Chemicals I was told to use - is this overkill?

[sugarfox03]

Hey everyone. I started using two different chemicals yesterday, and one on Friday. The ones I am using now are aragMilk, Kent Marine Superbuffer-dKH, and Mark Weiss' Bacter-Vital. I just tested my water and here are my results (keep in mind I just added 10-12 lbs of uncured live rock on Friday.)
Nitrites - .50 ppg
Nitrates - 5.0 ppg
Ammonia - 1.0 mg/L
pH - between 7.7 and 7.8
Hydrometer - 1.022
Phosphates - 0.5 ppm
Temps - Between 80-82 (not bad!) was up to 84-88
Is this ok? I am not sure what the readings are supposed to look like while its cycling, can anyone give me some insight on if this is ok? Thanks everyone!
-Melody

 

[mopar9012]

nitrites, nitrates, and Ammonia are all supposed to be zero but since your cycling thats alright. i think some people might put buffers in and other chemicals to keep them some what down. i never did but maybe thats why my cycle seemed to long.
they should come down when your done cycling.

 

[maxalmon]

I would skip all the chemicals, if you use good quality RO water, LS and LR, thats all you need. The LS will buffer your PH.

 

[stanlalee]

not neccessary (you wouldn't know anyway without testing calcium and alkalinity). You probably want to do a water change or increase tank circulation and/or surface agitation to get your pH up a little bit. Mine has been as low as a stable 7.9 without issue but yours needs to come up a little. The aragmilk is a waste and if your alkalinity isn't low you have no need for a buffer. Dont even know what bactorcital is but I know you dont need it.

 

[reefnut]

Originally Posted by SugarFox03
The ones I am using now are aragMilk, Kent Marine Superbuffer-dKH, and Mark Weiss' Bacter-Vital.
aragMilk= alkalinity & calcium. You need to test both and add only if low.
Kent Marine Superbuffer-dKH= alkalinity
Mark Weiss' Bacter-Vital= not necessary
At this point water changes is all you need. As far as your levels... they look fine for a cycling tank. I'd take your SG up to 1.025 though.

 

[sugarfox03]

Thanks everyone. I will be doing a 2 gal water change in just a little bit. I didnt test my calcium yet today, because that test takes SOOO long, but I will test it before I do the water change. I havent been able to test my alkalinity yet as no store around here sells the test. Also, I bought Instant Ocean Sea Salt, it says to use 1/2 cup per gal of water. If I want to bring my SG up just a little bit (from 1.022 to 1.025) how much extra should I add? Thanks again everyone

-Melody

 

[reefnut]

I'd personally wait until the cycle is over to do any water changes. My first post was misleading but after the cycle water changes should be all you need until the tank matures and you get it loaded with corals.
The best way to being the SG up is to add salt to your topoff water. Use the salted topoff water until the tank reaches your desired SG. Mixing water change water over 1.025 can have negative results.

 

[fishguy84]

Yeah, aragmilk can be an expensive item, and if you don't have corals or inverts to absorb calcium out of your water, adding them constantly especially if your buffer is fine is pretty much a waste of money.