tank cycling?

[iwishtofish]

Hi all,

I finally added 40 pounds of fully cured Solomon Islands live rock (picked up in person at That Fish Place) along with live sand to my 29 gallon tank - oh, and saltwater too! This was about a day and a half ago.

Once the water cleared after the calcium additive dissolved, my neighbor noticed a bunch of tiny feather dusters filtering the water, and tonight I just observed what I assume are some pods running all over the place.

How long does it take for a tank to begin cycling? I tested for ammonia a few minutes ago and if I did it right, levels are too low to get a color reading. Does anyone think it is possible that there was so little die off on the rock that I won't get a cycle? Do I need to do something to ensure that a cycle occurs? By the way, the feather dusters seem to be acting like the water is normal, at least I think they are!

Thanks

[jdieck]

It is not uncommon to get very little to no Ammonia when using fully cured live rock.
Do not worry it is cycling, if you do not detect Ammonia because it converts fast, try measuring nitrites instead.
If you do not detect ammonia for a couple of weeks (to let the pods start reproducing) then you can start adding some critters.
Snails and cleaning crew add some slowly one week after you detect no ammonia nor nitrites.

[iwishtofish]

Thank you, jdieck. I will keep a close eye on things, and measure the ammonia again and then nirites when I get a chance.

[cdangel0]

You can always try the "Toss in a raw cocktail shrimp" method. Let the shrimp decompose for a couple days - you should see a minimal ammonia spike at least, it may only last a day but will assist in the colonization of beneficial bacteria on your rock.

[iwishtofish]

Maybe I'll give that a try, cdangel0....if I can keep from eating it first :)

[bmk]

Hi
If you are cycling with live rock then dont add the shrimp, it wont help any, it will just cause an ammonia spike which can harm living things in live rock. Just be patient and let it cycle. Mine is cycling now (8th week)

[iwishtofish]

I will test for ammonia again tonight. A friend of mine with some experience believes I would have had ammonia develop pretty quickly, though. I didn't test until about a day and a half after I filled the tank. Also, the fully cured rock didn't have to wait too long to go from the store to my tank, so maybe any die off related ammonia was indeed consumed quickly before I tested. Patience, right? :)

[jdieck]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10171460#post10171460 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by iwishtofish
I will test for ammonia again tonight. A friend of mine with some experience believes I would have had ammonia develop pretty quickly, though. I didn't test until about a day and a half after I filled the tank. Also, the fully cured rock didn't have to wait too long to go from the store to my tank, so maybe any die off related ammonia was indeed consumed quickly before I tested. Patience, right? :)
Patience:) The rock has all what is needed. Adding a shrimp or anything else to rot comes from old fresh water aquariums were everything started out sterile. Remember that anything that decomposes now ends up as Nitrates in your water and phosphates in your rock and sand.
You only need to go slow when stocking your tank.

[iwishtofish]

OK, thanks! I will wait, test, and hopefully watch the pods proliferate!