Really? Tank cycled in 7 days with Brightwell Quick cycle and Microbacter XLM

charlie28

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 6, 2009
Messages
153
Reaction score
142
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Can this be true? Just setup a custom 205 gallon, added saltwater at 1.020 at 79 degrees. then let it settle for about two hours before adding Brightwells microbacter quick cycle and XLM last Friday 12/11. After another 2 hours, tested the ammonia at 2ppm as directed. What I did not do due to my work schedule was test on the 3-4 day to catch the nitrite spike supposedly. So yesterday, 12/17 I tested, and ammonia and nitrite read 0 and nitrate at 5ppm using a redsea marine test kit. FYI. Prior to the initial tank start up, I did cycle dead rock in a brute can maybe for at least 3-4 months with a circulating pump and heater, but here's the kicker... I wanted to cement my aqua scape together so I ended up taking all the rock out and leaving it out for a couple weeks (I know, what a waste). So after I cemented my aquascape, the rock went into a 110 gallon rubbermaid stock tank with the old water transferred from the brute can. Left the circulating pump and heater on, I also took my water change from existing system and dumped into the stock tank to somewhat think i could add to the cycle process. A week later I bought 5 chromis and let them live in there, feeding pellets every other day. I probably did that for maybe 2-3 weeks before adding the rock into the new system. Out of the 5 chromis, one lived, I think it was due to the cold weather and the 125 watt eheim couldn't keep up.

Anyways, today 12/18 Friday.. I just tested all 3 again ammonia, nitrite and nitrates with the same results Ammonia and nitrites at 0 and nitrates at 5-7 ppm. If this is true, I'm blown away, I have never cycled a tank this quick. Taking a friends advice a moment ago, I'm going to dose another round of of the quick cycle to 1-2ppm, wait an hour to confirm the 1-2ppm then probably test again saturday and sunday, If by sunday ammonia reads zero, Ill believe that this product and method to be true. Thoughts ?
 

joseserrano

2500 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
Jul 1, 2014
Messages
3,330
Reaction score
1,613
Location
Santa ana, CA
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Yes. You may still have some algae’s and stuff pop up, but this will be based on how quickly you add to the bio load
 

Pearse73

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Mar 19, 2020
Messages
44
Reaction score
58
Location
Belfast
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Form my limited knowledge, yes. I used XLM and ammonium chloride and it cycled in 10 days. I also used the products with live sand which Brightwell claims is a no no. It still worked.
 
OP
OP
C

charlie28

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 6, 2009
Messages
153
Reaction score
142
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
F3F6047C-3B9D-46DE-A0CE-D9238BBF33DA.jpeg

A91EA3A2-3D8A-4102-98C6-9430DC83C600.jpeg
466F85C1-1297-4DE9-BE0E-1ED7BEB17C2E.jpeg


These test were taken yesterday 12/18/2020. Ammonia and nitrite are clearly a zero with nitrates hovering around 6-8ppm.


D3385F1D-0955-4B48-9ECD-58F743D48F31.jpeg


The picture above: after the test, l dosed another 20ml of the brightwell Quick cycle ammonia and it gave a reading of approximately 0.9-1ppm. I’ll do another test today 12/19 to see where the ammonia is at, hopefully the bacteria will do it’s job and clear it up. This will reinsure me that the tank cycle is complete.

My only concern is the nitrates, after following the directions of brightwell’s quick cycle; it says if nitrates are at 25ppm or slightly higher, the tank is cycled and may proceed to a 25% water change. As the result of the nitrate test, at most is about 6-8ppm of nitrate. This is what boggles me that my tank is completely cycled.
1. Without a bioload or any type of food in the tank, will I ever see that 25ppm as stated per the directions?
2. If my nitrates stay at 0.5-1ppm, do I need to still do a water change?

Any feed back is always greatly appreciated.
 

