<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14694953#post14694953 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by kel2682
Just throw another fish in there great answer and Fizz they guy has said that since hes been testing all is zero sounds like he hasnt even spiked... if you dont like the "wait a little longer " .02 cents Tuff
HAHAHA
I figure better to be safe than whining in a few months "How to catch a damsel " I see it almost every week someone new
Either way Good luck hope it works out for you
Let me set something straight...I am dead set AGAINST throwing a fish in to "test" and then try to pull them out later...that wasn't me that said that!!!! I don't think you were saying it was me, but I wanted to be clear.
I had said that if he had something hardy on his list of wanted fish, than go for it. I usually add a pair of clowns as my first swimming inhabitants since they are very hardy and if they spike the ammonia for a day or two for the rock to catch up because they are the first fish in...it's no big deal.
Provided you didn't have nitrate at day one and you have it now means the bacteria are present! That is not the same as using damsels to cycle...I do this only when I expect the cycle to be done! BIG difference.
From his last post he said he tested all along and ALWAYS got 0s. That is EXACTLY how I read his post and EXACLTY what happened to my last 4 setups...all re-setups from moves or tank merges as well as my first 75g setup some 15 years ago. A lot of people out there think that they will always have a cycle and need to "wait for it". That's not true of all setups. Starting with good cured live rock can skip the cycle completely. Waiting a few weeks to be sure that's what happened is great...AND HE DID!!!!
FOR FIVE WEEKS!!!!
If he said it was only a few days since the rock went in I'd be the first one in to say WAIT.
Please don't read this as I'm trying to argue with anybody...I'm not. I've been on this site a while and in the hobby even longer and as much as "wait" is a generally a good response, some people tend to throw that word out blindly because it's an easy, safe response and MOST people who come hear start asking questions BEFORE waiting which is why it's generally an accurate response.
But I felt I recognized in this case that we actually have one of the few "patient" new hobbyists out there that waited before they even posted!! I also read into the post that he was looking for a cycle probably because everybody told him he needs to have one. (not the first time I've heard that) That's how I read the first post, and that's how I gauged my responses.
I posted to make sure he got the idea that not all tanks "cycle" over the course of weeks or months and that some tanks are cycled in just a day because of good cured rock!
I wouldn't go throwing some $300 "difficult" fish in there, but if you have a cheap hardy fish on your wish list (like a damsel or clownfish) I'd go for it. You can wait too...there's nothing really wrong with that either, but if you're itching..well...scratch it
I personally don't like it when a cycled tank sits idle--the bacteria need to work (eat) or they'll die. That's also why you are told to add fish slowly..the bacteria levels will only stay at around your tank's need...no need? They die. So first ad snails/crabs so you can feed the tank too, then wait atleast a day or so and add some hardy fish. Let the bacteria catch up, then start adding the other stuff since the bacteria have a good head start now!
It's somewhat simple chemistry that you don't need to know if you just follow the "rules" of waiting/cycling/etc....but if you understand the chemistry first, IMO you know better what to do.
I am certainly no chemist, but I've spent years trying to understand as much of the chemistry side of this hobby as I can.
I've also seen people on here that tend to post "wait" without thought which is what I talking about earlier. It IS a safe answer, and NEVER wrong, but also not always the only "right" answer.
Good Luck!!
