Help-live rock question

[steelermags]

I have a 125 gallon tank that we just set up that has been up and running for a week. I have put live rock into the tank as I do not plan on putting a fish in for at least two weeks. With this being said, my ammonia has spiked to .8 which I thought was not a problem since I have no fish planned for at least two weeks. My local fish store is telling me that I need to pull all rock back out and put into a separate container to cure and drain the entire tank. Is this really necessary? All comments are appreciated as I do not want to go thru this work if it can be avoided. I was hoping the rock could cure in the tank and the ammonia will come down over the two week period.

 

[Mufasa31]

You can cycle your rock in your tank. You just need to make sure you have good circulation and proper temperature. A skimmer is also recommended.

If your ammonia has spiked, you should see nitrite spike up and the ammonia go to zero. Once your nitrite drops to zero, you are good to go.

 

[_Alex_]

NO do not pull the rock out that would be pointless!!! .8 ammonia is not that bad. it takes ammonia to feed nitrite, to feed nitrate. its a CYCLE and i would probably wait a few more weeks. and when you say LIVE rock, was it in a established tank or system? or was it dry rock that is so called "live rock"? real live rock shouldnt cause much of a cycle, but when mixing it with new dry sand you wil still have some cycle. evrey tank has some ammount of cycle regardless of the amount of live rock or dead rock.

if you put dead rock in with the live rock that is where the ammonia is coming from. its just feeding the good bacteria. be patient and give it time. ammonia will be at 0 soon, then nitrite will follow it down to 0. then once you have your nitrates back under control down around 20 or under depending on future plans for the tnak (reef, fish only)

 

[steelermags]

I had put Nature's Ocean Bio Active Live aragonite sand in bottom of tank. I bought what is describe as Fresh Ultra Fiji premium live rock on-line. It was box and wrapped in wet newspaper. So I am assuming this is not dry rock!
I do have a skimmer in my sump as well.

 

[_Alex_]

ok that rock is going to have some die off.. that is wher your ammonia is coming from. but there is still plenty of life there!! give it time it will finish the cycle!! if you can find someone locally that has a older system you could get a peice or 2 of rock out of to help give you some diversity in the bacteria load and it can help getting it going faster as well.

also for future reason that live sand is a waste of money... IMO.... just save your money and buy dry sand. by the time you get all your live rock in there and evreythign going it doesnt take to long to get the sand live. also can get a couple cups of sand from a established system and add to it to help get it kick started

 

[steelermags]

Thanks! Should I do a 10% water change or just add water as needed over the next two weeks? I have put some small pieces of rock from the local fish guy in the refugium -about 12 pounds. Will this suffice?

 

[_Alex_]

i woudlnt do any water changes, intill all of the ammonia and nitrite are at 0. then you can do water changes to get your nitrates down aroudn where you want them. what are your plans for this tank? fish only or coral and fish?

 

[steelermags]

I would like to do fish and coral -all suggestions are appreciated.

 

[Magalotti5]

well i would go with a Rosy nem, Ultimate clam hottness, trumped, gorg, blasto setosa look them up and your see what they look like

 

[Dog Boy Dave]

yea let the tank cycle. Enjoy all the different algaes that you will see. Dont feed it and let it run its course.

 

[Magalotti5]

yea you should do that it will help

 

[Decalf]

Yes all these post are right in a way but here is the deal. If you cycle live rock in your tank and say its a 29 gallon cube. NP a 50 percent water change is only 15 gallons and that gets your nitrates and phosphates back to around 0-1 + you will need to siphon a lot of crap out of your tank for a period of time. But if your cycling a say 150g tank or over it is not a smart thing to do to cycle the live rock in the tank because now to get your nitrates and phosphates back to around 0-1 takes about 50 to 75 gallons of water .Thats more salt ,more ro water, and more money. So working smarter you can save money when cycling live rock by placing it in a holder sized to the amount of rock you are cycling then throw all the water out after the cycle is complete and no major water change is needed in your show tank. Just be sure to add a living creature to produce ammonia when you place the rock in display tank.

Hope this helps

 

[shred5]

If you cycle your live rock in your tank you will have to change almost all of your water through the cycle. Even though your tank has cycled large amounts of phosphate will be left behind. This needs to be reduced before it binds to your rock and or sand causing long term problems. allot of people dont do this and that is why they have algae problems that they cant figure out.

It is far easier to cycle out of the tank. You can use lesser amount of water which makes it easier to change more of it.

Also adding fish after 2 weeks is way to early.