3 week old aquarium suggestions

[bg2095]

Is my water bad, just did a 10 percent change two days ago, added 2 800 gph powerheads

 

[Srlopez2]

Amonia have to be 0ppm everything 0ppm except ph it have to be 8.3

 

[Harold Green]

Ph is normal but your nitrate is high. More water changes or something to remove nitrates.

 

[bg2095]

So I should do another water change?

 

[bg2095]

I have the bacteria I can add also I haven't added it for 3 weeks

 

[gaz]

PH looks fine I wouldn't worry about that to much anyway. Nitrate a tad high so if you can get that down a bit would be good but not to detrimental to your fish what I would be worried about is ammonia. Before you worry to much use another test kit or take a sample to your LFS just to make sure the reading is right. What was the ammonia and nitrite reading after you cycled the tank?

 

[bg2095]

By cycle if you mean the 4 gallons I changed out a few days ago, it was all normal and I just cleaned all the brown alge out

 

[Winschuc]

If it's only three weeks old, and the rock was dry, those numbers are about normal. Did you have a spike in ammonia at all? Adding the bacteria might be a good idea since the tank is so new. Are you just concerned about the parameters from the API kit, or are you seeing something else?

By cycle, Gaz means the nitrogen cycle; Ammonia -> Nitrite -> Nitrate... you should see a higher reading in each, sequentially, as bacteria colonize your system.

 

[4FordFamily]

Just be patient above all else. Don't do anything quickly. Water changes are your friend however

 

[bg2095]

The Rock was live, the purple stuff is spreading quickly over everything I had a brown algae spike, I am just concerned because I have two corals but everything seems to be thriving, I am just concerned about the nitrates I guess, I can't keep them at 0, I haven't had a ammonia spike yet but I try to do a 4 gallon water change every days, just new at this and I'm trying to make sure I'm not messing up, the bacteria bottle says " you can't add too much" but still I added half the bottle at setup, should I add more?

 

[Winschuc]

I would just follow the dosing directions on the bottle. Another thing you could do is search for the bacteria by name on this forum. I'm sure someone has used it before and has info posted.

Stability is key, some parameters will fluctuate a bit.

 

[manny mandarin]

When I first started I filled the tank got salinity and temp right and added LR next day and didn't do anything for two weeks, I started to get diatoms I think they're called so I did my first water change, I always do big water changes 30% minimum, I then added my cuc, week later a clownfish and a starry blenny then I took water sample to my local store, which is very local for me, I repeat this proccess every two weeks people tend to panic about water conditions its early when the bacteria and microlife catch up things will settle and almost look after themselves as long as regular water changes are done and you don't overcrowd or over feed

 

[gaz]

Sorry is the ammonia reading 0 or 0.25?

 

[bg2095]

I thought it was 0, I just don't want the coral to die lol I don't have good patients, so basically I should just do a 30 percent water change today and add some more bacteria and just chill out uh?

 

[bg2095]

My ammonia has never really went over 0.25 or the no2, I just keep having problems with the no3 nitrates

 

[smh254]

If your tank is only 3 weeks old u shouldn't be doing any thing to it until the cycle is over. All test should be at 0. Then u can start to add livestock.

 

[bg2095]

I'm way past that, it has cuc coral and fish

 

[gaz]

cycling is the one place you need to be patient and everything else will fall inline. As stated before you nitrate will fluctuate to start but will settle and stabilise. Did your tank go through a cycle or straight in with livestock?

 

[smh254]

In my opinion u shouldn't have any of that in a 3week old tank. Maybe the cuc is ok.

 

[bg2095]

No cycle st8t in with 1 fish, added coral 4 days ago