I am adding more dry rocks to my scape but, my tank is in the middle of cycling at the moment. I have done freshwater but not saltwater.
If I put new dry rocks in it will my nitrites spike and would I have to start the cycle again?
Welcome to the saltwater side! I also did freshwater before jumping into saltwater and have enjoyed both. I still keep both types of tanks, and each is great in its own way.
It would be great to have you answer the questions below, but in general, adding new, clean, dry rock to a cycling tank does not “restart” the cycle. Cycling, put simply, is the process of establishing enough beneficial nitrifying microbes in an aquarium to reliably convert toxic ammonia into nitrite and then into less toxic nitrate.
Adding
clean dry rock does not normally create a new ammonia source, so by itself it should not cause a significant ammonia/nitrite/nitrate spike. What it does create is additional surface area for the existing microbial community to colonize (it is the opposite of live rock). That colonization will happen gradually as the tank matures. Accordingly, the new rock may also go through some of the normal early-tank ecological succession—the so-called “ugly stage”—as organisms colonize its surfaces.
- What is the size of your tank, and what other equipment or filtration are you using?
- How long has your tank been cycling?
- What are your parameters right now, e.g., ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate?
- What else is currently in the tank?
- What kind of sand and rock are you using?
