Noob cycling question-should I worry?

[Royalblue]

12g fluval edge
Start date 9-1-16
Live rock and sand
API saltwater water kit

This is my first time cycling a saltwater tank. Normally I do water tests to keep track of my cycling progress. However three days after I started this tank I had to abruptly go out of town.
My ammonia level was rising like I expected. 9-4-16 ammonia .25

On my return water test 9-12-16
Ammonia level .25
Nitrites 0
toped then off with RO water added some fish food for a few days thinking my cycling has stalled.

Yesterday 9-15-16 Water test
ammonia 0.25 or less
Nitrites 0
Nitrate. 5.0

Today 9-16-16 (Two saltwater kits later)
Ammonia 0
Nitrites 0
Nitrates 5.0 or less
A little light green algae on rocks and tons of Copepods. No brown algae in sand.
Am I doing something wrong? I'm consurned because with out knowing if my nitrites level went up. How will I know if it is cycling properly? Also when would you recomend a water change?

 

[FLAdaboy]

You are moving fast! I would avoid adding anything until your cycle has completed. There are products out there to help establish anaerobic bacteria in order to consume your nutrients. When you do add lovestock, I would avoid adding too much too fast. You have a smaller system so things change quickly because of that. Water changes can help, but if you haven't completely cycled your tank, waste will create ammonia that your system can't break down quick enough. Do you have a skimmer on your tank?

 

[brandon429]

did you have live rock, or dry white rock your were cycling just curious

 

[Royalblue]

I have Live Rock and sand.
I don't have a skimmer for this tank but I would if I knew how without making any major adjustments. It's a fluval edge 12.
My main purpose in setting this tank up is to eventually use it as quarantine tank and to also help start a larger saltwater tank that I will be setting up this December.

 

[Coastie Reefer]

Skimmer on a 12g is kinda overkill in my experience. Good weekly water changes are where it's at. I do 5g a week on my 10 simply because it's easy to fill a 5g bucket with tank water then pour in another 5g bucket of heated new saltwater. If you started with live rock you may not even have a cycle. The API test kit in my experience will read .25 every time if you let it sit long enough... You started on 9/1 and your levels are pretty flat... if you don't see nitr(I)tes by the end of next week I'd be of the opinion that your rock was already good to go with the necessary bacteria and you really never needed to cycle.

 

[FLAdaboy]

If you're using it as a QT, you would typically set it up as you need it. I have never ran a hospital or QT 24/7. You might also take into consideration the LR you use in a QT can never be put into a reef tank due to copper use. On that note, if a fish is sick, you give the parasite or bacteria a place to thrive if you create an environment. IMO, I would only set up a QT as needed.

 

[Coastie Reefer]

If you're using it as a QT, you would typically set it up as you need it. I have never ran a hospital or QT 24/7. You might also take into consideration the LR you use in a QT can never be put into a reef tank due to copper use. On that note, if a fish is sick, you give the parasite or bacteria a place to thrive if you create an environment. IMO, I would only set up a QT as needed.

Totally agree on the QT aspect. I keep filter floss and a sponge in my aquaclear. If I needed to setup a QT I'd just take it out and drop it in cheap hob filter from Walmart. You can hang that on a 10 gallon or even a 5 gallon bucket in a pinch and have an instant QT.

 

[tankstudy]

Am I doing something wrong?

Everything appears to be correct.

I'm consurned because with out knowing if my nitrites level went up. How will I know if it is cycling properly?

If you have enough of the nitrite converting bacteria, you may not actually see it go up. As fast as the ammonia bacteria convert ammonia in to nitrite, the nitrite consuming bacteria are converting it just as fast in to nitrate.

You can run a simple test using an ammonia source, sometimes called a digestion test here. I prefer to use ammonium chloride by Dr. Tim's because it has a known concentration. If it consumes the ammonium chloride -> nitrite -> nitrate within 24 hours, your tank is cycled. However, you may want to follow the instructions on Dr. Tim's site about dosing the ammonium chloride. I would recommend only dosing enough ammonium chloride to get your levels of ammonia to read less than or equal to 1 ppm. If your ammonia bacteria break down too much, too quickly driving nitrites to greater than or equal to 5 ppm of nitrite, your cycle will stall. The digestion test is also a good indicator of how much bacteria you have in your tank.

Also when would you recomend a water change?

I generally recommend doing a water change if your Nitrates are above 10 ppm. Some are fine with 10 ppm while some want 1 ppm or less. Just dilute the Nitrates to what you would prefer.

 

[brandon429]

http://reef2reef.com/threads/new-ta...d-cocktail-shrimp-live-rock-no-shrimp.214618/

The link states that the cycle we do for dry rock vs live rock is fully opposite, interesting you mentioned using live/group b from the thread.

 

[brandon429]

Ammonia was zero the whole time agreed

 

[Royalblue]

This has all been extramly helpful. I have been doing so much reading over the past few years about saltwater. To the point of being a little over whelmed with info. and tarified of making the plunge into saltwater.

I'm amazed with the response. Thank you!
Feeling relived