saved from mistake, need help

[rschneid]

Ok, so this is a fascinating hobby! I have a 75 gallon tank. All plumbing is up and running including skimmer. Lights are available (but turned off [now]). deep sand bed 30% live is in. 5 pieces of live rock are in (partial mistake here). Sump is up with sand bed and some chaeto. (light is on 24 hrs). Got really carried away with getting the RO PS 1000int skimmer to work right. Way way ahead of my self here.

So I got ahead of myself and started bombarding John at reef cleaners.org with requests for a cleaning crew. EXCEPT that I am nowhere near ready for them. I think I confused him with ridiculous requests which he basically refused to fulfill (which was the right thing to do - by the way ).. He basically saved me from myself.

So to get back on track to run the blessed CYCLE. I think I was supposed to put all the rock in at once. But its was so cool and it looks so great in my tank that first I put in 3 pieces than I added two more.

Anyway can someone confirm that what I should be doing now is this:
1. Put all the rock in the tank
2. monitor the ammonia/nitrate/nitrite
3. remove various algae as it grows and dies
4. Watch the cycle unfold and complete, which will be a matter of weeks not days
5. when that really does complete, then and only then add the cleaner crew



Water salinity/ph/temps = 34.5ppm/8.05/80

Rich Schneider
Germantown MD 20876

 

[kurt_n]

Depending on the condition of the rock added, you may or may not have enough die off from the rock to generate the needed ammonia to start the cycle. If you don't see ammonia show up (using a test kit or some sort, not test strips) in a week, I'd drop a single small cocktail shrimp (uncooked and rinsed very well, put in a mesh baggy for easy removal) in there to start decaying, providing a source of ammonia. Then you can proceed from your step #2.

I doubt you'll see algae dieing off during the cycle, but you can always hope and dream!

 

[ocram]

Hi rich, the 5 steps are ok. I wouldnt say that it was a mistake to put some stones in and now puttimg the rest in. It will just take the tank longer until it is fully cycled because the process will start now at least partially from the negonning again. Also put your lights on now of course andyour skimmer also. You can monitor ammonia nitrite and nitrate if its fun, you can also just put a cocktail shrimp in the tank and wait for at least 2 weeks before you do anything else. What you can do is rrmove unwanted algae and other hitchhikers when you see them

 

[rschneid]

Woohoo! Got 75 lbs of live rock from Premium Aquatics. Could not be happier. It included a very small crab. My first crustacean! It also came with a Feather Duster which came out last night - very very cool. Newbie delight here.... Really nice formed rock with nooks crannies etc....
Now I need to wait and watch for 4 weeks. Among the 'dumb' mistakes I made was failure to get the basic ammonia/nitrate/nitrite test kit so I don't know where I am right now. Hopefully thats arriving today. I have been testing for Ca, Mg and Alkalinity. Ca, Mg and alkalinity are all low. Maybe coming up... not sure about that yet.

One thing I noticed right away is that the addition of the Rock has acted as a Temperature Buffer. Before the rock my temp swings between temp fall and heater on were very short. After the rock those are about 4x longer. Which makes sense, as the rock is holding heat and releasing it very slowly ( i think ). Anyway its a good thing.

Remains totally fascinating... going to add a float to the top of my skimmer.

I don't know what unwanted hitch hikers are yet. All life is fun to watch at the moment.

 

[shesacharmer]

Post a picture of your crab in the ID your Hitchhikers section to make sure its a welcome addition. Your alk, mag, and calc will be taken care of by water changes in the beginning so don't fret over those during cycle. All you need to test for, for the next month or so, are Ammonia, Nitrites, and Nitrate. When Ammonia and Nitrites spike then go to zero, monitor your Nitrates. Reduce them to less than 40 ppm before you add your CUC. Leave the CUC alone for a month before you start adding fish and you will be well on your way. Also take this time to set up your QT while you wait. (Please don't skip this step.)

 

[W1ngz]

Are those first pieces of live rock ON the sand bed you laid down, or are they sitting on the bottom of the tank, with the sand added after? I've seen a lot of recommendations that the lower levels of rock be stacked and stabilized on the glass before adding sand, else sand shifting over time will bring all your rock work tumbling down.

 

[rschneid]

hitchhiker #3

hitchhiker #3

here is hitchhiker #3 ( I forgot to take a pic of the crab and who knows where he is now)
Its some kind of hard tube feather duster (its very small, the tube is maybe 1 inch in length.

My rock is mostly firmly seated towards the bottom of the tank.

Rich S.