New to saltwater

helen ann · Aug 3, 2016

BradH · Aug 3, 2016

Here's a picture from this morning, I think the camera makes it look a little darker than it really was looked to be zero to the eye

BradH · Aug 3, 2016

Think I might of missed the cycle? This is my nitrate test I just did to see if it happen to show anything and by the looks of it it does show 10 ppm.thanks everyone for the help it's greatly appreciated

Brandon42 · Aug 3, 2016

i wouldnt call it cycled just yet. patience is everything right now. and even if you did "skip" your cycle you still need to give the tank time to build on the bacteria that is already present. even with live rock from the beginning i would wait a week or two at least before adding anything.

BradH · Aug 3, 2016

Brandon42 said:
i wouldnt call it cycled just yet. patience is everything right now. and even if you did "skip" your cycle you still need to give the tank time to build on the bacteria that is already present. even with live rock from the beginning i would wait a week or two at least before adding anything.

Thanks for the response I just thought it was weird to see zero ammonia zero nitrites and have some nitrates. I'll start putting some fish food in like they said earlier to help out with everything.

Brandon42 · Aug 3, 2016

BradH said:
Thanks for the response I just thought it was weird to see zero ammonia zero nitrites and have some nitrates. I'll start putting some fish food in like they said earlier to help out with everything.

well being that you used live rock and sand it is possible to skip your cycle but that doesnt mean you have a large enough bacteria population to support a bio load of any kind yet. being the tank is still so new you have plenty of swings to look forward to lol. you could also get a bottle of liquid bacteria to help boost the process but with the live rock and sand if those readings stay consistent you should be okay in a week or two. see if a LFS can check to your water to compare to your test.

Bronc · Aug 3, 2016

Welcome aboard!!

Tautog · Aug 3, 2016

Welcome to R2R, take your time, watch, watch, and watch some more.

ReefToLive1 · Aug 4, 2016

Looking Good, Patience is so hard sometimes isn't it?

BradH · Aug 4, 2016

ReefToLive1 said:
Looking Good, Patience is so hard sometimes isn't it?

Thanks. And yes it is but I'm willing to wait as long as needed to be sure the fish will be in a good environment.

Sharvey103 · Aug 4, 2016

Welcome to R2R. We all continue to learn every day in this hobby, please don't be afraid to ask questions. You can also use a little ammonium chloride to cycle the tank.

BradH · Aug 6, 2016

Looks like I'm starting to get some diatoms?

BradH · Aug 6, 2016

Also can anyone tell me what this is I found it in the live rock I have a video that's better but it won't let me upload it

BummersReef · Aug 7, 2016

You will get a wide variety of opinions as there are many different ways to start - but you seem thoughtful and patient so you already doing it right. You'll have lots of fun scanning the rock and watching it get all kinds of interesting things.

Chrisfish · Aug 7, 2016

Welcome, I really like your rockscape, as others have said this hobby is very addicting. Your patience is awesome! There are lots of very helpful people here and you came to the right place:)

BradH · Aug 7, 2016

Chrisfish said:
Welcome, I really like your rockscape, as others have said this hobby is very addicting. Your patience is awesome! There are lots of very helpful people here and you came to the right place:)

Thanks I tried to give them plenty of ledges and cubbies to get in I think it turned out pretty good for such a little tank lol