Smell

Maine Reefer · Dec 18, 2017

Why does my saltwater aquarium (nothing in it, cycling) smell like my freshwater aquarium?

redfishbluefish · Dec 18, 2017

I'm not sure what your freshwater tank smells like

, but if you're also curing rock (rock that was dried), it will put out a bit of stink for a while.

Maine Reefer · Dec 18, 2017

redfishbluefish said:
I'm not sure what your freshwater tank smells like , but if you're also curing rock (rock that was dried), it will put out a bit of stink for a while.

That is exactly what I'm doing, curing rock. How long can I expect the smell to last? Weeks, Months?

redfishbluefish · Dec 18, 2017

Depends on the amount of death/decay within the rock. Monitor nitrates....and don't be afraid about doing 100% water changes. I'd consider minimally weekly water changes until nitrates start to drop.

Maine Reefer · Dec 18, 2017

redfishbluefish said:
Depends on the amount of death/decay within the rock. Monitor nitrates....and don't be afraid about doing 100% water changes. I'd consider minimally weekly water changes until nitrates start to drop.

My nitrates are pretty low (10ppm-20ppm), and the type of rock I used is Reef Saver Dry Rock.

redfishbluefish · Dec 18, 2017

If you wish to have corals, ideally you'd want nitrates below 5 ppm or lower.

How long have you been brewing the rock? And have you done any water changes yet?

K. Steven · Dec 18, 2017

You can run some carbon to help adsorb some of the chemical odors between water changes as well.

Katrina71 · Dec 18, 2017

Just wait until you go live. All kinds of funky smells. Cyano made me gag.

Maine Reefer · Dec 18, 2017

redfishbluefish said:
If you wish to have corals, ideally you'd want nitrates below 5 ppm or lower.

How long have you been brewing the rock? And have you done any water changes yet?

Yes I know I am to keep them lower, but I was saying they are just low for now. I have done one water change, and I've been brewing the rock for about two weeks.

Maine Reefer · Dec 18, 2017

redfishbluefish said:
If you wish to have corals, ideally you'd want nitrates below 5 ppm or lower.

How long have you been brewing the rock? And have you done any water changes yet?

I just did a test of my water, and it turns out my nitrate rose from 5ppm (yesterday) to 20ppm (today). Is this linked to the increase in smell because it was not smelling as bad a few days ago?