Northlandboy
New Member
Hi all,
Posting here as a new member, and like many new posters, I have an immediate question that I can't quite seem to find through the countless threads posting 'similar' questions; so my apologies for any redundancy.
I set up a new 75 gal salt water tank 4 weeks ago, with 20 gal sump. sump has filter floss, several pounds of ceramic media, lettuce macro algae and jar of 5280 copepods dumped in. The tank has 150# dead coral (prior live rock that was cured then stored dry for 2+ years), with 40lbs of argonite live sand, along with some additional live sand from my 15 gal tank that is 3+ years old, and has no detectible levels of anything bad.
I added 1/3 bottle of bacteria cycle starter upon setting tank up, and also added 1 hermit crab to keep the nitro cycle working. Tank sat like that for 3 weeks.
I added another 1/3 of bottle of the bacteria starter to the tank, and added the 3 fish from my small tank (10" excavator gobi, and 2 clown fish) along with a few small snails.
I tested the tank the next day, and I had .5ppm ammonia. I then added the rest of the bacteria bottle, and also picked up two additional bacteria bottles from walmart in a pinch, and added those bottles over two days as well (read many forums stating that you can't add too much live bacteria).
fish see very happy, and clowns are acting like romantic mates, something I have never seen them do prior. However the ammonia level on both test kits I have (Salifert and API) read .5ppm ammonia at all times over the last 10 days. I hooked up the canister tank filter from my 15 gal tank, for added help (as it's established) for last 48 hours, but levels keep at .5ppm ammonia.
Nothing else tests on any level (Nitrate/nitrite).
PH holding at approx 8.4. temp is 77. salinity is .023
I know the age old saying of patience is always a factor in new tanks, but I just want to know if there is anything i can do at this point (other than taking fish out and putting in old tank) to help here.
Or is the .5ppm ammonia OK in the short term, provided I don't have any spikes?
I ordered Fritz 900 bacteria, as I read it's the 'best' in class cycle starter.
My 'hunch' here, is that the old rock (which I purchased from a kind old guy that stopped his fish tank long ago and stored the rock in a 55 gal can) may have had some old bio inside that died long ago, and that there may simply be a lot of old bio that is being cycled beyond just the fish poo.
I am trying to keep feeding to a bare minimum for now. I added two air stones to sump for added aeration.
Yes, I realize that setting a tank up for 60 + days and cycling without fish is optimal, and that I can't rush things. I have always set up tanks with the bottle starter with good luck, so I know that perhaps I relied a bit heavily on the bottle solution here, but just looking for other thoughts beyond the 'I rushed it' response. Any other thoughts as to why the level stays at .5ppm, but does not go up or down at all?
Thanks all! -the forums and wealth of knowledge on here is awesome.
Posting here as a new member, and like many new posters, I have an immediate question that I can't quite seem to find through the countless threads posting 'similar' questions; so my apologies for any redundancy.
I set up a new 75 gal salt water tank 4 weeks ago, with 20 gal sump. sump has filter floss, several pounds of ceramic media, lettuce macro algae and jar of 5280 copepods dumped in. The tank has 150# dead coral (prior live rock that was cured then stored dry for 2+ years), with 40lbs of argonite live sand, along with some additional live sand from my 15 gal tank that is 3+ years old, and has no detectible levels of anything bad.
I added 1/3 bottle of bacteria cycle starter upon setting tank up, and also added 1 hermit crab to keep the nitro cycle working. Tank sat like that for 3 weeks.
I added another 1/3 of bottle of the bacteria starter to the tank, and added the 3 fish from my small tank (10" excavator gobi, and 2 clown fish) along with a few small snails.
I tested the tank the next day, and I had .5ppm ammonia. I then added the rest of the bacteria bottle, and also picked up two additional bacteria bottles from walmart in a pinch, and added those bottles over two days as well (read many forums stating that you can't add too much live bacteria).
fish see very happy, and clowns are acting like romantic mates, something I have never seen them do prior. However the ammonia level on both test kits I have (Salifert and API) read .5ppm ammonia at all times over the last 10 days. I hooked up the canister tank filter from my 15 gal tank, for added help (as it's established) for last 48 hours, but levels keep at .5ppm ammonia.
Nothing else tests on any level (Nitrate/nitrite).
PH holding at approx 8.4. temp is 77. salinity is .023
I know the age old saying of patience is always a factor in new tanks, but I just want to know if there is anything i can do at this point (other than taking fish out and putting in old tank) to help here.
Or is the .5ppm ammonia OK in the short term, provided I don't have any spikes?
I ordered Fritz 900 bacteria, as I read it's the 'best' in class cycle starter.
My 'hunch' here, is that the old rock (which I purchased from a kind old guy that stopped his fish tank long ago and stored the rock in a 55 gal can) may have had some old bio inside that died long ago, and that there may simply be a lot of old bio that is being cycled beyond just the fish poo.
I am trying to keep feeding to a bare minimum for now. I added two air stones to sump for added aeration.
Yes, I realize that setting a tank up for 60 + days and cycling without fish is optimal, and that I can't rush things. I have always set up tanks with the bottle starter with good luck, so I know that perhaps I relied a bit heavily on the bottle solution here, but just looking for other thoughts beyond the 'I rushed it' response. Any other thoughts as to why the level stays at .5ppm, but does not go up or down at all?
Thanks all! -the forums and wealth of knowledge on here is awesome.
