Brown Stuff on my sand while Cycling

[shroomdizzle]

Hey guys,

Me again with more issues, gotta love this hobby :D

Anyway, today when I turned the lights on I noticed a very fast build up of brown on the sand. From my research it shows too much nitrates? Some people have suggested adding a gobby or some snails but it seems too soon for that. We're only on week 2 going on 3 of cycling so any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

http://i.imgur.com/gB03EdZ.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/bsbWEgk.jpg

[Red Eyed Reefer]

Diatoms... normal part of cycling :)

[ssick92]

Diatoms... normal part of cycling :)

+1

They will come and go on their own. It happens during every tank cycle, usually followed by some green film algae. If your nitrates stay high after the green film algae stage, that is when you can start seeing green hair algae so you will want to keep your nitrates and phosphates in check, but that is down the road a few months.

[ssick92]

The bigger question though is where is all your live rock? You will want a lot more than you have in the tank currently. The general rule of thumb is 1 lb of live rock per gallon of water.

[shroomdizzle]

That's reassuring, thanks guys.

As for live rock, i've been buying it as budget allows. I'll be picking up the rest in about a week, and after that a proper RO system.

[Joe0813]

+1 on the diatoms and needing more rock. You said you're getting a rodi system? So what did you use to fill your tank

[mcgyvr]

Yes.. this is a 100% normal part of cycling/new/immature a tank..
Typically everyone will get diatoms first.. Maybe some green/brown,etc... algaes a bit later.. even some cyano bacteria.. You don't need to run lights during cycling and that can help from it getting too bad..

Make sure you keep nitrates/phosphates low..
Don't be afraid to do water changes during cycling to keep them from getting too high during the process and just go slow..

and yes a good RO/DI system is a must

[bal009]

i have the same brown spots as well now so i ll wait patiently for the cycle to complet.

I was also wondering... is it a good idea to leave the lights on for a few hours while cycling the tank?

[bal009]

i have the same brown spots as well now so i ll wait patiently for the cycle to complete.

I was also wondering... is it a good idea to leave the lights on for a few hours while cycling the tank?

Do i need a skimmer for this aquarium if i m planning to set up a reef?

[Voodoojar]

Turn off the lights during cycling.

[Hooloovoo]

RO/DI should help keep the diatoms under control by removing silica, which the diatoms need to form their shells. As for the skimmer, I wouldn't say it is a complete necessity, but if you aren't going to use one, you will need to use some other equally effective method or combination of methods for removing excess organics. There are a variety of other ways that it can be done, but a skimmer is the most popular, tried and true method that I have seen. A good quality skimmer has the advantage of being pretty simple to maintain. I think anything you can do to simplify maintenance will pay off in increased enjoyment of the tank.

[Hooloovoo]

To clarify, I don't think there is a need to rush into adding a skimmer now while you are still cycling unless you just come across a great deal you don't want to pass up. The skimmer will really be useful once you begin adding livestock. Until then, it really won't do a whole lot.

[bal009]

Guys,

So I'm on my third week of cycling my tank and my only fish (a chromis) died due to the expected ammonia spike. At this point i'm going to let the cycle finish without adding any more fish. Will the cycle finish if i don't add any other fish or food daily? Do i need to keep adding a little bit of food to the tank to help the cycle fnish at this point?


Here are my current numbers:

Ammonia 0.50
Nitrite 0.25
Nitrate 10

[1sttimer]

have you been doing water changes?
I never got more than .25 of ammo and nitrites during my cycle.
I also added colony to help with the cycle. Check out the aquaforest products also.

[bal009]

No i haven't done any water changes yet , i was planning to do my first one on week 4. Should i do a water change on week 3 already? li

[Spiffy]

Diatoms. Normal.

[bal009]

Hey Guys,

A quick help here reading the nitrites... does this looks to you guys more like 0.25 or 1.0? lol


:)

[Fish Friend]

Sorry to hear about your chromis, experience will make you better so don't fret about it.

The test seems to be closer to the darker of the two.
Adding taxifolia, or other "pretty" macro algae, can help chew up the toxic nutrients. If I recall correctly macro algae prefer to eat ammonia but will accept your nitrites and nitrates if you offer it :)