New to Reef/Saltwater Tanks

[Bashiier]

Hey guy i have had my 55G tank up for about a week and a half now, i have a 20g sump. 2 heaters in sump a HOB overflow. Im waiting for my 155g Skimmer to come in

So i have been feeding my invisible fish for a little bit i think 4 or 5 day i just tested my tank today and got

PH 8.2
ammonia 2.0ppm
Nitrite 2.0ppm
nitrate 40ppm

Not sure what to do next

 

[kfisc]

Just wait- your cycle looks to be well under way. Test it once a week and be patient; once the nitrate, nitrite and ammonia are undetectable, and the mg is around 1300-1400, and the calcium is 450 and alk is 8.0, you're ready to add some inhabitants. I'd give it a month or two more.

Welcome to the site!

 

[Bashiier]

Thanks but for right now i just want a couple of fish i was told to get damsels for the start of the tank. Instead of listening to the pet store i figure id ask here

 

[westernpilot]

I agree with the above information. My tank has just finished the cycle just recently and my lfs told me to add a fish to help boost the cycle. so after about a week I purchased a clownfish to assist in the cycle. he survived and is doing great but I know a lot of others would disagree. So IMO i feel like it does work to add a fish but it all depends.

 

[Bashiier]

ok so for now im going to test the water every other day till i see the ammonia and others going down, soon as i see it is at 0 ill test it 4 or 5 days after then again on the 6 or 7th day then maybe get a clown or damsel not decided yet

 

[westernpilot]

sounds like a good plan. patience is the hardest part

 

[Neilmu]

used several damsels for my first set up 15 years ago and it went fine. Problem is getting them out (they are fast) if you don't want them or they end up as fish food if you add any aggressive fish or inverts that find them tasty. Plan on doing it again in the next month when I set up a new 180g system.

 

[Bashiier]

i know i had a little 30g as my 1st tank with 2 clowns and a anemone the LFS told me to glue the poor lil guy to the rock i had no clue that they moved around needless to say the tank lasted 1 1/2 months then anemone died and killeed the whole tank

that was about a year or 2 ago

 

[scooter31707]

No. Just let it finish cycling (fishless). Plus, putting Damsels just for the cycle will casue chaos trying to catch them and they can be very aggressive to other fish that are new to the tank. You can continue to ghost feed the tank with 1 good size flake for every 10 gallons. Once your cycle finish I would gradually add you clean-up crew. I recommend quarantining your fish for at 8 weeks. That will give your display tank time to settle in and become more stable during the quarantine process.

 

[A1t2o]

Never cycle with fish! It is very hard on the fish and you will often kill them. It is common for them to survive, but that is only be cause they are tough enough to withstand the poison in the water, but that doesn't mean that the ammonia wont damage them or stunt their growth. You are much better off "peeing" in the tank (AKA adding ammonia through chemicals or food). Cycling with fish is more of a noobie strategy because they don't know any better.

You already have ammonia in the tank so do not add anything else. You can ghost feed once or twice a week, but I would wait for the ammonia to start to drop first. 2.0 is the highest you would want it or the ammonia could inhibit the growth of bacteria that feeds on nitrites. Once the ammonia hits 1.0 then you can increase the feedings to 3 times a week. Wait for ammonia and nitrates to hit 0.0 before adding anything.

Another benefit to not cycling with fish is that you do not have an aggressive damsel in the tank that you spent $10-20 on and wont want in there long term.

 

[Bashiier]

oh im not going to cycle with the fish im going to get them soon as its been at 0 for a acouple days

im also getting a 20g tank with a heater and a small light for a QT i want clowns mainly so ill prolly just get them and keep then in the QT