Tank is acting strange

[AlaskanReefer]

Let it sit for a month. At week 4 do the ammonia test.
Do a water change and probaly buy your cuc. That's the most basic and oldest advice out there for good reason.

A couple days is too soon. IMO. No need to theorize much past that.

Alright thank you

 

[savetheocean]

Dont get used to that white sand haha. I got two clownfish a couple days after setup and they lived, ONLY clownfish if you want to have a fish to start the cycle. Im sure others disagree with this.

 

[AlaskanReefer]

Dont get used to that white sand haha. I got two clownfish a couple days after setup and they lived, ONLY clownfish if you want to have a fish to start the cycle. Im sure others disagree with this.

Oh yeah I know the sand will not be white for very long haha I've been ghost feeding my tank to cycle it but the reading are coming out funny so that's why I'm here now

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Oh yeah I know the sand will not be white for very long haha I've been ghost feeding my tank to cycle it but the reading are coming out funny so that's why I'm here now

No worries. Your in the right track. What your doing is called a fishless cycle. The food you put it rots and creates ammonia for the bacteria that develops or is added.
So it just takes time.

This article explains a fishless cycle method. But the ammonia source is bottled as reccomended above rather than organically created like when using food.

http://www.drtimsaquatics.com/resources/fishless-cycling

 

[AlaskanReefer]

No worries. Your in the right track. What your doing is called a fishless cycle. The food you put it rots and creates ammonia for the bacteria that develops or is added.
So it just takes time.

This article explains a fishless cycle method. But the ammonia source is bottled as reccomended above rather than organically created like when using food.

http://www.drtimsaquatics.com/resources/fishless-cycling

The people I was talking to above said I might have missed the ammonia already and am seeing the nitrites and nitrates. Is it possible that the cycle hasn't started or would it have had to start for me to see the nitrates? And also I have a bottle of BIO SPIRA, when should I dump this in?

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

The people I was talking to above said I might have missed the ammonia already and am seeing the nitrites and nitrates. Is it possible that the cycle hasn't started or would it have had to start for me to see the nitrates? And also I have a bottle of BIO SPIRA, when should I dump this in?

It's possible that the very small amount of ammonia was eaten by the bacteria in the live sand. But to me it doesn't sound like there has been any time for ammonia to form.
Wait a couple weeks. Don't feed any more. And test for amonia once a week. IMO you'll just make yourself crazy with the testing.

I'd use the bio spirea after you see ammonia (even though you really don't have to) and after your first water change. Again you don't really have too.

Here's the thing. If you put food in the tank water and nothing else and waited a month. It would cycle.

It would stink after a week or two and then stop stinking after another week or two. That's how you would know if it had cycled.

No really. It's true.

Rotting food makes ammonia and stinks . Bacteria eats the ammonia. Unstinking it.

 

[AlaskanReefer]

It's possible that the very small amount of ammonia was eaten by the bacteria in the live sand. But to me it doesn't sound like there has been any time for ammonia to form.
Wait a couple weeks. Don't feed any more. And test for amonia once a week. IMO you'll just make yourself crazy with the testing.

I'd use the bio spirea after you see ammonia (even though you really don't have to) and after your first water change. Again you don't really have too.

Here's the thing. If you put food in the tank water and nothing else and waited a month. It would cycle.

It would stink after a week or two and then stop stinking after another week or two. That's how you would know if it had cycled.

No really. It's true.

Rotting food makes ammonia and stinks . Bacteria eats the ammonia. Unstinking it.

Okay I'm looking for ammonia in my area

 

[AlaskanReefer]

It's possible that the very small amount of ammonia was eaten by the bacteria in the live sand. But to me it doesn't sound like there has been any time for ammonia to form.
Wait a couple weeks. Don't feed any more. And test for amonia once a week. IMO you'll just make yourself crazy with the testing.

I'd use the bio spirea after you see ammonia (even though you really don't have to) and after your first water change. Again you don't really have too.

Here's the thing. If you put food in the tank water and nothing else and waited a month. It would cycle.

It would stink after a week or two and then stop stinking after another week or two. That's how you would know if it had cycled.

No really. It's true.

Rotting food makes ammonia and stinks . Bacteria eats the ammonia. Unstinking it.