Peter A

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Jan 3, 2016
Messages
68
Reaction score
24
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Welcome to 2020 and new tank cycling technologies. I started cycling my new tank last week and hope it is done in the couple of days.
 

brandon429

why did you put a reef in that
View Badges
Joined
Dec 9, 2014
Messages
29,485
Reaction score
23,570
Location
tejas
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
this tank here was cycled a while back, so today = good to go. The minor variances in the nitrates, bottom end ammonia readings, and certainly nitrite wont factor at all, this reef can start.

that standout detail about how the rocks were inoculated before even considering the bottle bac was the hinge vote, the bottled bac (which has its directions met for number of days underwater) was mere extra.
 

LeftyReefer

2500 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
Jun 17, 2020
Messages
2,535
Reaction score
2,821
Location
Saginaw
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
My tank only took 5 days to cycle.... I didn't add any fish for several additional weeks, but it only took 5 days to be able to process 2ppm ammonia down to 0 over night.
I used Turbo Start 900 and Bio-Spira. dosed with Dr. Tim's Ammonia Chloride.
 

TheDallasCollector

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Nov 3, 2019
Messages
89
Reaction score
98
Location
Dallas, Texas
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
that standout detail about how the rocks were inoculated before even considering the bottle bac was the hinge vote, the bottled bac (which has its directions met for number of days underwater) was mere extra.

I'm a noob but this sounds important so tell me if I'm understanding this correctly: you started with dry (not live), and then bought a bottle of the special tank-starting bacteria, and then you're water and rocks were ready for fish and corals in just a weeks? I'll have my brand new 250 gallon tank and 100 gallon sump before the new year and I was planning on 6 - 9 months before I was there. Thanks @brandon429 !
 

brandon429

why did you put a reef in that
View Badges
Joined
Dec 9, 2014
Messages
29,485
Reaction score
23,570
Location
tejas
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
That’s close summary but there’s one adjust, these actions done before adding bottle bac on 12/11 had his rocks ready:

‘So after I cemented my aquascape, the rock went into a 110 gallon rubbermaid stock tank with the old water transferred from the brute can. Left the circulating pump and heater on, I also took my water change from existing system and dumped into the stock tank to somewhat think i could add to the cycle process. A week later I bought 5 chromis and let them live in there, feeding pellets every other day. I probably did that for maybe 2-3 weeks before adding the rock into the new system’


the old tank water brought in lots of bacteria, both reef water and surfaces have plenty of bacteria to share. he added fish which import cycling bacteria on skin slime layers ( several species run ammonia oxidation, they’re stuck to everything wet, fish also vector in dinos attached to skin the high res pics are on reefcentral in DNA’s huge dino thread) and the added fish feed the existing bacteria by waste. Along with food pellets providing carbon for it all. The bacteria added by bottle were masked in action by the preps on the rock, they were cycled in the brute.

those rocks sat there in prep matching the ammonia control timeline from any cycling chart.

on the flip side, if he didn’t do the pre work the bacteria used might not have cycled as fast. its trending to be slower among brands cycling posts show


i recommend bio spira cycling bacteria or fritz if the initial preps aren’t ran. Theyre tracked to be much faster cycling.

*controlling ammonia is easy
the problem in dry rock systems is dinos, cloudy water due to phosphate curing out while we are stocking corals, and fish disease challenges. Controlling ammonia is the easy part.
 
Last edited:

blasterman

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Feb 14, 2019
Messages
1,730
Reaction score
2,018
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I vote for waiting a couple days, dosing with ammonia and just making sure it flatlines fast. Doesn't hurt to be sure.

These next generation bacteria in a bottle products are getting a lot better due to better research into bacteria colonization.

One thing we need to discuss here, or perhaps a dedicated thread is once you start seeing nitrate if it makes sense to dose something like Vibrant to get a head start on the tank uglies. If we're going to dose nitrogen cycle bacteria it would seem to follow logical course to dose post cycle bacteria to give them a head start as well. Basic cycling is easy. We're just in a hurry. Those two to four months after the tank is cycled are far less predictable and costly if things go the wrong direction.
 

