Cycling with raw shrimp - the smell :(

[Aquaman102]

Hi All -

I've got a 50 gallon brute trashcan filled with dry Marco Rock. I threw a good sized piece of raw shrimp in to start the cycle.

The challenge is, 24 hours into it, it already stinks!

Anyway to control that? Do I do a water change already?

I do have 2 powerheads in the trashcan moving water around, so it's not stagnant.

The wife is complaining, hence the question

Thanks,
Donovan

 

[geddavis]

You could move it out side or put in some carbon; however I think that at first no matter what it will stink as you need ammonia to be cycling in it which stinks. Whenever I cycle rock I do it outside in a old cooler under a porch.

 

[Aquaman102]

I thought about putting it outside, but being in Missouri with the weather freezing every night, I didn't know how well that would work.

 

[sbash]

I never do water changes during a cycle. Check your ammonia level, it is probably 1ppm or more by now (if it stinks), and pull the shrimp out. Wait until the ammonia is down to zero and repeat the shrimping process...

Also, put the lid on and make sure one of the power heads is agitating the surface of the water. And yes, the freezing overnight will slow things way down (if not stall the cycle)... Although, you could experiment with how many heaters you would need...

 

[geddavis]

Do you have a garage? You could also cover it with a tarp but it will take longer to cycle and you would also need and air stone as the bacteria requires air to survive and reporduce. You could also put in a small heater. I don’t think the salt water would freeze however I’m not sure if the bacteria can survive that tempeture.

 

[PaulPerger]

If there is no capacity in the rock to deal with any ammonia at all and you tossed in a "Good sized piece of raw shrimp" you have way more decay than you need to get started... I would retrieve the shrimp. After the smell has dissipated, check your parameters and then add a small piece of shrimp.

This is why I use straight ammonia, the ammonia smell isn't overwhelming like the smell of decay.