Post it to YouTube then post a link thats what I do with all of mine
I have been testing daily with API. Nothing detectable yet except ammonia. But wanted to let you know I'm smelling it every day. It stinks just a little when I do the water changes but it already stinks a little less everyday. Maybe wishful thinking on my part, but hoping for a fast cycle and am going to trust my nose before I trust the test kits.we can make use of this post in our microbiology of tank cycling thread under the section for uncured ocean rock cycles
-you have an interesting challenge upcoming on your allowed start date
(everyone uses api, red sea or salifert ammonia to tell them when curing is done)
but there's a catch: those kits when reading low level ammonia are doubted in other posts by forum readers as known over-reports. right now I can link work thread examples where in unison we all agree the ammonia is a false minor misread.
but in ANY questionable cycle such as curing, we all default to accepting every stated nuance as absolute proof you're still curing
see that conundrum? olfaction is your referee lol
sure the test kits can indicate massive curing nicely, hard colors...but nearing the finish line they'll still read some well past the ready date, but if you lift that live rock out after several days in water changed water, and it doesn't smell, then its not curing any longer.
*various communities on it aren't necessarily going to agree to die on you by X date, some take months
but the known start date is not weeks and weeks for that stuff, its days if you'll pre remove any of the obvious stuff to be lost like sponges and tunicates, I too have had a live rock clam live 6 years in my tank don't cull them.
*even though some areas will die, you simply have the highest surface area most diverse bacterial loading the rock will ever be, right now. That is an inherent ability to probably scrub 4-8 ppm ammonia every hour right into nitrite/nitrate like machinery
just because a little something dies, that doesn't mean the workhorse is dead. if you keep this water cleaned out and never cloudy smelly, refreshed like CPR water, and pre remove obvious masses to be lost, it w be ready in a week I bet or less. Not eight weeks courtesy of api.
Im curious to know when it smells normal. right now it may, no decay yet. its the bell curve...want to know when it comes back into range of smelling normal after these first few days in circulating water.
