Cycle or Stress Zyme what to use?
- Thread starter likhten
- Start date
Neither. To get a cycle going, set up, rock first, then sand, then water. [Wash your sand in ro/di to eliminate dust; but if you didn't, don't worry.] Then once everything's running, bring up the temp to 80, and start adding a micro pinch [4-5 flakes] of fish food a day until your nitrate/nitrite test strips test as nitrite present. That will mean your bacteria have spread from your live rock and everything will proceed from there. Go on with the fishfood until you see the nitrate/nitrate drop to 0. Then you'll be ready for hermits and snails, the first step.
returnofsid
New member
You're best off using a natural cycle. Start by setting up your tank with saltwater, live sand and live rock. You'll end up with some die-off in your live rock that'll kick start your cycle. I wouldn't use flake food but you can. Others also use a prawn or 2 in the tank. The type of prawn you'd buy to cook up and eat. Throw it in there and let it decompose. IMO, I wouldn't do this either. Just let the natural die-off from the live rock start your cycle. Then test Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrates to track your cycle. You'll see a steady rise in Ammonia first. Once Ammonia starts to drop, you'll see a rise in Nitrites. Once Nitrites start to fall you'll get a rise in Nitrates. When Ammonia and Nitrites read 0 and you have a reading of less than 5 ppm Nitrates, your cycle is pretty much completed. During this cycle, use minimal lighting, if any and do regular water changes.
Shagsbeard
New member
Don't use either. Use a rare ingredient, not sold in any stores, called "patience".
fancyfish
Premium Member
as stated above. all natural cycle is best. I understand the rare ingredient shagsbeard speaks of is a virtue!!! give it time and things will work much better. we all want immediate reward however the true reward is when you can eventully sit back and admire your creation. enjoy and good luck
Likhten, the cause of ammonia and nitrate is fish poo, snail poo, fishfood, crab poo, etc.
The bacteria in your sand and rock need time to grow and multiply by being fed: every time you add a critter, your sandbed will be a little overwhelmed, then let a few bacteria more grow, deal with it, and expand its capacity to handle poo.
This happens with every snail you add, every hermit, every individual fish: the sandbed takes it up, adds more bacteria, and copes.
That's why you add only your 'cleaning crew' first: they're pretty tolerant of bad conditions, and their poo will make the sandbed 'grow'.
Then you quarantine a fish---a very small fish---for a few weeks in a small bare cheap tank, being sure he doesn't bring ich into your tank [do this, and you'll thank me when you read all the threads from people who just dumped their first fish straight into their tank]. When he goes in, his poo will make the sandbed grow a bit again. By this time, you've quarantined your second fish: and by the time he gets there, the sandbed will be increasingly capable of handling his output.
Never overfeed. Fish will always beg for food even if they're stuffed: feed once a day until you get a sense how much is enough.
Note my mottos: make haste slowly. Go only as fast as your tank can handle.
Don't make any changes for a few days: let your cleaning crew make their living off the algae that's surely starting up.
[A fish in a quarantine tank can be fed as needs to be, because you're going to test his water daily and scrub that filter out every few days.]
The bacteria in your sand and rock need time to grow and multiply by being fed: every time you add a critter, your sandbed will be a little overwhelmed, then let a few bacteria more grow, deal with it, and expand its capacity to handle poo.
This happens with every snail you add, every hermit, every individual fish: the sandbed takes it up, adds more bacteria, and copes.
That's why you add only your 'cleaning crew' first: they're pretty tolerant of bad conditions, and their poo will make the sandbed 'grow'.
Then you quarantine a fish---a very small fish---for a few weeks in a small bare cheap tank, being sure he doesn't bring ich into your tank [do this, and you'll thank me when you read all the threads from people who just dumped their first fish straight into their tank]. When he goes in, his poo will make the sandbed grow a bit again. By this time, you've quarantined your second fish: and by the time he gets there, the sandbed will be increasingly capable of handling his output.
Never overfeed. Fish will always beg for food even if they're stuffed: feed once a day until you get a sense how much is enough.
Note my mottos: make haste slowly. Go only as fast as your tank can handle.
Don't make any changes for a few days: let your cleaning crew make their living off the algae that's surely starting up.
[A fish in a quarantine tank can be fed as needs to be, because you're going to test his water daily and scrub that filter out every few days.]
uscharalph
New member
Patience is tough in the beginning. I learned the hard way. My cycle took 2 months.