So just continue to ghost feed my tank with fish flakes for a month?

 

[Bunnee911]

Make sure you don't get "sudsy" ammonia.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Okay I'm looking for ammonia in my area

You don't need to. You can I suppose but The food rots turns to ammonia

So just continue to ghost feed my tank with fish flakes for a month?

No. It'll pollute the water. Please reread my post.

 

[AlaskanReefer]

You don't need to. You can I suppose but The food rots turns to ammonia

No. It'll pollute the water. Please reread my post.

Okay it's kinda confused me, so stop feeding my tank? Wouldn't that stop the ammonia from forming and stop the cycle? You said if I continued to feed it that it would stink from the rot then not stink but you also said to not feed so I'm confused

 

[brandon429]

This will incredibly simplify your cycle: how long was that rock underwater at the fish store? Call them and ask if possible. Did the rock bring any pods or worms or fanworms into the tank, any life on the rock at all?

Once the rock has simply been underwater forty days you are cycled, how's that for simple.

40
I have a giant thread on cycling explaining why yours is a forty day cycle but it's long and confusing thread so this is a simple way to assess where you are at


Doesn't matter what you feed, test, change or not change, let me know if she's been dunked for forty days. Call someone and ask...I think I see light coralline algae growth on the rock

All you are looking for is forty days wet

After forty days we take one specific action from our thread, and then specifically you add some starter corals. All cycles follow the same timeline depending on boosts used, and you've used some, and they're forty days or less cycles. We simply do not have to test a tank to cycle it, we can go only off known submersion times in your specific case due to ways you've already been assisting the cycle.

Tank cycles do not vary, they're grouped into assisted or unassisted cycles simply put. Our thread covers why so many people report variations, even though cycles don't vary.


An aquarium cycle only requires one thing, water.

Nothing else, they'll cycle in the unassisted mode and known time frame if we added nothing else. *nature will seed the tank with bacteria, and trace feed, even if we add none in the unassisted cycle

You have added some boosts, so yours will go on the assisted path. No tank is cycled in a week regardless of ammonia oxidation testing, the quickest we can truly surface-cycle an aquarium is about fifteen days using the fastest form

So you have:
Unassisted 70 days

Mixed assisted, yours, 40

Quickest possible true cycling where active surfaces are doing the work, 15 days using exact dosing and ammonia testing.

Confusing part: it is possible to instantly put fish in some new systems and not have an ammonia spike, due to bacteria we've dosed to the water. That is not surface cycling, what you are seeking is true surface cycling and that's only submersion dependent.

Three types of cycles, don't need a single test ran to complete them.

 

[AlaskanReefer]

This will incredibly simplify your cycle: how long was that rock underwater at the fish store? Call them and ask if possible. Did the rock bring any pods or worms or fanworms into the tank, any life on the rock at all?

Once the rock has simply been underwater forty days you are cycled, how's that for simple.

40
I have a giant thread on cycling explaining why yours is a forty day cycle but it's long and confusing thread so this is a simple way to assess where you are at


Doesn't matter what you feed, test, change or not change, let me know if she's been dunked for forty days. Call someone and ask...I think I see light coralline algae growth on the rock

All you are looking for is forty days wet

After forty days we take one specific action from our thread, and then specifically you add some starter corals. All cycles follow the same timeline depending on boosts used, and you've used some, and they're forty days or less cycles. We simply do not have to test a tank to cycle it, we can go only off known submersion times in your specific case due to ways you've already been assisting the cycle.

Tank cycles do not vary, they're grouped into assisted or unassisted cycles simply put. Our thread covers why so many people report variations, even though cycles don't vary.


An aquarium cycle only requires one thing, water.

Nothing else, they'll cycle in the unassisted mode and known time frame if we added nothing else. *nature will seed the tank with bacteria, and trace feed, even if we add none in the unassisted cycle

You have added some boosts, so yours will go on the assisted path. No tank is cycled in a week regardless of ammonia oxidation testing, the quickest we can truly surface-cycle an aquarium is about fifteen days using the fastest form

So you have:
Unassisted 70 days

Mixed assisted, yours, 40

Quickest possible true cycling where active surfaces are doing the work, 15 days using exact dosing and ammonia testing.

