Cycling the tank

[Reefrookie733]

Ok it's almost time to start the tank cycle and based on this combination i need to know....

200G DT

I'm putting in saltwater, 150#'s of marco dry rock and live sand. Obviously the rock goes in first so i can aqua-scape it and glue everything down, BUT then does the live sand and then the saltwater??

Also, should i add anything like Dr. Tim's one and only or a raw shrimp WITH live sand in the tank??

Thanks as always

 

[gabrieltackitt]

The way I did mine was rock first without any water, then a small amount of water, about 4-6 inches from the bottom. Then I put the live sand in. I drained the water from the sand and then put it into the tank, I didn’t really want the mucky water in the live sand but also You have to be sure to keep the sand moist to prevent too much die off. Are you mixing salt in the tank or do you have it already mixed?

 

[Sparkymarc]

I put sand before water. I think that keeps it from getting as cloudy, mainly because I did a one day transfer and I put my fish in the tank the same day. Plums, I think it made it easier to put the sand where I wanted it. Also, I used Dr. Tim’s ammonium chloride because it made it easy to control how much ammonia I put in.

 

[cvrle1]

Rock, sand, salt water. I would also wash that sand out really good, or you will end up having issues with silt and dirt for months.

You can add bacteria if you want, or you can ghost feed/go shrimp method to start cycle.

Cycling an Aquarium

Cycling a new aquarium. One of the earliest topics a new aquarium hobbyist needs to learn is how to properly cycle their aquarium. There is a ton of information on this process and many different methods on how to accomplish it. There are many different chemical and biological cycles our tank...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[Reefrookie733]

The way I did mine was rock first without any water, then a small amount of water, about 4-6 inches from the bottom. Then I put the live sand in. I drained the water from the sand and then put it into the tank, I didn’t really want the mucky water in the live sand but also You have to be sure to keep the sand moist to prevent too much die off. Are you mixing salt in the tank or do you have it already mixed?

Good question. I was told you can mix it in the tank because there's nothing alive in it, but i guess the sand is live? So i guess i will be mixing it in my 55G drums first

 

[Reefrookie733]

I put sand before water. I think that keeps it from getting as cloudy, mainly because I did a one day transfer and I put my fish in the tank the same day. Plums, I think it made it easier to put the sand where I wanted it. Also, I used Dr. Tim’s ammonium chloride because it made it easy to control how much ammonia I put in.

Did you use Live Sand AND Dr. Tim's ???

 

[Reefrookie733]

Rock, sand, salt water. I would also wash that sand out really good, or you will end up having issues with silt and dirt for months.

You can add bacteria if you want, or you can ghost feed/go shrimp method to start cycle.

Cycling an Aquarium

Cycling a new aquarium. One of the earliest topics a new aquarium hobbyist needs to learn is how to properly cycle their aquarium. There is a ton of information on this process and many different methods on how to accomplish it. There are many different chemical and biological cycles our tank...

www.reef2reef.com

Which one do you think is better? I am not looking for fastest per se.

 

[gabrieltackitt]

Good question. I was told you can mix it in the tank because there's nothing alive in it, but i guess the sand is live? So i guess i will be mixing it in my 55G drums first

Given my tank is much smaller but i didn’t want to risk killing any of the bacteria in the live sand with mixing so I mixed all of the water in my tank in a 5 gallon bucket and added it one bucket at a time. I would say that 55 gallon drum would be a big step up. Most salts say not to mix with anything alive in the water so I would guess that applies to bacteria as well.

I also added Fritz to my tank to give it an extra jumpstart but I’m not sure that was necessary with the live sand or not.

 

[cvrle1]

Which one do you think is better? I am not looking for fastest per se.

I never used any bacteria, so I cant say how good it is (plenty of threads around discussing it). 1st time I set up my tank, I went with shrimp method. This time I plan on doing same. Thats not to say bacteria doesnt work, but I am in no hurry to speed things up. If I cant wait and do proper natural cycle, how will I wait for other things in this hobby sort of a thing.

 

[Reefrookie733]

Rock, sand, salt water. I would also wash that sand out really good, or you will end up having issues with silt and dirt for months.

You can add bacteria if you want, or you can ghost feed/go shrimp method to start cycle.

Cycling an Aquarium

Cycling a new aquarium. One of the earliest topics a new aquarium hobbyist needs to learn is how to properly cycle their aquarium. There is a ton of information on this process and many different methods on how to accomplish it. There are many different chemical and biological cycles our tank...

www.reef2reef.com

How do you rinse "live sand"?? with saltwater? or RO (fresh) water?

