1st cycle on my 1st nano tank

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Wolfgang

New Member
I could use some info, I have 2 people that are helping me with the new salt adventer, and more times than not I get 2 different answers to a question. I figured I would ask here :)

I just setup a Bio Cube 14 (its actually 10g) I used 2 gallons from a up and running Salt tank to get things going, then I mixed the rest up according to directions on the salt, I used RO water for this. I have live sand and "cured" live rock in it, approx 10Lbs of rock and 17-20 lbs of sand.

I checked salinity, ammonia, nitrates and this is what I have:

Temp = 78 F
Salinity = 1.024
Ammonia = .50
Nitrates = 15

I plan on doing another test tomorow and see if theirs any changes, I would appreciate any advice you may have, also curious on how the levels look.


1 more thing, I got a little hitchicker on a rock, it remings me of a potato bug, or rollie-pollies as daughter calls them. It curled up when I touched it, its green, with brownish/red markings on the top. Oval shaped, its weird looking :)

Its still curled up in a ball, not moving yet. Any ideas what it may be? I'll try to post a pic or two, when I can.


Thanks
Jamie
 
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johnanddawn

New Member
i post this same response so many times to people just startng a tank:
1) if your lights are on - turn them off and leave them off
2) testing can be fun and interesting for beginners learning the process of a tanks biological process but bottom line is don't do anything as far as adding livestock for at least a month regardless of the tests.
3) every weekend change out about 2-3 gallons of water in a 5 gallon bucket. take each piece of your rock out, inspect it, scrub it off with a tooth brush and rinse it out in the salt water.
4)during the month read everything you can about critters you are thinking i've adding to your tank to see if they are hardy and compatable with your size tank and lights.
5) on the weekend before your month is up do a large water change 50%+ and turn the lights on a short period schedule say 4-8 hours. you will still likely get a diatom bloom (brown microscopic algae that covers everything). when this diappears you can start adding critters. the diatom blooom usually lasts a week.
- this slow but methodic start to a tank will help to insure that you do not have any pests like: bubble algae, aptasia, crabs, mantis ect. and will get you off to a good start to a happy healthy tank
 
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Trogdor

New Member
johnanddawn said:
i post this same response so many times to people just startng a tank:
1) if your lights are on - turn them off and leave them off
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This is a good idea to help keep algae and diatom levels down

johnanddawn said:
2) testing can be fun and interesting for beginners learning the process of a tanks biological process but bottom line is don't do anything as far as adding livestock for at least a month regardless of the tests.
Click to expand...
Not entirely true. Once your levels reach zero, do a 10%-20% water change. Most people will wait a week just to make sure that you don't get another ammonia spike. Then it should be safe to add livestock

johnanddawn said:
3) every weekend change out about 2-3 gallons of water in a 5 gallon bucket. take each piece of your rock out, inspect it, scrub it off with a tooth brush and rinse it out in the salt water.
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This isn't needed and will cause more die-off than anything else, which will cause your ammonia to stay elevated longer. Anytime that your rock is exposed to air, there will be some die-off of the bacteria that lives in it.

johnanddawn said:
4)during the month read everything you can about critters you are thinking i've adding to your tank to see if they are hardy and compatable with your size tank and lights.
Click to expand...
This is a good idea and here is a fish guide that will help you decide what is required for certain fish.

johnanddawn said:
5) on the weekend before your month is up do a large water change 50%+ and turn the lights on a short period schedule say 4-8 hours. you will still likely get a diatom bloom (brown microscopic algae that covers everything). when this diappears you can start adding critters. the diatom blooom usually lasts a week.
- this slow but methodic start to a tank will help to insure that you do not have any pests like: bubble algae, aptasia, crabs, mantis ect. and will get you off to a good start to a happy healthy tank
Click to expand...
You don't have to wait for the diatom bloom to disappear before adding your livestock. You will want to start off with your clean-up crew first; which will be snails and crabs. Shrimp should be added after about a month to be sure that the tank chemistry is stable. (they are pretty sensitive to nitrates)
 
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reefman23

New Member
Trogdor, I have to agree with John here and disagree with you on a couple of things. removal of the LR pieces for a very short period will do no major harm. You ar right that you will lose a very small amount of bacterial life but it will be negligible. It is also better than finding a pest of somesort later down the road.

Not entirely true. Once your levels reach zero, do a 10%-20% water change. Most people will wait a week just to make sure that you don't get another ammonia spike. Then it should be safe to add livestock.
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This is a big problem people seem to have. Being patient. Dont do a water change as soon as the levels are at zero. Do wait and then do a good-sized water change.


Wolfgang, as you can see, you WILL get varying answers with everything in this hobby. It is inevitable. Come here and ask questions, research your info using reputable sources of info, and never trust a LFS!

Jesse
 
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The Kapenta Kid

New Member
I like the Johnanddawn approach. Take it nice and easy. Even though you could theoretically add livestock on Day X according to the water parameters, it won't hurt to wait until x+20 or whatever. It's good patience training too, a quality that is needed in all fishkeeping :mrgreen:
 
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Trogdor

New Member
So you guys are saying to wait a month after the cycle to add any livestock? What is going to happen to the bacteria that feed off of ammonia or nitrites if you have no bio-load? I have always assumed that you didn't want to wait too long because those bacteria's food supply isn't available at the same levels as they were during the cycle.

Jesse's right about getting a wide variety of answers because people have gone about setting up their own tanks slightly different from someone else. What works in someone's tank may not work in another's. The best that we can do is give advice and let you follow what you feel is the best method. Anyway, hope you enjoy your stay.
 
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KidNano

New Member
And Welcome to the world of reefkeeping. Isn't it fun not knowing who to believe or what to do even with so many answers. I love it.

What every you add just make sure it's an easy to care for hardy creature until your tanks been up for a while. everything will work it's self out in a few months anyway and it'll give you a chance to learn and study up. The way I see it, the more problems you have with your first tank the better off you will be on your second tank.

good luck and keep us posted. Pics always make it fun. :D
 
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Wolfgang

New Member
I checked salinity, ammonia, nitrates and this is what I have as of last night.

Temp = 78 F
Salinity = 1.023
Ammonia = .50 ? the color actually looks like it may be lower.
Nitrates = 10

Thanks for all the help :)

Jamie
 
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KidNano

New Member
Jamie,
1. When did you start the tank?
2. that Ammonia should drop pretty quick and the Nitrites will come up. then they will start to drop and the Nitrates will rise. when your Ammonia reads 0.00 is when you want to do a pretty big water change.
otherwise just do as the others have sugested. they are the pros afterall.
3. if you didn't read through that link I posted above then you really should. It'll answer all of your questions in regards to cycling the tank.

http://fins.actwin.com/mirror/begin-cycling.html read it. It's good.
 
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