Which fish to add first?

[Stephen Hiatt]

That confused me, which is why I asked again.

Nevermind, you edited it

 

[Stephen Hiatt]

What about shrimp?

 

[dweber618]

Crabs, snails, and shrimp can be added before fish.

 

[dweber618]

You could maybe interchange the clowns and coral beauty. When/if your clowns pair up adding new fish will be very difficult.

 

[Stephen Hiatt]

Crabs, snails, and shrimp can be added before fish.

What do you mean by before? A couple days? A week?

 

[dweber618]

You can add the inverts as long as it's been a couple of weeks after the cycle is complete and your parameters have stabilized. I don't think there is a set time frame for how long to wait to add the fish after adding the inverts, I would say waiting a couple of weeks would be sufficient.

If after a couple of weeks you inverts are still alive then start slowly adding fish, and if your inverts are dead, then something is off and fish shouldn't be added.

 

[Stephen Hiatt]

You can add the inverts as long as it's been a couple of weeks after the cycle is complete and your parameters have stabilized. I don't think there is a set time frame for how long to wait to add the fish after adding the inverts, I would say waiting a couple of weeks would be sufficient.

If after a couple of weeks you inverts are still alive then start slowly adding fish, and if your inverts are dead, then something is off and fish shouldn't be added.

What would I feed the inverts?

 

[dweber618]

Ideally there would be some algae build up for the snails to feed on. I had to go fishless due to ich for 3 months and fed my tank small amounts of mysis a couple times a week.

 

[Stephen Hiatt]

Would they not just eat pellets?

 

[CarrieB]

Which fish to add first?

I feed my hermit crabs algae tablets and the snails eat the algae that grows on the glass.


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[bdunn12]

I used 2 PJ Cardinals as my starter fish and they both survived.

 

[Stephen Hiatt]

I feed my hermit crabs algae tablets and the snails eat the algae that grows on the glass.


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What about the shrimp?

 

[CarrieB]

I don't have any shrimp yet, but LiveAquaria says freeze dried, frozen or flakes for cleaner shrimp so sounds like you have a lot of choices. I think they are pretty much just scavengers.


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[Stephen Hiatt]

I don't have any shrimp yet, but LiveAquaria says freeze dried, frozen or flakes for cleaner shrimp so sounds like you have a lot of choices. I think they are pretty much just scavengers.


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I'll probably try flakes. Those will be the cheapest option.

 

[Brieninsac]

Another option for quick cycling is using Bio-spira. I started my system with live sand and dry rock. Added a bottle of Bio-spira and was able to add my starter fish a week later. Personally I started with two Clowns and had no problems. I did weekly 10% water changes for the first couple of months.

 

[Stephen Hiatt]

Can I use the inverts for the cycle?

 

[CarrieB]

Can I use the inverts for the cycle?

No. We don't cycle with livestock. You can use fish food, ammonia (with no additives), or a raw shrimp to feed your cycle.


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[CarrieB]

Sorry, that sounded preachy. Perhaps you are unaware that ammonia and nitrite are potentially deadly to both inverts and fish. I should give you the benefit of the doubt.


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[Stephen Hiatt]

Sorry, that sounded preachy. Perhaps you are unaware that ammonia and nitrite are potentially deadly to both inverts and fish. I should give you the benefit of the doubt.


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I know about that. In freshwater some people use minnows and guppies to cycle their tanks, which is what I did with my 210. I was just wondering if the shrimp and snails are hardy enough to do the same thing.

 

[CarrieB]

Yeah, IMO, people use minnows and guppies for cycling because they are cheap, so if they die, no big loss. They may be tougher than some other fish but It's not that minnows and guppies can breathe ammonia.. They will still suffer through the cycle. People used to use damsels to cycle saltwater as well, for the same reasons. There is no advantage to using fish over other ammonia sources.


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