Ahhhhh!!!!

[chrisrex]

so this is my first time owning a saltwater tank and I'm kinda learning as I go

so far I'm 9 days into the cycle

29gal biocube

28.5 pounds of live rock
30 pounds of live sand
instant ocean salt

saltinity of about 1.025
temp is at 76.5 F

so far nothing has come up in the tests no ammonia nirtrite or nitrate

just green andbrown algae stuff

please tell me what my next course of action should be

also I used tap water with a primer
i was told at my LFS that the water in my area is is good to use in my tank without ro/di filter

[Maaka]

Ghost feeding will help your cycle out. Just throw some food in there every day or so it will help the cycle get started. Then just keep testing to see when it starts and ends.

[nlgill13]

Using tap water can lead to an algae outbreak....I would highly suggest getting a RODI system or getting it from a LFS.

You need the addition of ammonia to cycle your tank. One way to do this is to use a raw shrimp (thawed frozen shrimp) to cycle your tank. The bacteria from live sand and live rock will decompose the shrimp into ammonia. The filtration system will then start breaking down the ammonia into nitrite, then to nitrate, and finally into nitrogen.

Some tanks don't show a significant levels of ammonia, nitrite, or nitrates during the cycle...It is important during the cycle to check your levels everyday (especially if you haven't seen any spikes).

[chrisrex]

okay so here my tank, and some pictures of the algae('s) Green and Brown stuff on the ground

also I'm on a 7 hour day time, 17h night at the moment, increasing it by an hour every week

http://i917.photobucket.com/albums/ad20/chrisrex85/20a4e67b.jpg

http://i917.photobucket.com/albums/ad20/chrisrex85/d741690f.jpg

http://i917.photobucket.com/albums/ad20/chrisrex85/7a5610b3.jpg


Response to the above post(s) ^^^^

So if I feed imaginary fish every day(ghost feed) this will clear the problem ???

I don't see that happening It will probably only speed up my cycle

also if I buy a ro/di filter/ro/di water what actions do I take with the water I currantly have in the aquarium? and also the Live Rock?

[Maaka]

Ghost feeding won't clear the problem that is just to get some ammonia in the tank and get the cycle going. If you ate sure it has started don't ghost feed. As for the water. If you get an ro system or just go to a lfs and buy it the way I would do it would to just start doing water changes with the ro water instead.

[Maaka]

It's not unusual to see algae outbreaks in young tanks especially when started with tap water. If you start using good quality water with low tds. It will help a lot and most likely may clear up on its own. At least that is what happened in my experience when I switched from tap to ro.

[chrisrex]

I'm alittle unsure what you mean here ? If you ate sure it has started don't ghost feed

[nlgill13]

Ghost feeding will produce a supply of ammonia that a tank needs to start the cycle...If you already are in the cycle (like you are), ghost feeding will help insure that your tank is filtering the bio-load (ie build-up of ammonia) properly (turning into nitrite, nitrate, then nitrogen). After you see a fall off in ammonia levels, you should keep ghost feeding the tank. After a week, if you don't see any more signs of ammonia then the initial part of your cycle is complete.

[troyman]

takes time dont rush it

[chrisrex]

Ok make sense so how much shrimp and how often? Cocktail shrimps? Brine shrimp?

[Maaka]

Sorry I've always sucked at explaining stuff :( lol

[SweetTang]

I see a good bit of Coraline Algae on the rock from your pictures, it looks like well established LR. If you bought all LR and LS (not "dead rock"), and bought it close to where you live, there may not have been much die-off when you transported the LR. You may not see much of a cycle, if any. I recently set up a 28g nano the same way (Established LR and LS mixed with dry sand). I only saw two small spikes in my ammonia and that was it. I would still throw a small piece of shrimp in there for a day or two and see if you can get an ammonia spike. If you do, it will probably be small and not last long. If this happens, your tank is cycled, but far from established. I still would wait at least 28 days from when you initially set up the tank, to slowly start adding livestock.

As for the algae outbreak, a lot of it is caused by the tap water. I would kill the lights for a couple of days. That will help the algae recede, but not affect your nitrifying bacteria from colonizing on your LR and LS. I like how you are slowly acclimating your light, but IMO it is not neccessary if you don't have any corals

[Cloudburst2000]

I see a good bit of Coraline Algae on the rock from your pictures, it looks like well established LR. If you bought all LR and LS (not "dead rock"), and bought it close to where you live, there may not have been much die-off when you transported the LR. You may not see much of a cycle, if any. I recently set up a 28g nano the same way (Established LR and LS mixed with dry sand). I only saw two small spikes in my ammonia and that was it. I would still throw a small piece of shrimp in there for a day or two and see if you can get an ammonia spike. If you do, it will probably be small and not last long. If this happens, your tank is cycled, but far from established. I still would wait at least 28 days from when you initially set up the tank, to slowly start adding livestock.

As for the algae outbreak, a lot of it is caused by the tap water. I would kill the lights for a couple of days. That will help the algae recede, but not affect your nitrifying bacteria from colonizing on your LR and LS. I like how you are slowly acclimating your light, but IMO it is not neccessary if you don't have any corals

+1. With all live rock and live sand, you probably won't see much of a cycle thought you might see a small one. I agree about chucking a deli shrimp in there. You will probably see a small spike in ammonia that goes away quickly. If that happens, your cycle has already been completed assuming you had a cycle at all (which could happen with all live rock/sand). I didn't see any cycle on my last tank because I used all live rock and sand.

And algae outbreaks are common in any new tank, but I agree that some of it might be due to your water source. I have heard that some water sources are pure enough to use in a tank but they are very few and far between. It always helps to be proactive where your water is concerned. Even if you think the tap water might be good enough for a tank, you don't know what it could be picking up in all the pipes that run between the water treatment center and your house. I suggest getting an RO/DI filter just for the peace of mind of knowing you are putting extremely pure water in your tank. Check out bulkreefsupply.com. They have some excellent RO/DI systems for a pretty good price. You might even be able to pick up a used system from local reefers. Check craigslist for used aquarium equipment.

[Humuhumunuku]

Chrisrex, where are you located? You might want to test your tap water for nutrients, you can never really know what all is in there though. I know in SF Bay we have rather good water (water from our reservoir is bottled), but it still has 50-60tds (total dissolved solids). Also since our city uses chloramine, they actually add ammonia to the water supply!

[chrisrex]

I am from Vancouver Canada, I think what I'll do is borrow a ro/di unit from a friend and stock pile a bunch of water and start doin water changes with that, and kill the lights for now for a few days to see if the algae goes away at all and through a shrimp in to see what happens thanks for the advice

[chrisrex]

I think I'm going to buy an ro
Unit from my local lfs any thoughts on that other then a ro/di unit

[Humuhumunuku]

Just make sure it is at least 4 stages (sediment, carbon, RO, DI). A pressure guage is not required, but nice to have. TDS meter whether inline or handheld is also nice to have.

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