Quick Cycle questions

ETORRES477 · Mar 3, 2014

Hey guys, needed some advice. I am setting up a mixed reef and I am cycling my tank now, my basic specs are below on my signature. I wanted to know how to cycle the tank as quickly as possible. I am using live carib pink Fiji sand, about 150 lbs of fully established live rock, and about 35 lbs of dead Fiji rock. I was wondering if any of those additives that claim to speed up the tank cycle work? If they do which brand do you recommend. When I cycled my 46 gallon fowlr about 3 years ago I used fish to cycle, this was before I knew this was harmful to the unlucky fish I used, I feel badly now that I am more educated on the effects to the fish. I will not add fish until my water parameters are right this time around, but can I add my inverts to help speed up the cycle, will this stress them or hurt them?

bearjohnson · Mar 3, 2014

I can't attest to any of the additives however, either way you'll still need an ammonia source. I always add one or two raw shrimp to get things moving along. You can put them in an old warn out stocking and tie it off in the tank so you can pull it out later if needed or just drop them in and let nature have her way with them. I just drop them in and forget about them.

Tahoe61 · Mar 3, 2014

The fully established rock should go along ways to speeding up the cycle as long as it was not abused prior to placement.

Jimbo662 · Mar 3, 2014

Remember, in this hobby nothing should be done quickly. Most people will put a peice of fresh shrimp in the tank to start the process. Most tanks take 3-4 weeks or a little longer to cycle properly. During this time the good bacteria is multiplying. You want to make sure there's enough bacteria in the tank to support the first inhabitants.

Whys Alives · Mar 4, 2014

Increase your temp to 83 degrees -- the bacteria love it! The bacteria in the liverock can handle as much as 93 degrees, typically the upper limit for aquarium heaters, but any higher than 83 and you're risking damage to your pods and other small organisms.

It won't give you big gains, but if you're looking to hyper-mile your cycle, it might shave off a day or two. Good luck with it!