Stupid question

[BullyBee]

I’m setting up my first salt tank so bare/bear with me. I understand the process of curing live rock and I understand it’s the gateway to really getting your tank set up.

But how do you know your rocks are cured? Coralline growth?

 

[Jaebster]

0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, little nitrates. Cycled and cured is different. Cured just means that "live" has sludge off all dead or dying material. During this period, your cycling may take longer because the "live" rock puts out dying organic matter. Once you have undetectable ammonia and nitrites, your rocks are cured and tank is cycled.

 

[BullyBee]

So rock coloration has nothing to do with it?

 

[LiveWire]

Thats correct @BullyBee the color of the rock really has nothing to do with the cycle or curing process. You can purchase man made purple rock that is dry and has never been cured. Back in the day you could get live rock from the ocean and it would be covered in all kinds of different colors but had been out of the water for so long things were dying on the rock and you would have to cycle it all over again but it had great color.

 

[Reeferdude1888]

Check the levels mentioned in the above post this will determine if your tank has fully cycled.

 

[BullyBee]

Thanks guys

 

[NS Mike D]

cured , cycled, mature.

I suggest keep testing and report the results here and you'll get a good consensus and rule out false test results

Just because a tank has cycled, that doesn't mean it can handle the ammonia that new tank inhabitants produce. They bacteria has to grow with the increase in bioload. This is why you will see so many post that say take it slowly. With each addition to the tank, the ecosystem gets out of balance and then adjust to get back in balance. Mature tanks have large and diverse ecosystems that they can handle bigger swing and adjust faster. New tanks not so much.

maturity is letting the all that micro fuana develop that will compete for nutrients and space and outright kill algae, that being the bacteria, zoo and phytoplankton, pods, worms etc. and that wonderful coraline covering that will hold off algae from taking root while providing a good base for the corals to encrust. That can be measured in years.