50% water change or ride it out???

[assad319]

Hi all.

So I'm about 3 and half weeks into cycling my new Red Sea Max e260. I carried out a water test a few days ago and the readings were as follows:

NO3: 50, NO2: 1, Ammonia less than 0.15

Some have advised me to let the cycle continue to run and the Nitrite should go down but others state that a 50% water change is needed, as I don't have enough bacteria, with the introduction of some crabs and snails after the change. I have been adding some bacteria balls for over the last couple of weeks so not sure if that means I should let the cycle continue without changing the water?

Any thoughts on the best way forward?

 

[brandon429]

Your cycle is done. Post a pic and we can discuss why

the first and strongest requirement to ensure a closed cycle has nothing to do with test params it has to do with # of days the system has been underwater, which you have met. Your nitrate remarks upon how you started and or the current status of the rock, let’s see a pic

Whether or not you change water doesn’t matter since the aquarium can handle a starting bioload and it won’t die. See this thread for excessive details

The microbiology of reef tank cycling.

You can skip your cycle. Ive been reefing online for twenty years and have never waited one second for a tank to cycle, because I buy rocks that are already cycled and move them home. Here's two: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/octo-high-end-sps-skip-cycle-build.713256/...

www.reef2reef.com

page one details: nitrites don’t factor in a cycle at any stage. We deal with ammonia, and number of days underwater. There is a specific way to test if your ammonia is ready if needed, that’s on the last couple pages of the thread where people run the proof test. Yours will pass if you did, due to number of days underwater.

 

[Katrina71]

Ride it out. Good things are happening in there. You can always add bottled bacteria if you'd like.

 

[assad319]

This is a pic of my tank if it helps.

 

[Nicholas Dushynsky]

Ride it.

 

[brandon429]

Yep the photos + timeframe + boosts added align with other tanks we’ve measured and linked in the cycling work, proceed any way you want to proceed nice setup. You can’t undo a cycle with a water change after this long, if you don’t run one that’s ok too

what you do now is a matter of algae tuning and coral color tuning based on how you consider params, your filter bac will pass the twofold proof testing or you can just skip the confirmation testing based on collected similars

the two standout clues you provided was 3.5 weeks and some measured nitrate, proving bac have been added by design or not. Any aquarium is cycled under those two conditions solely. From every cycling chart online we can solve for nitrite knowing only the # of days underwater, no api guess-testing required. Your tank was known cycled due to your first sentence in the description

we did lots of research regarding nitrite in that thread, page one. Check it for nitrite details.

 

[assad319]

I think I may just wait perhaps 10 days or so and see what happens to the nitrite level. Bound to go down sooner or later but if not can then decide on a water change or addition of bacteria. I have used Evolution Aqua's Pure Reef Balance balls for two weeks. I'm guessing that will start to help over time?

 

[lapin]

If you can wait then wait another week or 2.
Example: I never have to worry about ammonia spikes ....I cycle my rock 2 months.
After the first month I add left over pod and rotifer water (from grow out bucket water changes). This not only adds food for bacteria but populates the rock with some helpful stuff. Big water change to get rid of nitrates around day 60. Once I see green starting to grow on my rocks I add a few snails. I have my tank fairly stable and a good routine going and am ready for the QT tank duties. Plus fishes and deals on corals that come along.