Reef tank cycle

Frans1992 · Sep 25, 2023

Hello,

I have a 80 liter reef tank. I cycled it with dead shrimp.

Now after buying my "Red Sea reefer 350", I wanna cycle with bacteria.
But there is so much info on the internet that I don't now how to do it.
Can someone help me.

Wich bacteria is best? One and only dr. tims?

I gonna buy this dry rock Dry Rock with live ocean direct sand.

I have seen also movies from biome from brstv. Does someone now a bit more from this method.

Propane · Sep 25, 2023

I usually just use ammonium and wait and it’s always pretty consistent. Usually takes about 10 days. I’ve found the shrimp method takes longer.

If you use the rock from your old tank it will speed up the process as well.

fishyjoes · Sep 25, 2023

I have used fritz turbo start and it does work well.

If you plan to add a bunch of fish all at once you can "feed up" the bacteria for a couple of weeks with ammonia to make sure you have enough going when the fish arrive.
If you're just going to add a small number of fish at a time (one or two every few weeks) you can just add them right away.

I've never used Dr. Tim's but I believe what I read about it.

Another thing (which I did myself) is purchase some wet, live rock from the LFS. It doesn't have to be a lot, just some will help as well. Even if you don't use it in the display you can put it in the sump.

Frans1992 · Sep 25, 2023

Propane said:
I usually just use ammonium and wait and it’s always pretty consistent. Usually takes about 10 days. I’ve found the shrimp method takes longer.

If you use the rock from your old tank it will speed up the process as well.

I don't wanna use it because it's not the best tank. A lot of problems like dino etc. It's only 80 liter with almost no filtration because its original not meant for salt water

Propane · Sep 25, 2023

If you want to avoid all the new tank problems you will have to get established live rock. If you start with dry rock you will always get problems to some degree.

Pickle_soup · Sep 25, 2023

I used Seachem's stability, it worked fine for the cycle, but I strongly recommend Brightwell's Bacter 7 to establish some bacteria that will out compete dinos.

Klyle · Sep 25, 2023

Sounds like a post for @brandon429

Frans1992 · Sep 25, 2023

Propane said:
If you want to avoid all the new tank problems you will have to get established live rock. If you start with dry rock you will always get problems to some degree.

No it's fine to get some starter problems. But the stone in my small tank is full of some pests that I don't want to get in my new tank

Propane · Sep 25, 2023

Klyle said:
Sounds like a post for @brandon429

Lol I was trying to remember that name. Op there are some great ideas for quick cycling in his threads.

Mr. Roboto · Sep 25, 2023

There will be no way to fast cycle anything without using something from an established tank. It really doesnt matter what you use to add ammonia to the tank to begin the cycle. Pick a brand and go with it.

Randy Holmes-Farley · Sep 25, 2023

This is a good discussion:

Not all Cycling Bacteria are created equal. Who's who, and what do they need?

Here's Group 3 data. I'm really enjoying how many different cycling curve shapes I'm getting from the different nitrifying products. Group 3 Total Ammonia and Nitrite Fritz Turbo start, and Caribsea Ocean Direct responded to ammonia-only quickly and cleared it in about the same time, but the...

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