TheDallasCollector

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Nov 3, 2019
Messages
89
Reaction score
98
Location
Dallas, Texas
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
i recommend bio spira cycling bacteria or fritz if the initial preps aren’t ran. Theyre tracked to be much faster cycling.

Got it thanks for breaking it down for me. I’m starting from scratch with no seasoned water so it sounds like I should get ahold of the Fritz stuff. ✌
 
OP
OP
C

charlie28

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 6, 2009
Messages
153
Reaction score
142
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Hey everyone, so to add to my cycle, I added the left over 20 ml content of ammonia left in the brightwell quick cycle bottle which in my last picture brought the ammonia back to approximately .9 -1 ppm (12/19). The following day after 24 hours (12/20), the ammonia test results brought the reading back down to .2ppm, I did not bother testing nitrite at the time. I was not able to test the next day but did end up testing on tuesday (12/22) and had test results of 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite and nitrates to approximately 10-13ppm. Take note that after the second and final re-dose of the ammonia, the tank water went cloudy, I guess after the depletion of the ammonia, the water began to clear once again.

I also want to mention, after the test last night, I tossed in a few pellets to see if any readings of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates come up or change. I'll be testing later this evening and report back here with my findings. If all is well, and test readings are where they need to be, Ill be adding my first couple fish this weekend.

@brandon429 If my ammonia / nitrites are zero and my nitrates come up around 10ppm, is it advisableto still do a 25% water change?
 
OP
OP
C

charlie28

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 6, 2009
Messages
153
Reaction score
142
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
01EF0781-B2C4-417E-BC5A-735533DF3048.jpeg
2D9AA695-99C8-4E4C-AC01-39B23A3565AC.jpeg


To document, these were my test results taken on 12/22/20.
 

Attachments

  • 6055277C-CBC9-447F-B8C8-F9A056A5106F.jpeg
    6055277C-CBC9-447F-B8C8-F9A056A5106F.jpeg
    136.5 KB · Views: 36

brandon429

why did you put a reef in that
View Badges
Joined
Dec 9, 2014
Messages
29,485
Reaction score
23,570
Location
tejas
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I feel you can skip the water change and proceed, the system oxidizes your ammonia within spec and within times we expect, sharp cycle here all set

on nano reefs we always do a total change out, but for large systems if you haven’t dosed ammonia a bunch then there won’t be tons of algae fuel in the water so it’s fine, a little nitrate above is a fraction of what Paul B runs in his full reef: 100+ ppm nitrate at all times.

important to note: this recent ammonia test wasn’t needed, and neither is any future ones, the cycle was done when the rocks left the brute. We aren’t still assessing a potentially closed cycle, its done. Future testing is redundant, not needed, but not harmful, this tank will be able to handle ammonia as long as is kept wet now. If your tests read in any way to cause cycle doubt, thats expected. The reliable clue is lowering of ammonia from the dosed set point, thats where the nh3 test is right. What nitrite and trate say wont apply to cause any future cycle doubt
 
Last edited:

Galliente

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Dec 9, 2020
Messages
77
Reaction score
39
Location
San Diego
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Can this be true? Just setup a custom 205 gallon, added saltwater at 1.020 at 79 degrees. then let it settle for about two hours before adding Brightwells microbacter quick cycle and XLM last Friday 12/11. After another 2 hours, tested the ammonia at 2ppm as directed. What I did not do due to my work schedule was test on the 3-4 day to catch the nitrite spike supposedly. So yesterday, 12/17 I tested, and ammonia and nitrite read 0 and nitrate at 5ppm using a redsea marine test kit. FYI. Prior to the initial tank start up, I did cycle dead rock in a brute can maybe for at least 3-4 months with a circulating pump and heater, but here's the kicker... I wanted to cement my aqua scape together so I ended up taking all the rock out and leaving it out for a couple weeks (I know, what a waste). So after I cemented my aquascape, the rock went into a 110 gallon rubbermaid stock tank with the old water transferred from the brute can. Left the circulating pump and heater on, I also took my water change from existing system and dumped into the stock tank to somewhat think i could add to the cycle process. A week later I bought 5 chromis and let them live in there, feeding pellets every other day. I probably did that for maybe 2-3 weeks before adding the rock into the new system. Out of the 5 chromis, one lived, I think it was due to the cold weather and the 125 watt eheim couldn't keep up.

