Six weeks post cycling….

[spamvicious]

These are my current test results. I’m struggling to get the nitrates down and not sure how to lower phosphate?. I’ve been dosing calcium and magnesium and alk.

Fluval 13.5
1 cleaner shrimp
1 cardinal fish
4 snails

Toadstool
Gsp
Kenya tree
Mushrooms
Zoas

Using bio media supplied by Fluval as well as 8 or so Max aspect bio balls in the chambers

 

[Jekyl]

GFO and water changes.

 

[PharmrJohn]

How old is your tank?

 

[PharmrJohn]

Sorry. Forgot the thread title. Your numbers for six weeks out are fine. Ca and Mg a little low, ALK a little low (for me), PO4 a little high, Nitrates fine. Your tank is young. The numbers are gonna take a bit to level out as you get your tank to a more active status. As Jekyl stated, a water change would work well. Just keep it simple at this point. I'd be happy with these numbers at this point.

 

[spamvicious]

Sorry. Forgot the thread title. Your numbers for six weeks out are fine. Ca and Mg a little low, ALK a little low (for me), PO4 a little high, Nitrates fine. Your tank is young. The numbers are gonna take a bit to level out as you get your tank to a more active status. As Jekyl stated, a water change would work well. Just keep it simple at this point. I'd be happy with these numbers at this point.

My alk was 4.8, calcium was 300 and magnesium was 1100 when I finished cycling. So have been slowly raising them. I did a 20% water change last night so was expecting lower nitrates today.

I suspect I’m over feeding. I feed twice a day with frozen food. Was looking at a phosphate remover but would have to be a filter bag in the chambers.

Thanks for the help.

 

[slingfox]

You numbers look fine six months in. If you want to improve the numbers a bit do a large water change and test again in one week

 

[Jasongtr]

I put a post up about bio balls and the general opinion from people who know what they are talking about was they cause nitrates rather than help remove, I guess this is assuming you have enough rock to house beneficial bacteria, my fluval evo I'm currently cycling will have filter floss and water changes only

 

[spamvicious]

I put a post up about bio balls and the general opinion from people who know what they are talking about was they cause nitrates rather than help remove, I guess this is assuming you have enough rock to house beneficial bacteria, my fluval evo I'm currently cycling will have filter floss and water changes only

This is my aquascape. I run filter floss as well as the bio media in the chambers. Do you think this is enough?

 

[Jasongtr]

This is my aquascape. I run filter floss as well as the bio media in the chambers. Do you think this is enough?

More than enough but depends on your bio load I guess, we are only putting our clowns in ours from our bigger tank, and are only having soft coral, hence for us water changes and floss is fine, I've also blocked that stupid hole up on the plastic wall so all water goes through the floss rather than some bypassing chamber 1

This is ours anyway

Excuse the wires, ive not set our ATO up yet so it's all a mess down the side

 

[spamvicious]

More than enough but depends on your bio load I guess, we are only putting our clowns in ours from our bigger tank, and are only having soft coral, hence for us water changes and floss is fine, I've also blocked that stupid hole up on the plastic wall so all water goes through the floss rather than some bypassing chamber 1

This is ours anyway

Excuse the wires, ive not set our ATO up yet so it's all a mess down the side

Yeah I did the same with the hole. I’m only having a cardinal and a ruby dragonet in the tank with the cleaner shrimp and cuc.

 

[Jasongtr]

Yeah I did the same with the hole. I’m only having a cardinal and a ruby dragonet in the tank with the cleaner shrimp and cuc.

Not heard great things about dragonets in small tanks, had a pair of scooters in our 75g and they didn't last long

 

[spamvicious]

Not heard great things about dragonets in small tanks, had a pair of scooters in our 75g and they didn't last long

Do you mean feeding wise?. I’m currently dosing with copepods and going to add extra frozen food etc. Would be able to keep an eye on him given there’s so little in there.

 

[Jasongtr]

Do you mean feeding wise?. I’m currently dosing with copepods and going to add extra frozen food etc. Would be able to keep an eye on him given there’s so little in there.

Yes feeding, general consensus is being able to keep an adequate pod population in such a small tank, if it takes frozen maybe ok

 

[spamvicious]

Yes feeding, general consensus is being able to keep an adequate pod population in such a small tank, if it takes frozen maybe ok

I’m gonna give it a try and possibly farm copepods myself if I can’t get it eating frozen.