Test

colsoscar120 · Jul 31, 2015

Guys I done a test on my tank and the water didn't change colour is this something I done wrong ?

twilliard · Jul 31, 2015

What test did you do?

colsoscar120 · Jul 31, 2015

Api master kit

twilliard · Jul 31, 2015

Nitrates, nitrite or Amonia?

colsoscar120 · Jul 31, 2015

Ammonia and nitrate

twilliard · Jul 31, 2015

If they didn't change color I would be suspicious depending on the stages of your tank.
no change in Amonia is good BUT no change in nitrates??
red sea testing is a good way to go

twilliard · Jul 31, 2015

Thanks Cleo!

colsoscar120 · Jul 31, 2015

My mistake I didn't do the test properly lol.i bought live and today it says instant cycle could I cycle with s fish or should I wait

Myka · Jul 31, 2015

They probably didn't change color because there was insufficient ammonia and nitrate for the kits to detect. You can double check your readings with a friend or LFS if you're concerned.

twilliard · Jul 31, 2015

Oh no wait for the cycle to end. You will see a raise of nitrates depending on what is in your tank.
live rock??

colsoscar120 · Jul 31, 2015

Well I bought dry rock but will b life. Yh I thought so don't want to kill anything

twilliard · Jul 31, 2015

Introduce Amonia to the tank. But whatever you do please don't use a damsil
you may regret it

colsoscar120 · Jul 31, 2015

In what way shall I do that?

twilliard · Jul 31, 2015

The next time you are at the grocery store buy a uncooked shrimp, doesn't have to be big, and plop it in and wait

Myka · Jul 31, 2015

Just put fish food in the tank. Save a trip to the grocey store. Put a cube of brine or mysis. Or half a cube if it's under 100 gallons.

madtownguy · Jul 31, 2015

colsoscar120 said:
In what way shall I do that?

Buy a little chunk of live rock, it'll get things going the fastest. I'm assuming you didn't use live sand either... A fish store might sell you a small amount of that out of a tank, especially if it's a bigger store you might get a young kid to do it for you. I would wait for an algae bloom before testing. The tank should tell you when it's time for changes.

ReefMadScientist · Jul 31, 2015

madtownguy said:
Buy a little chunk of live rock, it'll get things going the fastest. I'm assuming you didn't use live sand either... A fish store might sell you a small amount of that out of a tank, especially if it's a bigger store you might get a young kid to do it for you. I would wait for an algae bloom before testing. The tank should tell you when it's time for changes.

This is the route I always went. No need for anything dead in your tank to get the cycle initiated. You can just use "seeded" live rock in your tank meaning rock from an established tank. The algae will cover your new rock and start dying off. It can get nasty at first but just have patience.

Yes, any of the methods above would work also.

Myka · Jul 31, 2015

Personally, I refuse to buy dry rock for my own tank. For my clients that buy dry rock I try to talk them into buying a few pieces of live rock too. If they are dead against it (some people have a crazy fear of live rock) then I use Prodibio StartUp. Works really well - it's close to an instant cycle. If you want to go the "add something dead" route though, fish food does the trick.