how long should I wait on cycle to begin??

[grannybj]

It has been 9 days since I turned on the new tank and I am still waiting on signs of a cycle. I tested water 3 days ago and got a 0.50 reading on ammonia. Today i tested and it is 0. I tested Nitrates ( 0) and Nitrites (0) and PH (8.2). Remember I added my own live rock from another tank and a good rinsing of the fliter media from the old tank into the new one.. I did add one small cocktail shrimp in the beginning too . Is it possible that the cycle was avoided by using established rock and new sand or do I need to give it another week to be sure. There is a snail in there that is apparently happy and 2 small red mushrooms are on one of the rocks and they have not opened up fully since they were put in but I have not had my lights on any kind of cycle so it could be a lack of lighting on the shrooms. The shroom's just look dormant...not dying. I just do not want to rush things if I need to wait but I am off for the next two days and I sure would love to move my livestock if a cycle is not still in the works. Thaks guys for any input.
BJ

 

[scarson61]

Honestly I would not move anything this early if your other tank is doing fine. Other folks may not like this but take out the dead shrimp. Your bacteria population will grow up to the point to eat the shrimp but once the shrimp is gone you have all that bacteria starving and dying, this will produce another mini cycle. What I have always done (and mind you this is my opinion, million different ways to do the same thing) is after about two weeks I turn on the lights (you might want to do it now since you have the mushrooms) seed your tank with some rock or sand (which you have already done) and put in some algae like calupra or cheto. The algae will help control the cycle by absorbing nutrients and the little bit of extra algae that grows on the sand and glass will provide food for the copepod population. If you can go for a few weeks without fish in the tank the copepods will explode and you will have a healthy population already started in your tank not to mention the worms, mini brittle stars and all the other microfauna that will reproduce due to no predators being present. after about 3 weeks I would also slowly start adding a little more rock to the tank and let it establish itself and get its cycle out of the way. I would wait no less then 6 weeks to transfer my corals and only very hardy corals then. If you can be patient and wait I found the only algae cycle I have to struggle through is the slime algae (bacteria) but it sure beats being a hair algae farmer. I am sure that other folks have different ways of getting tanks transferred faster but I have found out (the hard way) if you get too impatient your work for the first year of the tank increases greatly

 

[SNAKEMANVET]

I just setup a 20 L, i used 30lbs of liverock that came out of an established tank, 25lbs of live sand.I do 20 to 25 % water changes every week.I put corals in the first week, i put red leather, xenia, colt,various mushrooms candy cane and gsp. All are doing fine.The tank is now 2 months old.I have ran a light cycle from day one.I also have three gbta's that have been in there for about 2 weeks, and they are doing great.But every tank cycles differantly.

 

[grannybj]

Carson..I removed the shrimp the 3rd day after considering what others had said about the rock and filter media being what was needed to get the tank going. The shrimp was a little decomposed but for the most part intact. I have been running the lights for about 4 hours a day to see if it would help the mushrooms open up. I respect your opinion on waiting. I will do it . I have waited months and months to get this far so another month is not too much to ask. I don't have any micro algea except a little that is on one my newer rocks that I have already added. I don't see any signs of copepods . I know they have to be there since I had a good stock of them in the 29 and that is where the rock came from so maybe they are there and I just can't spot them. When I set up the 29 about 2 years ago , the cycle started withing days ...like 3 days if I remember right so I was just puzzled that I see no signs in this tank after 9 days. Thanks for your input...
BJ

 

[grannybj]

so does any one local want to share some micro algea? Cheato would be great. I saw some huge clumps of grape algea for sale at Bob's Tropicals last week but I am afraid of it going sexual so I don't want to go that route.
BJ