When can i add SPS?

[djcool563]

Well i will have a DSB with a berlin skimmer.

 

[Weatherman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6467923#post6467923 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by djcool563
Well i will have a DSB with a berlin skimmer.

Then you are probably looking at the six months to a year range.

 

[djcool563]

It will take that long for my tank to cycle? Or is that when you are saying i should start to add the more delicate corals?

 

[Kinetic]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6467599#post6467599 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Treg
Not if your "cooking".

Or "extended curing in the dark" as I like to call it.

ah ok. so you got a ton of stuff that died off, that's why it's taking so long lol. Won't nitrates fall once you turn on the lights so things stop dying and the bacteria start reproducing?

 

[Weatherman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6467990#post6467990 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by djcool563
It will take that long for my tank to cycle? Or is that when you are saying i should start to add the more delicate corals?

The bacteria cycle should complete relatively quickly (no more than a month or two at worst, depending on how much dieoff you have with your rocks). But then you'll have an algae succession, which may take three to four months to complete.

"Natural method" tanks can be very successful and interesting, but they do take time to mature.

 

[orientalexpress]

nitrate wouldn't fall by it's self.that when u need to do more water change to keep your nitrate down.most newby overfeed their tank.the fishes will do just fine feeding twice a week .gl


lapsan

 

[Weatherman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6467992#post6467992 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by koden
ah ok. so you got a ton of stuff that died off, that's why it's taking so long lol. Won't nitrates fall once you turn on the lights so things stop dying and the bacteria start reproducing?

Fortunately, bacteria don't need light to convert nitrate to nitrogen gas.

Turning on lights too soon will just encourage excessive algae growth.

 

[Mariner]

Coralline growth is really a good indicator of a tank's readiness for hard corals. A tank could well be ready without any coralline at all (as was mentioned), but if you have dime sized coralline growing on your back glass, you're pretty well guaranteed that you are good to go.
FWIW,
Mariner

 

[djcool563]

So the basic opinion is that i wont be able to get any hard corals by the middle of march?

 

[Weatherman]

With a "natural method" tank it's best to be as patient as possible.

 

[orientalexpress]

don't forget when u get too middle of march ,make sure all parameter is all good before u put any coral in.gl


lapsan

 

[Treg]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6468047#post6468047 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Weatherman
Fortunately, bacteria don't need light to convert nitrate to nitrogen gas.

Turning on lights too soon will just encourage excessive algae growth.

 

[Mariner]

So the basic opinion is that i wont be able to get any hard corals by the middle of march?

You'd probably be rushing things a bit. But, if it were me, I'd wait till March and see how the tank is doing. Tanks mature at different rates. Some have serious problems in the first couple of months, and if that's the case with yours, it'll be obvious that you shouldn't add SPS. On the other hand, if water params and chemistry is stable, the tank looks healthy, and you think that you've got a handle on maintaining calcium and alkalinity, you might want to try a frag or two by then.
FWIW,
Mariner

 

[djcool563]

thanks everyone

 

[djcool563]

Well i already have coralline algae growing in my tank that has been set up for only a little over a month now. Isnt that a good sign? I thought i saw some growing in the main tank then i was checking out my sump/fuge and there is alot starting to grow in there.

 

[Mariner]

Yes, it's a very good sign.
I've read that the rule of thumb is that when you've got dime-sized coralline growing on the glass, your tank is ready for corals. I don't know who invented that rule, but I have read it.
Mariner