Mini cycle? Bad tests? Please try to help me figure out whats going on.

[Fishbike13]

the sole cause of your condition is hands off reefing, it will be so easy to just clean it into compliance you'll really appreciate the quick turnaround vs the wait, for sure.

Maybe im not understanding what you are saying, but it sounds like you want me to change the non polluted water out for more new non polluted water?
And coralline wont grow because none has been introduced to the tank yet, so i dont think any amount of changing water will help that.

 

[Fishbike13]

So im starting off by doing a little bit of everything thats been suggested so far. I took the rocks out, gave them a good scrub in a bucket of new salt water, and put them back in. Discovered how difficult it is to get an aquascape back into the same shape as before. I also removed the majority of the matrix i had in the sump, the rock and sand in both the sump and DT should be plenty of surface area for the current (and future) bioload.

I will test again tomorrow for any presence of nitrate, and then start dosing KNO3 just to get NO3 to 2-3ppm while the bioload catches up from the additional feedings. Do I need to reduce the photoperiod?

This whole ordeal is a bummer, i was planning on taking a trip to OSA and grabbing a handful of new frags to add to the tank. guess it will have to wait.

 

[Fishbike13]

Began dosing neonitro today to bring NO3 up to 2ppm. NeoPhos should be showing up today so i can raise the phosphate above zero. Should i be aiming for something between 0-1ppm?

Also added a royal gramma yesterday who seems to be adjusting well. So now the bioload is up to 2 small oscellaris, 1 royal gramma, 1 cleaner shrimp, and 20 or so dwarf ceriths, 2 astrea snails, and 3 nasarrius snails.

Will the elevated nutrients alone be enough to kill off the dinos? Or am i aiming to grow hair algae or some other form of algae to physically block them out? can coral growth be used to out compete them?