Cycling a new Biocube 32

[brandon429]

It's true eventually testing for all the params and using dosers and absorbers to alter water reduces water changes, but intitial success is the other way, it's the wax on wax off way then in half a year you can go to cobra kai param testers dojo

miyagi do reefs by feel and visual cues.

 

[Daniel266jz]

yes that's a perfect start. It will feed assertively its perfect I have a variant of one of those

Additional tuning, to welcome it:

Post a pic of how blue you can get your reef lit here at night in dark room, lemme see it's tone

That favia will not bleach if it's not kept under white light. White light and white rocks will bleach it. But heavy blues, too ugly to photograph blue, turned medium intensity (or if no adjust raise light up to begin acclimating it when he gives it to you) + weekly feeding in the mornings when feeders are out will double that coral in eight years. lol it's a long scope hobby, we measure in decades.

I will get that picture for you a little later once my son falls asleep. I will be picking up the favia this weekend along with a couple of other starter corals, probably forgspawn,zoanthids, and a duncan. I plan on getting one regular cleaner shrimp and a handful of snails. That is my base plan while running filter floss/chaeto/purigen. I will log my salinity/temp daily on my phones app

 

[brandon429]

Yes all that is good itll work, if you light acclimate them dim to about 60% max intensity, over about ten days it will work.

 

[Daniel266jz]

Yes all that is good itll work, if you light acclimate them dim to about 60% max intensity, over about ten days it will work.

Sounds good. I will have to have you explain the light dimming once i post a picture because my biocube only does set times i do not know if it dims.

 

[brandon429]

One way we can compensate is short photoperiods vs standard nine hours, we’d work up to nine hour on cycles.


first few days two hours then slightly up over ten days and if you could find plastic grid from sewing stores or Walmart / thin strips of dark tape over lights slightly, block partially, can be used as blinders and you remove them over ten days

 

[Gungnir]

You might consider this for a refugium light:

ACKE LED Grow Lights Full Spectrum,Plant Lights，Growing Lamps 12W for Indoor Plants,Hydropoincs

I used some velcro to attach it to the back of my biocube.

 

[Daniel266jz]

You might consider this for a refugium light:

ACKE LED Grow Lights Full Spectrum,Plant Lights，Growing Lamps 12W for Indoor Plants,Hydropoincs

I used some velcro to attach it to the back of my biocube.

Thanks for the suggestion, I actually just ordered this one below recommended by a friend.

 

[Daniel266jz]

One way we can compensate is short photoperiods vs standard nine hours, we’d work up to nine hour on cycles.


first few days two hours then slightly up over ten days and if you could find plastic grid from sewing stores or Walmart / thin strips of dark tape over lights slightly, block partially, can be used as blinders and you remove them over ten days

This is as blue as the lights get. We can do your method I’d just need some coaching on it haha

 

[brandon429]

Ok that’s blue that brain coral will love it. If you have the ability to click in one degree of white light + keep it pretty blue like that we are set.

Strips of electrical tape across glass or the lighting strategically can help block light for a few days as you peel it back, those lights aren’t too hot running so if you have a way to tape off a little light intensity somehow this is perfect, nice setup there.

 

[Daniel266jz]

Ok that’s blue that brain coral will love it. If you have the ability to click in one degree of white light + keep it pretty blue like that we are set.

Strips of electrical tape across glass or the lighting strategically can help block light for a few days as you peel it back, those lights aren’t too hot running so if you have a way to tape off a little light intensity somehow this is perfect, nice setup there.

Im pretty sure(without looking at the manual) that I can just set two modes, there is a brighter and a bit dimmer white along with the blue. I will have to check on this when i get home.

 

[Daniel266jz]

Ok that’s blue that brain coral will love it. If you have the ability to click in one degree of white light + keep it pretty blue like that we are set.

Strips of electrical tape across glass or the lighting strategically can help block light for a few days as you peel it back, those lights aren’t too hot running so if you have a way to tape off a little light intensity somehow this is perfect, nice setup there.

I just picked up a purple tip frogspawn , a mushroom coral, and a mix of 5/5 hermit crabs/snails ( it’s all my LFS had), I am floating the corals for 15 minutes and will dip them and my inverts for 45-60 minutes then I will add. How shall I program my lighting? I also picked up Purigen and I’m awaiting my media baskets tomorrow and chaeto on Wednesday.

