Cycling my tank

[xfactor6]

Hey guys im new here and i would appreciate your advice

I started my 26 bow tank on sept 11th
here are my specs
35 pounds of fully cured LR
26 pounds of bio active sand
eheim 2026 canister filter
remora skimmer

Ok so here it goes, its now October 16th and my readings are

PH 8.2
DKH 12
Amonia <0
calcium is 440
Nitrate was 15PPM has been the same for a while
Nitrite was .02 ppm

Ok, so according to the red sea kit which didnt read below 1ppm, nitrite was undetectable( i returned this kit because the amonia test was defective). I bought an API kit for nitrites and it said 0(also didnt read below 1ppm). The tropic Marin kit keeps saying .02ppm and have tested the same for the last 2 weeks. Amonia has been 0 for 1 months now.

So wich one is right? the sensitive test or the other tests? Am i not cycled?

I have 2mexican turbos,5nassarius, 2 damsels, and a scarlet skunk cleaner.

They are all doing fine, some coraline has started.
Should i do a water change? Can i add More fish yet? All Parameters are steady and dont budge.

I went through diatom bloom, green hair algea, and now i have lime green algea that is almost phosphorecent under actinics.

Any advice will be appreciated.


Thanks,

[ljosh]

It is hard to say wich test kit is accurate. Canister filters are generally frowned upon in a reef setup. They can lead to nitrate build up unless they are cleaned often. They are designed to trap debris. Your LR should be able to provide enough biological filtration with adequate flow.

[matthewscars]

id do a water change and watch what happens over the course of a week. Then id start added a few coral and maybe a fish.

I wouldn't worry about it personally. I use API as well, and when its blue, thats good enough for me and my tank.

edit: the above poster is right about the canister. i have a sump so...

[xfactor6]

Thanks for the advice guys, i will try to keep the canister clean. Nitrates have not been going up they are steady. the tank isnt drilled so i would need to find an overflow for it to do the sump. It will be a future project.

[matthewscars]

ive have a HOB overflow for 3 years now. im so excited to get rid of it. Its the most horrifying point of failure :)

[xfactor6]

ok,so maybe i wont be adding it, ill wait until i upgrade to a bigger tank with overflow .





:rollface: