20 gallon ON cycling stage

[bryzki]

Hi, its my first post! I started my tank 8 days ago, with 9kgs of live rock it has been exposed to air for around 6 hours but kept moist, 10kgs of live sand from CaribSea Ocean Direct Caribbean Live Sand, koralia nano 240 circulation pump and Tunze - Nanostream 6015.Using RO water. got a DIY overflow pipe, also got a 6 gallon sump just with live sand on the middle.Also got an ATO from tunze which is working well. everything is running well i supposed. I am using API saltwater master test kit,

Here are my readings

2/9 ammonia .5ppm, ph 8, N02- 0, N03- 0
2/10 ammonia .25ppm, ph 8, N02- 0, N03- 0
2/11 ammonia .25ppm, ph 8, N02- 0, N03- 0 (added raw shrimp)
2/12 ammonia 1.0ppm, ph 7.8, N02- 0, N03- 0
2/13 ammonia .5ppm, ph 78, N02- 0, N03- 0 (removed the raw shrimp because it started to stink and became slimmy)
2/14 ammonia 0-.25ppm, ph 8, N02- 0, N03- 0
2/15 ammonia .25, ph 7.8, N02- 0, N03- 0
2/16 ammonia .25, ph 7.8, N02- 0, N03- 0 (i added a new piece of raw shrimp)



everyday from day 1 i am adding more than a pinch of fish food to the tank. I am wondering why i am not seeing rise in nitrites or nitrates.... should i add a raw shrimp again...?

A piece of my live rock is starting to turn brown (more like a rusty color.)

ill try to post some pics later.

edit: live rock is covered with a violet algae stuff.. i dont know what it is called maybe coralline algae it is...

thank you for helping in advance..

[thegrun]

It is possible that the rock was already cycled from your test results. I would add another shrimp and if you see the ammonia once again spike and then drop to zero and have no nitrites consider the tank cycled and add your CUC.

[Fizz71]

It is possible that the rock was already cycled from your test results. I would add another shrimp and if you see the ammonia once again spike and then drop to zero and have no nitrites consider the tank cycled and add your CUC.

+1

You're probably only seeing ammonia because there is more of it than the bacteria to process it. Nitrite is the waste product of the first (ammonia eating) bacteria in the cycle and it is not converting more than the second bacteria (that consumes the nitrite) can handle. The result would be an ammonia spike, but nothing else. I would expect to see a SLOW nitrate increase, but only if you have a low range test kit (0.2 - 10 ppm).

[dunc101]

I'd also like to add that, for me, the API test kit for ammonia always read .25. I could never get it to read 0 (even on an established 1 year old reef). Do you have any fresh saltwater? Do a test on it to see.

[bryzki]

Thanks for the input guys, yesterday i added a 2" raw shrimp on the tank, today it began to be slimmy. I am wondering why am i getting a green coloured hair like algae.. Is it because of too much light..? Ill be posting some pictures once o have uploaded it.

@dunc101
I havent think of doing it.. It was a good idea.. But i tried it with ro/di water and the ammonia is 0, i mean the colour from the test tube is very clear, really a huge difference with a .25 ammonia.

[bryzki]

Hi, here are some of the pictures, pardon me if its not in the order from when i started it, the tank i bought was already used.. Need to save for other stuffs.. Everything here in norway is expensive... Anyway here are the pictures!! I wonder what is the slimmy looking thing on the picture.. It is moving, its like a snail without shell, brown in color..


http://s14.postimg.org/dt9hd2fi5/image.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/dt9hd2fi5/)

http://s14.postimg.org/bq3nj5531/image.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/bq3nj5531/)

http://s14.postimg.org/d6f61a7zx/image.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/d6f61a7zx/)

http://s14.postimg.org/lpyjz1gcd/image.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/lpyjz1gcd/)

http://s14.postimg.org/v59tyi8zh/image.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/v59tyi8zh/)

http://s14.postimg.org/7prwt5p8d/image.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/7prwt5p8d/)

http://s14.postimg.org/lsdu84um5/image.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/lsdu84um5/)

http://s14.postimg.org/ubx85w2yl/image.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/ubx85w2yl/)

http://s14.postimg.org/sy5lal3p9/image.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/sy5lal3p9/)

http://s14.postimg.org/nvo9fsuf1/image.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/nvo9fsuf1/)

[bryzki]

Hi, i tested the water today, 2 days after i added the raw shrimp...

2/18 ammonia .25, ph 7.8, N02- 0, N03- 0

I wonder why i am not getting that spike of ammonia... maybe i should wait after a week before testing again... or should i test every other day?

i have a high range nitrate testkit... 0,5,10...

[dunc101]

Have you tried taking some fresh saltwater mix and performing an ammonia test on it yet? The API saltwater kit always looked more like .25 to me instead of 0. Because you used all live rock, I wouldn't be surprised if it is done cycling. I've seen people that start with all live rock have practically no cycle before.

[Fizz71]

Like we said..you may never GET an ammonia spike if you have live rock that has already cultured the appropriate bacteria population. If you REALLY want to test you can add pure ammonia to your system, wait 5 minutes and test and you'll see it, then wait 24 hours and see if it's gone. You'll have to do the math on how much ammonia to add.

Also...don't test RO for a baseline ammonia reading....test fresh mixed saltwater made FROM RO. I'd get all the shrimp out of there, stop feeding and see what it says in 48 hours...it will probably be 0. If not, take the water to your LFS and have them test it. The is also always a chance you have something small decaying (from the move).

I'd also get a low range nitrate test kit if you're serious about keeping corals..for FO or FOWLR high range is fine, but for reef systems we care about a much smaller level.

[bryzki]

thanks for the input guys, really appreciate it. ill take out the shrimp now and test it after 48hours.


oh my it stinks!!

[Mcgeezer]

Your probably already cycled, but I'd give it a few days to see if ammonia drops on its own. if it goes back to zero and you read zero everywhere else, youre good to go

[Fizz71]

Ok..that answers my next question. I wasn't sure if you still had the shrimp in there. 9kgs of live rock is not really enough to handle a shrimp in all out decomposition! So I'm not surprised you're maintaining an ammonia reading. I'm not saying you don't have enough rock, I'm just saying that the bacteria population on a young 9kg of rock will not keep up.

You sound like you're in good shape.

Good luck.

[bryzki]

thanks guys for helping, as for to day here are my tank parameters

ammonia 0, ph 7.8, N02- 0, N03- 0

do i need to make my ph around 8 or 8.2? and how do i do it... thanks!!!

by the way i am seeing small shrimp like creatures crawling around my LR and LS... i cant take a photo of them because they are to fast to be focused on....


if my water parameter stays the same by next week can i add CUC..? also do i need to add some food flakes to the tank for the bacteria to have something to eat...?

CUC price here in norway is skyhigh....

[Fizz71]

IMO 7.8 is low, but OK. I know it's also tough to get an accurate reading with some test kits too so it may even be a little higher. 7.8 is the lowest you would want. I have a big system...so I went to a probe for better accuracy but they can be pricey for somebody looking to keep a 20g.

Also...Are you running your lights? pH will go up a bit when the lights are on so if you're running/testing with no lights 7.8 is perfectly normal.

Those readings are what I thought you'd have. You're cycled. I wouldn't feed any more, the bacteria should be OK for a week until you get a CUC in there, but I WOULD feed the CUC once it's in, especially if there isn't a lot on the rock for them to eat.

The small shrimp you see are "pods". Google each of these: amphipods, isopods, copepods. Searching for "reef hitchhikers" or "live rock hitchhikers" is also a good way to waste a day. Pods are great for your tank..free food for your fish. :) If you really want to see what's going on in your tank get a red flashlight (or make one) and look at your reef at 1 in the morning! Then (if you're married) try explain to your wife that you're not crazy for getting up at 1am to look at your tank because we've all done it. :)

Take care.

[dunc101]

Yep. My tank usually gets down to 7.8 during the night and up around 8.0 and sometimes 8.1 during different seasons. It's a little low than the 'recommended' standards but has worked just fine for me over the past 2 and a half years. Your highest pH will be at the very end of your lighting cycle. In any regards, I would not go about chasing pH. That'll get you into more trouble than it's worth. Do some reading around to see why. I mainly monitor my pH just so I can tell if something is "wrong" (out of my normal range). IE: if I wake up one morning and see my pH at 8.5.... either my probe is wrong or my alk dosing pump probably got stuck on (my APEX cuts dosing off at 8.4).