Week 1 of cycle, testing results.

[Brianscherer]

So here's where my test results sit.
Ph; 7.8ppm
Ammonia: .75ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate: 20ppm

This is 24hrs after my first 20% water change. Shrimp still in tank, I rearranged the rock before water change and stirred the tank up quite a bit. I'm curios why no nitrite if there's ammonia? And if I let it sit longer than recommended if it will be more accurate. Using api test kit.

 

[mjlash22]

Give it some more time, you should start seeing your ammonia go down, and nitrite spike.

 

[Pelagic One]

Hey there, Brian...welcome to R2R!

If you added any bacteria-in-a-bottle, you’ll see your water cycle go much faster. I used Dr. Smith’s One And Only product for my cycle, and nearly missed the Nitrite rise with my API test kit, as Nitrate readings came within a few days.

Paraphrasing from a much more experienced fellow reefer’s sticky thread, if you do nothing for 30 days (assuming one has added shrimp like you have done), you’ll have a fully cycled tank, regardless.

But of course, that pair of expensive clowns are calling out much sooner than 30 days!

 

[scott11106]

still need a bit of time i think

 

[Jesterrace]

Don't change the water while the tank is cycling as it can impede the cycling process. Leave it alone and let it do it's thing.

 

[brandon429]

also, you appear to be using live r0ck which is already cycled at the local pet shop...going off the coloration on this rock above...was it from the live rock for sale vat, or dry rock?

the sand looks like ocean direct by caribsea, the wet pack kind is that right

curious if you have or can see any moving micro creatures like worms, pods, anything motile

all this matters in your test readings, and required time underwater to be all ready if applicable.

 

[Brianscherer]

Hey there, Brian...welcome to R2R!

If you added any bacteria-in-a-bottle, you’ll see your water cycle go much faster. I used Dr. Smith’s One And Only product for my cycle, and nearly missed the Nitrite rise with my API test kit, as Nitrate readings came within a few days.

Paraphrasing from a much more experienced fellow reefer’s sticky thread, if you do nothing for 30 days (assuming one has added shrimp like you have done), you’ll have a fully cycled tank, regardless.

But of course, that pair of expensive clowns are calling out much sooner than 30 days!

Yeah I know of the bacteria I can add but I'm gonna wait it out. Thanks though.

 

[Brianscherer]

also, you appear to be using live r0ck which is already cycled at the local pet shop...going off the coloration on this rock above...was it from the live rock for sale vat, or dry rock?

the sand looks like ocean direct by caribsea, the wet pack kind is that right

curious if you have or can see any moving micro creatures like worms, pods, anything motile

all this matters in your test readings, and required time underwater to be all ready if applicable.

Yes it's live rock 25lbs from my lfs along with live sand/coral mix. I have not notice any mobile creatures yet.

 

[brandon429]

Nice. You now have a few other options beyond typical cycling, as transferring rocks among tanks (lfs to home) never harms bacteria set there in the prior tank, even before the lfs got it in some cases.

Don't think that because your tank can't oxidize an entire shrimp with 0/0/X params it isn't cycled. Anyone's smallish nano on this forum will read some metabolites if we rotted some shrimp or a dead fish in it.





shrimp cycling is for dry rock setups though if you want to hold course you can, and it'll still be ready as soon as the major decay finishes up. As a counter option, it's possible to remove the shrimp, change out all the water or wait a few days for ammonia to drop to zero after it's removed, then input ten new zoanthid frags and some mushroom coral frags in clean water. Reef with only those till April 1st then add your first fish, that way works too, you already have a filtration base here it's just currently overwhelmed.

Even the time it's already set in the presence of that shrimp has fed the bac up above steady state levels, it'd be fun to see an exact .5 ppm ammonia digestion test to prove the claims but it requires liquid ammonia and salifert ammonia testing. Nice rocks, you can't go wrong either way you approach the situation as the bac are already there.