 

[Daniel266jz]

I just picked up a purple tip frogspawn , a mushroom coral, and a mix of 5/5 hermit crabs/snails ( it’s all my LFS had), I am floating the corals for 15 minutes and will dip them and my inverts for 45-60 minutes then I will add. How shall I program my lighting? I also picked up Purigen and I’m awaiting my media baskets tomorrow and chaeto on Wednesday.

I also got frozen coral food called RODS Feed and some reef roids!

 

[brandon429]

I would leave purigen out, it is a nutrient uptake media save for later. Your tank is barren of nutrients and what you add needs to remain


those are perfect feeds for sure they’re top line


those corals will work great, input them tonite and they’ll stay mostly closed overnite, -do a nice water change before you put them in- this exports anything wierd from the cycling period.
no feed yet, maybe Saturday morning if they’re open nicely tomorrow.

program lights to something dimmer, and blue. If no dim, then thin black electrical tape strips to block lighting, remove over a weeks time frame will suffice

only run about five hours of lighting tomorrow, they need light acclimation.

take quite a good while before you work up to full blues, a tiny bit of white, for nine hours a day its what I use. Helps decrease algae not running 11-12 hours.

when you feed, thaw out a tiny bit of food and use a pipette to inject it across the coral when pumps are off. You don’t want it casting into the rocks wastefully. You are squirting the size of half a pea across that frogspawn, if it’s open tomorrow, maybe tomorrow evening or Saturday morning. No excess feed for first few days. It’s introducing feed smell they won’t take it in yet. Take the amount you feel like feeding, reduce it 90% to half a pea that stuff is poison for a new tank, feed is more bioload than the animals you just bought. It rots dangerously but the tank will build quickly to balance if you are sparing this first week.

dont dip your corals in anything, that stresses them I haven’t dipped in 15 years of reefing. We need to prep them nicely for going into a non coralline tank. Save dips and puragen for later

don’t feed any other corals other than frogspawn and resist algaefying the water, half a pea tiny amnt once, what bleeds off the rest of the tank will see as it builds up. Only the frogspawn needs feeding the other corals you have won’t actively feed.

after giving the frogspawn ten mins to take in what it can, turn pumps back on don’t feed again till Monday evening very tiny pea just the same

 

[brandon429]

Next week we do nice big water change and they can all eat 20% better than this coming week. Thats a safe pace for your cycle. Ok can’t wait to see your work, you will have fun. Frogspawn is 100% perfect starter lps. Tough. They can go 20 mins in the air but save that for later lol

 

[Daniel266jz]

I would leave purigen out, it is a nutrient uptake media save for later. Your tank is barren of nutrients and what you add needs to remain


those are perfect feeds for sure they’re top line


those corals will work great, input them tonite and they’ll stay mostly closed overnite, -do a nice water change before you put them in- this exports anything wierd from the cycling period.
no feed yet, maybe Saturday morning if they’re open nicely tomorrow.

program lights to something dimmer, and blue. If no dim, then thin black electrical tape strips to block lighting, remove over a weeks time frame will suffice

only run about five hours of lighting tomorrow, they need light acclimation.

take quite a good while before you work up to full blues, a tiny bit of white, for nine hours a day its what I use. Helps decrease algae not running 11-12 hours.

when you feed, thaw out a tiny bit of food and use a pipette to inject it across the coral when pumps are off. You don’t want it casting into the rocks wastefully. You are squirting the size of half a pea across that frogspawn, if it’s open tomorrow, maybe tomorrow evening or Saturday morning. No excess feed for first few days. It’s introducing feed smell they won’t take it in yet. Take the amount you feel like feeding, reduce it 90% to half a pea that stuff is poison for a new tank, feed is more bioload than the animals you just bought. It rots dangerously but the tank will build quickly to balance if you are sparing this first week.

dont dip your corals in anything, that stresses them I haven’t dipped in 15 years of reefing. We need to prep them nicely for going into a non coralline tank. Save dips and puragen for later

don’t feed any other corals other than frogspawn and resist algaefying the water, half a pea tiny amnt once, what bleeds off the rest of the tank will see as it builds up. Only the frogspawn needs feeding the other corals you have won’t actively feed.

