Cycling my new tank

droidus · Jun 9, 2018

I have a 32G tank. I've attached a picture of it. It's been running like this for 1 week now. I have a heater, skimmer, refractometer, and water test kit on their way. What should I be doing? How do I know when it's been fully cycled? I need to move around the sand and rocks yet.
Edit: I now have an ro/di system (4 stage).

sergifed91 · Jun 9, 2018

just wait. if it's only been a week you have a ways to go. took me 6 weeks for my tank to fully cycle.

Ranjib · Jun 9, 2018

Welcome to r2r. Generally, you can check for nitrate/nitrite/ammonia and you'll see an ammonia spike in test results as time pass by. Normally it takes couple of weeks, but it varies wildly depending upon the setup. You can also do some ghost feeding (i.e. add a pinch of fish food) and that should not result in ammonia spike (i.e you have beneficial bacteria established to break down the food).

What I prefer is to just wait longer till some algae grows

, once the algae (all sorts of green stuff) grows, start adding cleanup crew (snail, crabs etc)

hdsoftail1065 · Jun 9, 2018

Welcome to R2R!! Nice little cube you have going on there. I think you will really like it once you have it up and going!

droidus · Jun 9, 2018

Ranjib said:
Welcome to r2r. Generally, you can check for nitrate/nitrite/ammonia and you'll see an ammonia spike in test results as time pass by. Normally it takes couple of weeks, but it varies wildly depending upon the setup. You can also do some ghost feeding (i.e. add a pinch of fish food) and that should not result in ammonia spike (i.e you have beneficial bacteria established to break down the food).

What I prefer is to just wait longer till some algae grows , once the algae (all sorts of green stuff) grows, start adding cleanup crew (snail, crabs etc)

Do I wait till the nitrite/nitrate/ammonia drop to 0?

Mark Gray · Jun 9, 2018

Welcome to R2R I just started the cycle on my new build it has been almost 2 weeks now. I put some raw shrimp in, then I got ammonia now the ammonia is gone and I have Nitrite, when the nitrite drops to 0 I should have Nitrate, and it will be cycled

Ranjib · Jun 9, 2018

droidus said:
Do I wait till the nitrite/nitrate/ammonia drop to 0?

Ammonia has to be 0. Nitrite as well. you are ok with nitrate less than 5/10. Its new tank, once ammonia settles, you do a large water change and your are good to go. Remember one thing "nothing good happens fast in this hobby"... by slow we mean in month(s). My personal preference is to do thing only when you understand why you are doing it. Fishes are good to introduce once nitrogen cycle is introduced. CUC is required for cleaning up, so they are good once you get some algae or the fish is in (to eat fish poop). Corals at last. After fish & CUC, Have you decided on the livestock ?

droidus · Jun 9, 2018

Ranjib said:
After fish & CUC, Have you decided on the livestock ?

Livestock, as in coral? I thought livestock was fish, etc.

Ranjib · Jun 9, 2018

droidus said:
Livestock, as in coral? I thought livestock was fish, etc.

coral , fish, inverts... pretty much everything other than algae :0)

Dennis McGrath · Jun 9, 2018

That rock looks nice.
I've got the same tank (Biocube 32 I assume?) I really like it. Mine's doing good, just added more CUC guys today. I also added a UV sterilizer and a powerhead.

droidus · Jun 9, 2018

Dennis McGrath said:
That rock looks nice.
I've got the same tank (Biocube 32 I assume?) I really like it. Mine's doing good, just added more CUC guys today. I also added a UV sterilizer and a powerhead.

How did you know when to add them? How long did it take you to fully cycle your tank?
What is the benefit of using a UV sterilizer?
And yes, a 32G biocube.

droidus · Jun 9, 2018

Ranjib said:
coral , fish, inverts... pretty much everything other than algae :0)

Honestly, not sure yet. Haven't gotten that far. Any recommendations? What about anemones? I heard they are hard to take care of, but clown fish enjoy them.
Why are corals last?

mike werner · Jun 9, 2018

welcome,i think ranjib has ya covered.take your time is easier said than done so take your time anyway.that is the best advice of all and the most important thing in the hobby imo.

Dennis McGrath · Jun 9, 2018

Once the diatoms start on the rock, it's time. I put in 40 pounds of Carib Sea live sand that is supposed to speed up the cycling process drastically (they say instant, but....)
UV sterilizer will help to reduce algae blooms.

1WildBill · Jun 9, 2018

You’ll need test kits (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate to start with) to know when your tank is cycled. Once your tank is cycled, add your CUC and 1 or 2 fish. Start out with your smaller less aggressive fish first, and work up to there. You don’t want to throw all your fish in at once, that will shock the cycle and cause problems.

The reason you should wait on corals is to get your system established.

hdsoftail1065 · Jun 9, 2018

droidus said:
Honestly, not sure yet. Haven't gotten that far. Any recommendations? What about anemones? I heard they are hard to take care of, but clown fish enjoy them.
Why are corals last?

I also have a 32. Here is a great article on anenomes. I didn't follow this rule because I seen this a while after I got a couple. I got lucky, ours is really getting big and has split once. If I would have seen this article I probably would have waited. I don't find them hard to care for.

https://www.reef2reef.com/ams/anemones-and-why-you-should-wait.448/