Cycling Question

[Maine Reefer]

I understand cycling and the nitrogen cycle but I had a few questions. When should I turn on my protein skimmer? When should I go to my LFS to buy marcoalgae, and add it to my refugium? How often should I test the water? What is the best way to quicken the cycle? I bought dry rock, and live sand. Is Dr. Tim's Aquatics' One and Only Live Nitrifying Bacteria good to quicken the cycle? And should the aquarium lights be on?

 

[Ludders]

Welcome.

How long have you had it running so far? I would turn the skimmer on straight away, but have it turned right down. This will be part of the break in period all skimmers go through. Once you need it, it will be all ready for you doing it this way.

Is it just a skimmer you have at the moment, or do you have or plan to use any media reactors?

I would test the water probably every other day at the early stages and see what's going on. You can dose amonia to kick start things and aid the process.

I wouldn't think about anything like chaeto until you start nitrate build up.

 

[Maine Reefer]

I haven't started my tank yet. I was just thinking ahead. Thanks a lot that really helped. I don't plan of running any media reactors anytime soon.

 

[Ludders]

Once your cycle is complete and you have added some life stock, monitor your nitrates and you can think about algae in your fuge. Make sure you get a half decent light and it will keep your algae happy. Ones that give off a purple light seem to work the best.

 

[redfishbluefish]

Starting with dry rock, you'll actually need to do two things.....CURE the rock, and CYCLE the tank. Luckily this can occur concurrently with the CURE typically taking a bit longer. Rock curing allows the death within to continue to decay and leave the rock while cycling allows new bacteria to populate the rock. For curing, you'll want to do water changes until nitrates start to go down to a reasonable level. If need be, 100% water changes wook here, and I prefer doing this weekly. Just to give you the heads up, curing could take between 1 - 2 months. While this cure is occurring, the cycle will be ongoing as well. You can quicken the cycle by adding one of the nitriying bacteria products.

As far as the skimmer, I'd run it for breakin purposes with expectations of very little skimmate because of the low bioload.

 

[Maine Reefer]

Starting with dry rock, you'll actually need to do two things.....CURE the rock, and CYCLE the tank. Luckily this can occur concurrently with the CURE typically taking a bit longer. Rock curing allows the death within to continue to decay and leave the rock while cycling allows new bacteria to populate the rock. For curing, you'll want to do water changes until nitrates start to go down to a reasonable level. If need be, 100% water changes wook here, and I prefer doing this weekly. Just to give you the heads up, curing could take between 1 - 2 months. While this cure is occurring, the cycle will be ongoing as well. You can quicken the cycle by adding one of the nitriying bacteria products.

As far as the skimmer, I'd run it for breakin purposes with expectations of very little skimmate because of the low bioload.

I've done some reading, and about half say 'cure dry rock' and the other half say 'you don't need to cure dry rock because there is nothing living on it.' Which am I to listen to?

 

[redfishbluefish]

I've done some reading, and about half say 'cure dry rock' and the other half say 'you don't need to cure dry rock because there is nothing living on it.' Which am I to listen to?

Yes....but at one time that dry rock was "alive." Once dried out, all that life died. You now need to get rid of that death. You know how "clean" your rock is within a week or two by measuring nitrates and phosphates. That's the easiest way to monitor the decay of that dead stuff coming from your rock. If it's "dirty" rock, the nitrate number can easily climb above 50 ppm.

So what you listen to are your nitrate numbers. If they stay low (below 10 ppm), that's pretty clean rock. If nitrates climb high, do water changes until you start to see that number decrease. Again, let your nitrate number answer that for you....and then compose your own opinion.

 

[Idoc]

I've done some reading, and about half say 'cure dry rock' and the other half say 'you don't need to cure dry rock because there is nothing living on it.' Which am I to listen to?

What kind of dry rock are you using?
I just finished cycling my system. I used dry Pukani...I cured it for 6 weeks prior to even thinking about cycling my tank. During that process, it released tons of phosphates and ammonia from dead stuff decaying! I didn't plan on cycling at the same time (to create nitrifying bacterial colonies) so I just cured my rock in regular freshwater...cheaper that way since you will be definitely doing 100% water changes every couple of days with Pukani. But, many of the other types of dry rock are cleaner and don't require the same time as Pukani. You could put the rock in a Rubbermaid bin with a heater and powerhead...and freshwater...and just let it sit for a week or two. Test the water for ammonia and phosphates...if testing practically nothing, then the rock is cured! Then set it up in your tank and start the nitrification cycling process!

I prefer to do the natural method rather than bottled bacteria! I dosed to around 2-3 ppm pure ammonia and watched the levels change...then I knew I had a proper cycle!

Also...many say not to run a skimmer during cycling, others say its ok. I didn't...

Definitely NO LIGHTS during the cycling!!! You will have a huge algae growth too early for any CUC to clean up! Wait until the cycle is complete for lights.

After the cycle, your nitrates will be really high! You will need to do several big water changes to bring them down to manageable size. After these water changes...and the presence of some phosphates...you could start macro-algae in your sump.

Just my opinion...just finished and it worked well for me!