after giving the frogspawn ten mins to take in what it can, turn pumps back on don’t feed again till Monday evening very tiny pea just the same

I have normal black electrical tape will that do? I don’t have anything other then that? I also have normal beige clear tape? Okay I will update you on they’re looks tomorrow I only set lighting from 6AM to 11AM

 

[Daniel266jz]

I have normal black electrical tape will that do? I don’t have anything other then that? I also have normal beige clear tape? Okay I will update you on they’re looks tomorrow I only set lighting from 6AM to 11AM

What I meant to say about the tape is how much do I tape it? Do I leave some spots open?

 

[Daniel266jz]

I would leave purigen out, it is a nutrient uptake media save for later. Your tank is barren of nutrients and what you add needs to remain


those are perfect feeds for sure they’re top line


those corals will work great, input them tonite and they’ll stay mostly closed overnite, -do a nice water change before you put them in- this exports anything wierd from the cycling period.
no feed yet, maybe Saturday morning if they’re open nicely tomorrow.

program lights to something dimmer, and blue. If no dim, then thin black electrical tape strips to block lighting, remove over a weeks time frame will suffice

only run about five hours of lighting tomorrow, they need light acclimation.

take quite a good while before you work up to full blues, a tiny bit of white, for nine hours a day its what I use. Helps decrease algae not running 11-12 hours.

when you feed, thaw out a tiny bit of food and use a pipette to inject it across the coral when pumps are off. You don’t want it casting into the rocks wastefully. You are squirting the size of half a pea across that frogspawn, if it’s open tomorrow, maybe tomorrow evening or Saturday morning. No excess feed for first few days. It’s introducing feed smell they won’t take it in yet. Take the amount you feel like feeding, reduce it 90% to half a pea that stuff is poison for a new tank, feed is more bioload than the animals you just bought. It rots dangerously but the tank will build quickly to balance if you are sparing this first week.

dont dip your corals in anything, that stresses them I haven’t dipped in 15 years of reefing. We need to prep them nicely for going into a non coralline tank. Save dips and puragen for later

don’t feed any other corals other than frogspawn and resist algaefying the water, half a pea tiny amnt once, what bleeds off the rest of the tank will see as it builds up. Only the frogspawn needs feeding the other corals you have won’t actively feed.

after giving the frogspawn ten mins to take in what it can, turn pumps back on don’t feed again till Monday evening very tiny pea just the same

This is what I put together. Sorry for the dumb electrical tape question when that is what you specified.

 

[brandon429]

Yes great

These steps will guide corals into the new dry scape it'll begin to take on colors in a month or so. We don't have to clean rocks obsessively, when you feel like practice if algae grows just lift rock out and kill it/ set rock back. That won't be till later on I bet, a few weeks perhaps

Tape is a sick trick. At work Monday I'll show you my desk planted tank, blue painters tape runs down the light lol for the perfect intensity cut so algae won't form. My light is oversized for the tank, yours is a good reef light we are just acclimating coral.

 

[Daniel266jz]

Yes great

These steps will guide corals into the new dry scape it'll begin to take on colors in a month or so. We don't have to clean rocks obsessively, when you feel like practice if algae grows just lift rock out and kill it/ set rock back. That won't be till later on I bet, a few weeks perhaps

Tape is a sick trick. At work Monday I'll show you my desk planted tank, blue painters tape runs down the light lol for the perfect intensity cut so algae won't form. My light is oversized for the tank, yours is a good reef light we are just acclimating coral.

Okay great! I will still be picking up my Favia this weekend or possibly tomorrow as my friend has been unavailable.

 

[Daniel266jz]

Yes great

These steps will guide corals into the new dry scape it'll begin to take on colors in a month or so. We don't have to clean rocks obsessively, when you feel like practice if algae grows just lift rock out and kill it/ set rock back. That won't be till later on I bet, a few weeks perhaps

Tape is a sick trick. At work Monday I'll show you my desk planted tank, blue painters tape runs down the light lol for the perfect intensity cut so algae won't form. My light is oversized for the tank, yours is a good reef light we are just acclimating coral.

Will I be able to run my chaeto setup while in fallow? I have my light and media racks along with my chaeto on the way