Need Advice On Order For Cycling

[TYC]

Oh, and the amount of sand you add is basically for appearances and for interesting critters. It doesn't do much for filtration and does require some periodic maintenance

Sorry but actually not quite true unless you are using Deep Sand Bed (DSB) which acts as another natural filter in combo with the live rocks. Ur basically creating a mini ocean in ur tank with a DSB and eventually it'll be self sustaining with less frequent water changes. Been using DSB with live rock without a skimmer and been working great for me. Madducks42 if u r interested in trying DSB, please read up on this great article by Ron Shimek which explains the chemistry.http://www.ronshimek.com/deep_sand_beds.html Also with DSB u cannot put certain critters/fish (blemy) that'll disturb the sand too much and the sand size must be sugar fine... But I believe the natural chemical benefit a DSB provides is worth it, just expensive to setup but then u probably already realize that about this hobby. Using a DSB with skimmer would provide extra filtration for your tank. NY Steelo also has a good video on his YouTube page about DSB. Once his DSB tank is up and running for a while, he doesnt do water changes for months at a time!

Here's a very good concise explanation of how to cycle by Melev http://www.melevsreef.com/cycle can't get any simpler than how Marc explains it.

Just remember, in this hobby what works for others may not work for you. There are so many diff ways to keep a successful marine aquarium, u just have to dive in and start exploring and learn through experience and asking around.

Oh and dont add any sand yet until the salinity has been set to 1.025

 

[madducks42]

Alright so salt and sand have been added to tank and we've got the rock mostly where we want it. Salt is at 1.026, pH is 8.2, phosphates are at zero. We haven't tested for ammonia yet but I'm assuming that's going to be low or zero. We're still debating if we want to add pure ammonia to the tank or get a shrimp from the store to help kick off cycling. Power heads are in the tank, we're still playing around with currents but there is a good flow in the tank.

I have a question for y'all regarding the cleanup crew. Many if you have recommended putting in a cleanup crew before fish, but what does the cleanup crew eat? There's no live organic matter in the tank so where would the algae come from for the cleanup crew to eat?


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[Stolireef]

First, you need to go through you cycle. You add the CUC after the cycle. It eats algae and detritus in the tank. Basically keeps things tidy.

Oh, and don't bother testing for pH. Just check kH. If that's OK then your pH will be fine. kH acts as a buffer for any acid in the tank. So long as it's above about 7.5 dkH, your pH will be fine.

 

[madducks42]

I get that we need to cycle for at least a few weeks. But it seems that most people suggest adding a cleanup crew before fish. My question is if there is no algae in the tank, because there's nothing live in it so no way for algae to get introduced, what does the cleanup crew eat? And why do people suggest adding them before fish?


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[Stolireef]

There is algae in the tank. You just can't see it. If you want add a bit of food that's OK.

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[nero0762]

What's the source of the algae in a tank that's been seeded with only "dead" material and bacteria (bleached rock, R/O water, salt, sand and Bio-Spira)?

 

[TYC]

What's the source of the algae in a tank that's been seeded with only "dead" material and bacteria (bleached rock, R/O water, salt, sand and Bio-Spira)?

Nitrate, phosphate and lighting. But in the beginning stage from nitrate and light. That is why during cycling and first month u should not turn on the aquarium lights or else algae will take hold in ur tank.