cycling water..

[jonathansruelas]

ok I just finished setting my tank in the place I wanted and almost done with plumbing... Will get the last piece tomorrow at home depot..

Question: Can I go half tap water/half RO DI water to begin cycling?.. MY RO DI system will take forever to make 130 gallons of water..:sad2:

I figure since I will be doing multiple water changes after cycle is done to get my nitrates below 20 ppm it would be ok? But i'm not sure...
Appreciate the help

[Bunnylicked]

If you're going to have rock and sand in there, it's probably not a good idea to use tap water. You could always buy some RO water from your LFS or local supermarket if you can't wait a few days.

[jonathansruelas]

Yes Im planning to have rock and sand, I might end up just buying some from my lfs to speed up the process..
another question...

Can I mix live rock and live sand with Dead rock and Dead Sand when cycliing? Willl the amonia created by the cycle kill any live critters on the live sand/rock???

[Bunnylicked]

Yep, it's fine to use dry rock and sand in a new tank. It's actually a lot cheaper than using all live rock. If you get rock that has a lot of life on it, you might want to do water changes while the tank is cycling to keep the ammonia down.

[jinks]

People cycle with live rock all the time. All the little stuff living on it should be fine.

[Jocko]

I'm sure you've heard this already, but don't rush. Take your time. I know that's easy for me to say. Hehe. I have definitely been there before! Just pretend your RODI is trying to help you out by forcing you to slow down.

[joeyzeri]

Hello all! and thanks in advance for reading/responding. I'm in the middle of cycling my tank. Been a few years since it has been set up. I have a 55 gal tank, 20 gal sump. setup with 60 lbs of CaribSea black Hawaiian live sand and 90 lbs of "pre-cured" live rock (as I understand it is now re-cureing after being shipped to me). Used RO/DI water and Instant Ocean for saltwater. My sump is basically empty except for a few fragments of live rock. I am not running any mechanical filtration at all, also no carbon or skimmer at this time. All lights have been off. Setup was done 5 days ago. Ammonia rose to about .5 ppm and then dropped to 0 ppm 2 days ago (seemed sorta quick to me). Nitrites are 10ppm and nitrates are 200 ppm. Here are my questions: should I start doing water changes now and how much? When should I start using protien skimmer? Should I start using carbon now? I'm not interested in rushing things but also don't want to un-necessarily prolong them either. Thanks again!! oh and any other advice thoughts would be appreciated.

[disc1]

Question: Can I go half tap water/half RO DI water to begin cycling?..
I figure since I will be doing multiple water changes after cycle is done to get my nitrates below 20 ppm it would be ok?

It doesn't really work that way. You put tap water in, and all the stuff that comes with it. Some of that stuff, like the phosphate that feeds the algae, is going to stick to the rocks and sand. When you change out the water, you aren't removing those things back out of the tank. Plus, any that's not bound to the rock, you are only diluting, not completely removing.


If waiting for the RO to fill up the tank is going to get you impatient, you are going to have quite the time with this hobby. Nothing here that happens fast happens well.

[00Warpig00]

It really sucks being a newb and wanting to dive in head first. It is worth the wait. It took my 180 gallon 3 and a half days to fill from my ro/di. It was a tough 3 days... then I had to mix my salt in and let it sit another day. Then I could start the cycle... Some live rock and 80/20 lbs of base/live sand went in, and off to the races. This is a race you want to be the turtle and not the hare.

Nick

[jonathansruelas]

It doesn't really work that way. You put tap water in, and all the stuff that comes with it. Some of that stuff, like the phosphate that feeds the algae, is going to stick to the rocks and sand. When you change out the water, you aren't removing those things back out of the tank. Plus, any that's not bound to the rock, you are only diluting, not completely removing.


If waiting for the RO to fill up the tank is going to get you impatient, you are going to have quite the time with this hobby. Nothing here that happens fast happens well.

Thanks, I got the same advice from my friend who's been in the hobby for years.. I didn't realize the phosphates it holds..

I was just being impatient but ended up using only ro di water took only 2 days.. Not too bad.. I've never used tap water in saltwater but never knew I couldn't add any amount . Thanks for all the input guys .

[pierced_rainbow]

Something you can do to help pass the time while your tank cycles and keep you excited about getting your tank ready is research and make a wish list of what you want to keep in your tank. The more knowledge you can gain during the painfully long waiting period of your tank cycling the better your end results will be. Another thing you can do to help keep you from jumping the gun on stocking the tank is when you go to your LFS keep your money and plastic at home....then no matter how much you want to get something you would have time to really think about if you are really ready for it, during the drive home to get said cash/plastic. Best of luck playing the patience game.