Fishless cycle completing....what's proper refugium startup?

[coreytrv]

How should I rollout process of stocking system with life?

About a 5 weeks into fishless cycling.
500 gallon system volume.
Refugium
Dr. Tim's and Fritz Turbo Start added weeks ago.

12-21-24 dosed mathematically to 2.00 ppm ammonia chloride. (didn't test to verify 2ppm, just went on volume)
12-23-24 ammonia at .25 ppm.

So it looks like cycle is nearing completion!

My question is:

What's best way to start stocking the system?

Fish + Refugium same time?
Seed refugium first?
Fish First, then Chaeto?

Would like to start getting Chaeto + help with nitrate / phosphates...BUT PO4 currently at 0

Add fish, start feeding, but no refugium yet, I risk PO4 jumping up with nothing to bring it down?

 

[PotatoPig]

Fish first. Maybe in parallel with whatever you’re going to put into your refugium.

If you stock the refugium first any macro will probably just die because it has no nutrients.

I wouldn’t worry about climbing phosphates until you add corals, which would be better added after the fish system has stabilized and the tank biome has had time to develop. This period of fish/invert only will give any macro plenty of time to grow with any nutrient load.