Anyways, today 12/18 Friday.. I just tested all 3 again ammonia, nitrite and nitrates with the same results Ammonia and nitrites at 0 and nitrates at 5-7 ppm. If this is true, I'm blown away, I have never cycled a tank this quick. Taking a friends advice a moment ago, I'm going to dose another round of of the quick cycle to 1-2ppm, wait an hour to confirm the 1-2ppm then probably test again saturday and sunday, If by sunday ammonia reads zero, Ill believe that this product and method to be true. Thoughts ?
Just cycled my tank with microbacter as well. I gave it 2 weeks before putting anything in. But the readings remained stable for me from week 1 thru 2.

I am getting a very minor diatom bloom a week after adding my first fish. About 21 days after starting the cycle, But I assume my cuc will handle that when I introduce them this weekend.
 
OP
OP
C

charlie28

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 6, 2009
Messages
153
Reaction score
142
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I feel you can skip the water change and proceed, the system oxidizes your ammonia within spec and within times we expect, sharp cycle here all set

on nano reefs we always do a total change out, but for large systems if you haven’t dosed ammonia a bunch then there won’t be tons of algae fuel in the water so it’s fine, a little nitrate above is a fraction of what Paul B runs in his full reef: 100+ ppm nitrate at all times.

important to note: this recent ammonia test wasn’t needed, and neither is any future ones, the cycle was done when the rocks left the brute. We aren’t still assessing a potentially closed cycle, its done. Future testing is redundant, not needed, but not harmful, this tank will be able to handle ammonia as long as is kept wet now. If your tests read in any way to cause cycle doubt, thats expected. The reliable clue is lowering of ammonia from the dosed set point, thats where the nh3 test is right. What nitrite and trate say wont apply to cause any future cycle doubt
@brandon429 Thanks for the insight. But the only reason I dosed ammonia again we reassurance. Although I did cycle the rocks in a brute container for about 3-4 months, those rocks were not structured together in other words cemented to build my aqua scape. So I ended up removing the rocks from the brute container to build my aqua scape, so in essence the rock dried out again while cementing my structures. After all was complete and cemented, The three separate island style rock structures went into the 110 gallon rubbermaid stock tank. This is why I felt that long cycle in the brute container was a waste but I had no other ideas or choice per se'. My doubt was by putting the structures into the rubbermaid stock tank, would the cycle take longer? At this point, I guess I had no choice but let the reef run its course. Once I started the cycle with bottle bac and being my first time doing it this way, I was going to accept a 1 month cycle. This is the main reason why I started this thread, hence my title of it. In my eyes, bottle back and ammonia to complete a tank cycle within two weeks is amazing to me. And for the record I have used Dr. Tims methods in the past with other tanks but never completed a cycle this quick. Although I did let the rock dry out again, there couldnt have been bacteria that live dry during the cementing process? By me putting the rock into the 110 stock tank, could bacteria have populte the rock that quick? Prior to setting the structures into the display tank, the rock was in the stock tank for about 3-4 weeks.
 

Ljshelby

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Nov 22, 2020
Messages
94
Reaction score
23
Location
Campbell river
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
This was a grate review! This was my first time trying brightwell cycle and two weeks in my ammonia has finally dropped now just waiting on nitrite. My question is can i start adding some live rock from my other sump into my new tank without causing any problems? I know the requirements are to use dry sand and rock and so i did but was hoping to speed things up a bit with transferring from my three year tank. Thanks
 

Mastering the art of locking and unlocking water pathways: What type of valves do you have on your aquarium plumbing?

  • Ball valves.

    Votes: 33 52.4%
  • Gate valves.

    Votes: 35 55.6%
  • Check valves.

    Votes: 13 20.6%
  • None.

    Votes: 14 22.2%
  • Other.

    Votes: 5 7.9%
Back
Top