 

[tankstudy]

I understand cycling and the nitrogen cycle but I had a few questions. When should I turn on my protein skimmer?

Based off your other questions, if you plan to use Dr. Tim's One and Only, it's best you turn the skimmer on once your done with the cycle.

When should I go to my LFS to buy marcoalgae, and add it to my refugium?

I prefer to add macro algae once I start getting inhabitants that I regularly feed. Macroalgaes do require nutrients, nitrogen and phosphate, to grow and survive. If you add it into a system with little or no nutrients, they usually grow poorly or die off.

How often should I test the water?

Depends on which type of cycling method you choose. If your doing the shrimp technique, once a week is plenty. If your doing bottled bacteria, it can be as much as everyday.

What is the best way to quicken the cycle?

Bottled bacteria can quicken a cycle. Those who are pretty knowledgeable about the nitrogen cycle & bottled bacteria can get it done in just a couple days. Generally, if it's your first time with bottled bacteria, I recommend following the instructions on Dr. Tim's One and Only product. You'll run in to fewer problems.

Is Dr. Tim's Aquatics' One and Only Live Nitrifying Bacteria good to quicken the cycle?

I use this one quite regularly, it's a good product to quicken a cycle. You can also use biospira which can be found at large retail pet stores. Make sure you check the product date on it. Bacteria in a bottle can die off if not stored properly or has been sitting there for a long period of time.

And should the aquarium lights be on?

I've seen it done with lights and no lights. I generally prefer no lights cause I want to grow nothing but bacteria. Don't really need any photosynthetic organisms at this time.

 

[Maine Reefer]

What kind of dry rock are you using?
I just finished cycling my system. I used dry Pukani...I cured it for 6 weeks prior to even thinking about cycling my tank. During that process, it released tons of phosphates and ammonia from dead stuff decaying! I didn't plan on cycling at the same time (to create nitrifying bacterial colonies) so I just cured my rock in regular freshwater...cheaper that way since you will be definitely doing 100% water changes every couple of days with Pukani. But, many of the other types of dry rock are cleaner and don't require the same time as Pukani. You could put the rock in a Rubbermaid bin with a heater and powerhead...and freshwater...and just let it sit for a week or two. Test the water for ammonia and phosphates...if testing practically nothing, then the rock is cured! Then set it up in your tank and start the nitrification cycling process!

I prefer to do the natural method rather than bottled bacteria! I dosed to around 2-3 ppm pure ammonia and watched the levels change...then I knew I had a proper cycle!

Also...many say not to run a skimmer during cycling, others say its ok. I didn't...

Definitely NO LIGHTS during the cycling!!! You will have a huge algae growth too early for any CUC to clean up! Wait until the cycle is complete for lights.

After the cycle, your nitrates will be really high! You will need to do several big water changes to bring them down to manageable size. After these water changes...and the presence of some phosphates...you could start macro-algae in your sump.

Just my opinion...just finished and it worked well for me!

I bought BRS Reef Saver Dry Aquarium Live Dry Rock. They claim it is 100% free of any pests or algae.

 

[Idoc]

I bought BRS Reef Saver Dry Aquarium Live Dry Rock. They claim it is 100% free of any pests or algae.

I doubt you will have much die off with the Reef Saver. But, it is still advisable to put it in a bin with some water (fresh or saltwater) and run it at around 82 degrees or higher (warm water decomposes any residual faster) with a powerhead. Check the parameters of the water after about 3 days...if any spikes, keep it longer running. If no spikes, probably good chance you won't have any issues and can start your bacteria cycle whenever you want.

 

[Maine Reefer]

I doubt you will have much die off with the Reef Saver. But, it is still advisable to put it in a bin with some water (fresh or saltwater) and run it at around 82 degrees or higher (warm water decomposes any residual faster) with a powerhead. Check the parameters of the water after about 3 days...if any spikes, keep it longer running. If no spikes, probably good chance you won't have any issues and can start your bacteria cycle whenever you want.

A friend told me a good way to eliminate any die off on Reef Saver would be to boil the rocks for a couple of minutes. Does this work, or is he lying to me?

 

[Idoc]

A friend told me a good way to eliminate any die off on Reef Saver would be to boil the rocks for a couple of minutes. Does this work, or is he lying to me?

Don't boil the rocks... I've heard stories of rocks exploding when boiled! Something to do with the pressure changes inside the rock and the air/gas buildup maybe!
I think in your case, simply putting the rocks in a bin, warming up the water, and getting some water movement with a powerhead for a few days will be enough to tell you if you need to take more time to cure the rocks or not.

 

[Maine Reefer]

Don't boil the rocks... I've heard stories of rocks exploding when boiled! Something to do with the pressure changes inside the rock and the air/gas buildup maybe!
I think in your case, simply putting the rocks in a bin, warming up the water, and getting some water movement with a powerhead for a few days will be enough to tell you if you need to take more time to cure the rocks or not.

Could I cure the rocks in my tank?

 

[Idoc]

Could I cure the rocks in my tank?

You could... but I think as previously annotated by another, if there are any organics in the rock, it is going to be released into your display tank. That could result in a huge nutrient spike and then result in a huge algae outbreak before you can get rid of it.