Confusing part: it is possible to instantly put fish in some new systems and not have an ammonia spike, due to bacteria we've dosed to the water. That is not surface cycling, what you are seeking is true surface cycling and that's only submersion dependent.

Three types of cycles, don't need a single test ran to complete them.

Okay wow that's a lot of info thank you so much, I've never heard about this before haha I have always been told you have to do something to help it. I think the rock was underwater at the store for roughly 20 days give or take a few days, I ordered dr tims ammonia from amazon so it should be here on Tuesday but who knows with amazon. Would me using dr tims at the end of the 40 day cycle do anything? Or should I just continue to feed fish flakes everyday for a little ammonia and just keep my rocks submerged and wait the 40 days? And so far I've added just a capful of bio spira.

 

[AlaskanReefer]

This will incredibly simplify your cycle: how long was that rock underwater at the fish store? Call them and ask if possible. Did the rock bring any pods or worms or fanworms into the tank, any life on the rock at all?

Once the rock has simply been underwater forty days you are cycled, how's that for simple.

40
I have a giant thread on cycling explaining why yours is a forty day cycle but it's long and confusing thread so this is a simple way to assess where you are at


Doesn't matter what you feed, test, change or not change, let me know if she's been dunked for forty days. Call someone and ask...I think I see light coralline algae growth on the rock

All you are looking for is forty days wet

After forty days we take one specific action from our thread, and then specifically you add some starter corals. All cycles follow the same timeline depending on boosts used, and you've used some, and they're forty days or less cycles. We simply do not have to test a tank to cycle it, we can go only off known submersion times in your specific case due to ways you've already been assisting the cycle.

Tank cycles do not vary, they're grouped into assisted or unassisted cycles simply put. Our thread covers why so many people report variations, even though cycles don't vary.


An aquarium cycle only requires one thing, water.

Nothing else, they'll cycle in the unassisted mode and known time frame if we added nothing else. *nature will seed the tank with bacteria, and trace feed, even if we add none in the unassisted cycle

You have added some boosts, so yours will go on the assisted path. No tank is cycled in a week regardless of ammonia oxidation testing, the quickest we can truly surface-cycle an aquarium is about fifteen days using the fastest form

So you have:
Unassisted 70 days

Mixed assisted, yours, 40

Quickest possible true cycling where active surfaces are doing the work, 15 days using exact dosing and ammonia testing.

Confusing part: it is possible to instantly put fish in some new systems and not have an ammonia spike, due to bacteria we've dosed to the water. That is not surface cycling, what you are seeking is true surface cycling and that's only submersion dependent.

Three types of cycles, don't need a single test ran to complete them.

Oh also if I add additional rock would it make my cycle last longer?

 

[IslandLifeReef]

Okay wow that's a lot of info thank you so much, I've never heard about this before haha I have always been told you have to do something to help it. I think the rock was underwater at the store for roughly 20 days give or take a few days, I ordered dr tims ammonia from amazon so it should be here on Tuesday but who knows with amazon. Would me using dr tims at the end of the 40 day cycle do anything? Or should I just continue to feed fish flakes everyday for a little ammonia and just keep my rocks submerged and wait the 40 days? And so far I've added just a capful of bio spira.

Like Salty said, stop feeding the tank now, especially if you have Dr. Tims on the way. It takes time for the food to be converted into ammonia, and the more you feed, the less control you have on the ammonia. Once the Dr. Tims arrives, check your ammonia levels. Then add the Dr. Tims ammonia to increase your ammonia level to 2ppm. Then wait at least 24 hours before you test for ammonia again. The Dr. Tims website has directions on fishless cycling and when to say it is complete. You could also just follow Brandon429's advice which will definitely work as well.

 

[AlaskanReefer]

Like Salty said, stop feeding the tank now, especially if you have Dr. Tims on the way. It takes time for the food to be converted into ammonia, and the more you feed, the less control you have on the ammonia. Once the Dr. Tims arrives, check your ammonia levels. Then add the Dr. Tims ammonia to increase your ammonia level to 2ppm. Then wait at least 24 hours before you test for ammonia again. The Dr. Tims website has directions on fishless cycling and when to say it is complete. You could also just follow Brandon429's advice which will definitely work as well.

Okay thank you guys so much this clears up a lot for me