cycling an upgrade tank

[brian762]

As soon as i move i am going to get my 90 gal tank started. If i am just cycling it with Eco Rocks from BRS i dont need to run a skimmer do I?

[vikubz]

You don't have to have a skimmer to start, and some folks don't use one at all, but I think they help a lot. You are going to add some existing LR to seed the eco rocks I gather? Plain eco rocks won't cycle your tank as there is no organic matter on it.

[thegrun]

Since there is nothing alive on the rock to be concerned about (keeping live) I would not bother to run a skimmer. As mentioned above, you are going to need to add organic material to the tank you cause a cycle; either a dead raw shrimp or a daily pinch of flake fish food are the two most frequently used methods. The only time I run a skimmer during a cycle is if there are encrusted corals on the rock I am trying to keep alive. In that case it's best to attempt to keep the ammonia below 2 ppm.

[brian762]

Thank you!