New scape = new cycle?

f8thless · Mar 31, 2021

Hey guys, I'm debating on changing out my scape and replacing it with Carbisea Life Rock.

My only worry is that it'll cause some sort of cycling or ugly phases (diatoms, algae problems, etc).

Could you guys please advise and let me know if you think I'll have any issues or ugly phases?

Thanks!

Mr. Mojo Rising · Mar 31, 2021

I would suggest to do it very slowly, a rock at a time, to avoid any issue. Basically you are removing rock with beneficial bacteria and replacing with rock that has no beneficial bacteria

f8thless · Mar 31, 2021

Thanks! I have bio bricks in the sump. Would that suffice in avoiding any outbreaks?

Like would these rocks leech out phosphates or silicates?

Azedenkae · Mar 31, 2021

f8thless said:
Hey guys, I'm debating on changing out my scape and replacing it with Carbisea Life Rock.

My only worry is that it'll cause some sort of cycling or ugly phases (diatoms, algae problems, etc).

Could you guys please advise and let me know if you think I'll have any issues or ugly phases?

Thanks!

If you replace it all at once then yes it may be a new cycle, especially since Caribsea Life Rock is dry rock and so you are essentially starting from scratch with culturing your nitrifiers. Not quite because you may have other things in your tank housing nitrifiers, but effectively yeah, a straight up replacement is probably not a good idea. Even if you have other biomedia, a lot of your nitrifiers may live in your old live rock anyways, so yeah.

I'd suggest the same thing as @LordofCinder, swap over slowly, one rock at a time. You can I suppose add all the Life Rock at once and once they house enough beneficial microbes, slowly take out your old rock instead.