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Koddie Doo
03/27/2013, 08:29 PM
I was wondering the best way to start the cycle.

I want to avoid adding LR. Should I get a damsel, do the raw shrimp thing....?

also should I shut down the skimmer during the cycle? and what about flow? should I turn down the flow?

worm5406
03/27/2013, 09:32 PM
Raw shrimp thing and leave skimmer running. Turn the flow up and let it all run.

LR... Humm... What are you going to attache the bacteria to? Have to have something to get rid of ammonia.

Koddie Doo
03/27/2013, 09:35 PM
LR... Humm... What are you going to attache the bacteria to? Have to have something to get rid of ammonia.

I just wanted to avoid everything bad that tags along with LR. Any Thoughts?

worm5406
03/27/2013, 09:42 PM
Ohhh dry rock then... ok... was worried...

Do you know anyone repatube with LR?

The only hitchhikers that I had were bristle worms and copepods. But that was my luck on that one.

What else are you worried about?

Thisseemsfishy
03/27/2013, 09:47 PM
You can go with dry rock with raw shrimp, pure ammonia, LFS dead fish. Don't stress a damsel out, not right.

I have to ask w/ worm, what else are you worried about?

Terrance
03/27/2013, 09:49 PM
I like cycling with a bottle of ammonia form Ace Hardware. Easy, no mess, and you can control the amount of ammonia going into your tank.

I cycled a tank with only dry rocks. Then seeded the rocks with pods and stuff by taking some cheato from another hobbyist's tank into my tank. My front glass is cover with little critters now.

Koddie Doo
03/27/2013, 09:51 PM
The rock that has been going around in my area seems to be bad. lots of nitrate leaching bad algae blooms. I just want to avoid what I can.

here are some pics of what it looks like now. and 9 mths ago.

9 mths ago:
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5454/6946376996_f286c7f52e.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/60081575@N06/6946376996/)
P4180002 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/60081575@N06/6946376996/) by kmw504 (http://www.flickr.com/people/60081575@N06/), on Flickr
Now:
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8238/8591995517_171ffbfbd7.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/60081575@N06/8591995517/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/60081575@N06/8591995517/) by kmw504 (http://www.flickr.com/people/60081575@N06/), on Flickr

worm5406
03/27/2013, 10:23 PM
OK so.... you should be able to nuke/kill anything that come in.

Do an RODI soak and kill off anything that is inside hitchhiking.

Koddie Doo
03/29/2013, 07:07 PM
how long does 1 soak?

worm5406
03/29/2013, 08:55 PM
Ohh about 2 minutes. All the living items will quickly come out, normally.

Koddie Doo
04/01/2013, 09:44 PM
What should I be testing, how often and what should I expect?

Will my numbers be 0, if I do not throwing some LR or start the cycle? Ir will it cycle by itself without a "Kick Start"

worm5406
04/01/2013, 09:45 PM
Throw a raw shrimp in it cut up into about 20 pieces. This will start the decay and ammonia to be released.