A really cool test for your setup using what you have: remove the shrimp. Measure only ammonia...see if it drops to any degree after two days. Any degree of measurable drop on an API test kit means fully cycled, as in waiting six more months won't make it better cycled.

It's possible to establish some neat ammonia proofs with your tank, the fact you reported nitrate along with pigmented live rock tells me your complete ammonia picture actually/

 

[Brianscherer]

Nice. You now have a few other options beyond typical cycling, as transferring rocks among tanks (lfs to home) never harms bacteria set there in the prior tank, even before the lfs got it in some cases.

Don't think that because your tank can't oxidize an entire shrimp with 0/0/X params it isn't cycled. Anyone's smallish nano on this forum will read some metabolites if we rotted some shrimp or a dead fish in it.





shrimp cycling is for dry rock setups though if you want to hold course you can, and it'll still be ready as soon as the major decay finishes up. As a counter option, it's possible to remove the shrimp, change out all the water or wait a few days for ammonia to drop to zero after it's removed, then input ten new zoanthid frags and some mushroom coral frags in clean water. Reef with only those till April 1st then add your first fish, that way works too, you already have a filtration base here it's just currently overwhelmed.

Even the time it's already set in the presence of that shrimp has fed the bac up above steady state levels, it'd be fun to see an exact .5 ppm ammonia digestion test to prove the claims but it requires liquid ammonia and salifert ammonia testing. Nice rocks, you can't go wrong either way you approach the situation as the bac are already there.


A really cool test for your setup using what you have: remove the shrimp. Measure only ammonia...see if it drops to any degree after two days. Any degree of measurable drop on an API test kit means fully cycled, as in waiting six more months won't make it better cycled.

It's possible to establish some neat ammonia proofs with your tank, the fact you reported nitrate along with pigmented live rock tells me your complete ammonia picture actually/

I'm gonna take your advice and remove the shrimp and test in a couple days, Your my wife's best friend right now lol, the shrimp is 5 times the size, coated with bacteria and she hates looking at it. Thanks

 

[brandon429]

Ok let me know if you see any drop at all down from the .75 levels

Since you haven’t added bac in a bottle, any reductions are coming from the rocks and sand, if indeed it does reduce. If not, shrimp some more lol!

That ramble above is based on this thread and it’s fun to see how much ammonia physicality can be predicted solely off pictures.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/the-microbiology-of-reef-tank-cycling.214618/

 

[Brianscherer]

So I removed the shrimp Monday night after posting this but 24hrs before that I did a 20% water change and my salinity was down so i decided to allow evaporation from my last test it was 1.024 now it's 1.023.5. I have done nothing with it since last testing other than the shrimp.
Ph:8.4ppm
Ammonia: .50ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate:40ppm

 

[brandon429]

Good deal, I’d really like to wait and see if it drops yet another round to .25 in another day or so just to track trending.

The nitrate rising and the ammonia dropping strongly reinforces our measures of the bacteria. It’d be neat to see if we can get slightly more nitrate and even another drop in ammonia as a trend down

 

[Brianscherer]

Ammonia: a trace to 0.25ppm
Nitrite:0 ppm
Nitrate:20 ppm

 

[brandon429]

Time for some light reefing! Cycle good as it was at the start, feels wierd I know

Buy some easy starter corals and plant em, a few right on the rocks will look great.

The right time to add fish is after you stock up the tank a little with corals and can stand to look at it for 76 days as you complete a fallow period (search here in fish forum for that technique)

Well done documentation. Linked to the microbiology of cycling thread as a skip cycle reef example.

 

[Brianscherer]

I have a few pest before I start with corals, and it was defiantly time for a real cuc. So I waited a few days after my last test and tested again and I got zeroes. So yesterday I got a mix of snails and crabs and decided to deal with one of my pest, so I picked up a pair of pepermint shrimp to rid the tank of aiptasia, only had one big one but many little ones. Woke up this morning to the big one gone and everything is starting to look great, I'm gonna wait a few days while my cuc gets things done and I'll repost new pics of the tank and maybe my first corals if everything keeps going good.