cycling or not

[stangbabe1993]

hi everybody, I need help.do I need to do a water change now or wait my tank was ok then I decided to take ou cc and add sand about 100lbs play sand and 15 lbs live sand and added 45 lbs more of live rock. this has been 3-4 weeks ago I think . Last week I took some water to my lfs and he said everything was very high, they use red sea marine lab test kit, I had just bought the same test kit at another lfs and I tested everything to he said my ammonia was so high it was green when I tested it it was yellow. so far this is what my readings are
ammonia 0 / aqua clear slim line wet/dry
nitrite 0. / Excaliber protien skimmer
nitrate high 25 low 5.0 / uv light
ph 8.2 / 2x250w metal halides
alkalinity I think normal / 90 gal tank
temp 82 / 1 powerhead-up to 200gph
I had red slime then put the stuff in to get rid of that now everything is turning brown sand and some rocks that are on top I had taken my 3 fish out and put in another tank. so 3 or 4 days ago I added my damsel back then 2 days ago added my clown back they seam to be doing fine. question is should I do a water change and how much. and when could I add my blue hippo tang? can I put my cleaner shrimp back in yet. I know this is probablly alot i guess I need to get on here more and askmore I appreciate your help

 

[joker]

I am just a beginner myself, but a possible problem i see is your use of playbox sand.
The book that was recommended to me was "the New Marine Aquarium" by Michael S. Paletta, and he says for Substrate "Shun playbox sand, Dolomite, river gravel".
that is just what I have read.

 

[stangbabe1993]

I tried to fing southdown but couldn't I readd on here that walmart carried play sand by white castle or something like that and I thiught it was ok it just wasn't as white am I gonna have to take that out

 

[joker]

I dont know. I am sure there will be other replies to your post within the next 24 hours from more knowledgeable people. Did not mean to alarm you, but I am surprised your LFS didnt advise you about this. Just hold on for more replies

 

[stangbabe1993]

thanks I will

 

[michaeltx]

sand is a hard thing to say. some playsands can cause problems and some wont. do you have any dry sand left is so add some vinager to it and see if it bubbles if it does its calcium carbonate, or argonite sand and thats what most people use. basically its not silica sand if it does.
I would wait just a little longer and retest. you just added the damsels back in so if you are going to get a cycle it will show up after that. if you dont add a ammonia source the tank wont start cycleing. if you have enough LR and biological filtration it could habe already cycled. just need to make sure to keep problems down.
you can do a water change after you know your not going to cycle out. a water change before that could prolong it. as long as ammonia and nitrite are at 0 in a couple of days then I would say that you are out of danger of a cycle and can do a water change without problems. you might have to take the fish back out if the ammonia goes up high though to save them for toxic exposure so be prepared as a precaution.
MIke

 

[stangbabe1993]

thanks I'll wait and see so would it hurt to put the cleaner shrimp back in or just waitit out a little longer. this sand didn't say anything about silica like some of the other ones I saw at home depot and they came in a paper like bag this one was in a clear plastic bag and said 100% play sand safe for kids. Thanks alot for the help

 

[michaeltx]

the only thing that you can do is watch your water readings to see if anything shows up extra. phospates and silcates. or take it out but you might be sfae if you start to get uncontrollable algae growth it might be a factor with the sand so keep that in mind the next few months. something to watch for. also watch your levels close. argonite has the ability to help keep ph in level if you have a silca based sand you might have to do a lot of watrer buffering..
I would wait on the shrimp just to be sure that that its not going to cycle they are real sensitive to changes and he would probaby be the first to fall to it.
mike

 

[thomas712]

Was there a big mess from under the crushed coral when you removed it? Lots of cloudy tan or brown water that looked like a lot of sediment? Did you do a water change at that time?

 

[michaeltx]

now why didnt I think of that one...
LOL
Mike

 

[thomas712]

Because its late, your tired, and its been a loooong day.

 

[michaeltx]

well sorta right LOL
been looking for a new home just cant decide where to many choices way to many LOL
Mike

 

[stangbabe1993]

no when I took the cc out It wasn't that cloudy cause I've always used a gravel cleaner when I did water changes and got down into the gravel good and I had done one right before I took it out then it was a few weeks before I got the sand but I think I even use the gravel cleaner right before I put the sand in then I added the live rock I had(45 lbs)and then a couple of days or week later I got the new live rock(45 lbs) and I put that in and it was a week or two before I put the damsel in then a couple days later I put the clown in. they both seem to be doing real good the snails and hermit crab are doing good. I have rainsoft water softner on my house water supply its supposed to take everything out of the water

 

[michaeltx]

I would suggest a different water source. the sofeners use a salt to help take care of hardness and does filter something out but not all that much. or add a ro unit. its not really a filter if that makes sense.
have you done a water test today? if so what were the levels at.
Mike

 

[stangbabe1993]

hi, I just did my tests and they are ammonia 0, nitrite 0.2, nitrate low 2.5 & high 12.5, ph 8.2, alk normal range theres no numbers. My rainsoft system has a tank for salt and a tank to take out minerals and a charcoal tank. I bought some r/o water at the grocery store today they have a machine there you can fill your own bottles for like .39. I cut my lights back some to. is 12pm- 9,9;30pm to little or should I keep at 12 hours?

 

[michaeltx]

from the readings it looks like you had a mini cycle and its on the tail end of it so in the next couple of dyas you should be ready to go.
i would take a water sample to a water store or rainsoft and have them do a TDS reading on the water supply( thats about all that they can test for) that will give you an idea of what its leaving or not leaving in your water. ust a suggestion though I dont have a softener and am only vagly knowledgeable of them as far as what they leave and what they take out.
also test the water from the store machine someplaces dont take care of the machines and after a while the filters start to let things bipass the filters.
most people leave the lights
I had mine on for atleast 8 hours a day some go for 10 hours.
Mike

 

[stangbabe1993]

ok thanks again for your help I'll keep testing

 

[stangbabe1993]

ok today is the 3rd I tested my water and the ammonia is 0, ph is 8.0ish but not quite the next one up, alk is normal from what I can tell I don't like this red sea for alk there's no #s it just fade from 1 color to the nest, nitrite is 0.2, nitrate is low 2.5 & high is 12.5 my question is this My hippo tang, cleaner shrimp, mushroom rock, star polyp, and a red ball sponge are in a 10 gal. waiting to be put back in the 90 gal. so above are the results for the 90 gal. Now these are for the 10 gal. ammonia 0-0.25, ph 8.0, nitrite 0.2, alk norm-high, nitrate low 10 high 50. could I go ahead and put them back in the 90 gal. and should I do them 1 at a time or all at once. I hope this is ok to ask here I didn't know if I had to post a new thread or not.

 

[joker]

I cant answer your question, however, keep posting here. I, and others, are watching and learning. Good Luck
Remember: Patience is a virtue in this hobby!! If everything is doing ok in the 10 gal, then I would let the cycle keep going.

 

[stangbabe1993]

ok i just thought if the readings were higher in the 10 gal that they would be better off in the 90 but they seam to be ok in the 10 I'll just let it go then unless some body else thinks differently. I just don't have that good of lighting its a zoomed ocean sun bulb, but its siiting in front of a window. thanks for the help