 

[gabrieltackitt]

How do you rinse "live sand"?? with saltwater? or RO (fresh) water?

I was told not to rinse it at all. Just drain the water out of bag and pour into the tank.

 

[Reefrookie733]

I never used any bacteria, so I cant say how good it is (plenty of threads around discussing it). 1st time I set up my tank, I went with shrimp method. This time I plan on doing same. Thats not to say bacteria doesnt work, but I am in no hurry to speed things up. If I cant wait and do proper natural cycle, how will I wait for other things in this hobby sort of a thing.

I read the sticky thread on cycling just now, is there a difference between adding Dr. Tims and adding "pure ammonia?

 

[Reefrookie733]

I was told not to rinse it at all. Just drain the water out of bag and pour into the tank.

Cool didnt even think of rinsing the live sand, afraid i would lose some of the good bacteria in it. Lol

 

[Sparkymarc]

Did you use Live Sand AND Dr. Tim's ???

I used live sand and Dr.Tims ammonium chloride to start the cycle. My cycle lasted 30 days to start processing 2ppm of ammonia and nitrite in 24 hrs. I did not use bacteria in a bottle but it will probably help with your cycle

 

[alimac122]

I just set mine up and it cycled in 3 weeks (no fish, added shrimp)
My method was:
Sand, Rock, Saltwater
I had super nasty water for 3-4 days (so cloudy you couldnt see the rock) changing my socks every day.
When it finally cleared i added instant oceans 'bio spira'
tank sucked for two weeks.
on the beginning of the third week i added microbacter live starter. tank was fully cycled by the end of the week. I have had zero issues since, not even a bad diatom bloom yet (but my light has been off most of the time)

also one hint if you do not have fish-- crank your heat up to around 80-82, bacteria love it.

 

[cvrle1]

I was told not to rinse it at all. Just drain the water out of bag and pour into the tank.

"Live" sand is sham and quite frankly waste of money. There is nothing live in it. Sand has been sitting in sealed bag on shelf for months, if not longer. It has been sitting in warehouses, delivery trucks and so on. Even if there was something live in it, it is now dead. Also, it is always a really good idea to wash any new sand out, as it is dirty to begin with. If you dont, you will have issues for months and months with cloudy water and silt all over your tank and equipment.

Rinse in tap, until clean, then do final rinse in RODI water.

Rinse or don't rinse bagged live sand?

I must admit, I have never used this live sand in a bag before. I typically go with the dry sand but couldn't find any in stock in the size I wanted. Should i rinse it or not? Looking at the milky colored liquid inside the bag, I'm thinking that I should rinse it. What would you do? Here's a...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[Sparkymarc]

I agree with alimac122. Higher temp encourages bacteria growth

 

[Reefrookie733]

I just set mine up and it cycled in 3 weeks (no fish, added shrimp)
My method was:
Sand, Rock, Saltwater
I had super nasty water for 3-4 days (so cloudy you couldnt see the rock) changing my socks every day.
When it finally cleared i added instant oceans 'bio spira'
tank sucked for two weeks.
on the beginning of the third week i added microbacter live starter. tank was fully cycled by the end of the week. I have had zero issues since, not even a bad diatom bloom yet (but my light has been off most of the time)

also one hint if you do not have fish-- crank your heat up to around 80-82, bacteria love it.

Didn't think about the heat, my 200G is in the basement where we keep it around 70 degrees! Im gonna need a heater! lol

 

[Reefrookie733]

"Live" sand is sham and quite frankly waste of money. There is nothing live in it. Sand has been sitting in sealed bag on shelf for months, if not longer. It has been sitting in warehouses, delivery trucks and so on. Even if there was something live in it, it is now dead. Also, it is always a really good idea to wash any new sand out, as it is dirty to begin with. If you dont, you will have issues for months and months with cloudy water and silt all over your tank and equipment.

Rinse in tap, until clean, then do final rinse in RODI water.

Rinse or don't rinse bagged live sand?

I must admit, I have never used this live sand in a bag before. I typically go with the dry sand but couldn't find any in stock in the size I wanted. Should i rinse it or not? Looking at the milky colored liquid inside the bag, I'm thinking that I should rinse it. What would you do? Here's a...

www.reef2reef.com

Cool! Thanks...i see theres a forum for just about everything, but thanks for info! That will help alot.