Dude you are right I read the article and it seem that the ammonia was done. I retested today and ammonia is zero with .50 ppm nitrite and 5 ppm nitrate. Should I do a small water change and add some Seachem prime?

 

[brclark82]

You’re done, no need for prime…a water change is fine if you want but also not necessary

 

[brandon429]

agreed

per separate article in the chem forum: prime doesn't remove ammonia it's been an unverified claim for twenty years until that article from Taricha. there's literally no action to take regarding testing, verifying anything, the cycle is done simply begin reefing.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Dude you are right I read the article and it seem that the ammonia was done. I retested today and ammonia is zero with .50 ppm nitrite and 5 ppm nitrate. Should I do a small water change and add some Seachem prime?

Prime will do nothing.

 

[tech_reefer]

I did a water change

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

I did a water change

Ammonia level?

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

I did a water change

If you have no ammonia and measurable nitrates, your tank is ready for 1 or 2 fish. Happy reefing!

 

[tech_reefer]

Ammonia is zero

 

[brandon429]

ok all set to proceed, no more cycle verification testing needed. now you just add life. ammonia doesn't run zero in stocked reefs, it runs low positive levels. part of you stopping the cycle testing is not hesitating over an expected positive read in the future, easily searched on google with key terms "api false reef tank ammonia reading" which generates four hundred thousand pages showing those tests mislead vs lead when overconsulted.

you're cycled because of # of days underwater, that test had nothing to do with it. on another thread it's darker than above: that tank is cycled too.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Ammonia is zero

See my next post

 

[brandon429]

a heads up from the industry

the seller's industry: they have a different cycling approach than buyers do

buyers are trained (by forum cycling peers and youtube videos) to doubt + fear cycling bacteria in water as unable, and to buy multiple bottles of bacteria or just wait extra arbitrary weeks adding multiple supports for cost in order to get a perfect reading of zero (post cycle tanks don't run zero, so that's a beneficial habit for the seller's to receive from buyers)

sellers who manage large fish shipments in and out, such as Dr. Reef's quarantined fish, simply take fritz and dump it in a large holding vat for expensive fish and they stay in there a long time

they don't test for anything, because it's not needed. sellers are completely confident in cycling and cycle times

I knew you weren't going to try and carry fifteen hundred dollars in fish on the first pass, that was factored into your cycle timeline we used confidently to call your cycle done. your api test kits weren't factored, although they happen to agree this time. this thread we're in would be much more fun if your ammonia was darker green, everyone would be 1000% sure the bacteria were dead/the bottle was dead

and that's the trained difference between sellers and buyers. sellers can make a cycle call knowing nothing about your system other than a couple points of information, without testing at all. what bac you used and how long it's been in the water are the two confirmation points here, that's sellers angling.

most of the 'rules' about cycling are written by direct bottle bac sellers. that's why you have people who factor nitrite into a marine cycle (we don't need to know it) and that's why you expect zero ammonia before accepting a cycle is done, it's that doubt training that's permeated the hobby. sellers never doubt, they command a cycle, they skip cycles. you are ten days wait past how long it takes fritz to carry fish in a new setup.