Cycling question vol new to saltwater

[vincentliu89]

Hi guys I'm new to this forum. I recently just converted from freshwater to saltwater. I have a 55g with AC70 and AC110 running in it.(lots of biomax stacked and sponge in it). I have aragonite substrate already also.
It's been up and running for a week now. I used "Cycle" and also threw a shrimp in there to feed the tank. My water turned really clear this morning. My parameter reads:
PH: 8.0
Amm: 1.0
Nitrite:.25
Nitrate: 5.0
hydrometer: 1.020
My questions are:
1a) When will i need to do a water change?
1b) How much % should i do?
2) When should i start adding live rocks? If i can already, do i add them all at once? (going to buy cured ones from lfs)
3) I'm using KENT 8.3 BUFFER, doesnt seem like its working well, what other ways can i increase the PH?
Advices and tips are very much welcome.
Appreciate if someone can help me!

 

[spanko]

Welcome to SWF.com Vincent. Sounds like you have a good start going here.
Not gonna go in order here;
Add all the rock you plan to have now. It will help with the cycle and avoid any additional ammonia spikes later.
Doing a water change depends on what type of things come in on the rockwork. If there are a lot of things you want to save then do a 10% or so water change everytime ammonia reaches 0.5. If not a lot of life on the rocks just wait until the cycle completes and do a 10% or so change when ammonia and nitrites are back to zero.
Stop using the buffer as you really don't need it right now during the cycle. Your tank chemistry is going through a lot of changes right now and dosing anything is really a waste of time and money.

 

[vincentliu89]

Thanks for the advice spanko!
Does live rock raises PH?
If i get the live rocks now, wouldnt the ammonia and nitrites kill all the organisms living in the the live rock?
Should i do a water change after my cycle is done or when i put in the live rocks?(roughly 60lb of live rocks should be good?)
Other advices and tips are welcome!

 

[small triggers]

yeah, there is no point to dose anything till all your paramters are ideal. When your nitrite, ammonia and nitrate are at 0 your ph should be at the right level.
If the live rock you buy is FULLY cured then wait until your ammonia is 0 before adding it, you do not want to kill the beneficial bacteria that is on the rocks or kill any hitchhikers.
DO a water change when your ammonia is ar .5 like Spanko says until you have no more ammonia.

 

[king_neptune]

Correct,
PH: 8.0 kinda low. not horrible, but shoot for 8.2-8.3 Surface agitation wil help with gas exchange and should raise it.
Hydrometer: 1.020 This is definitely low, your shooting for around 33-35ppt(1.024-1.026). Unless your doing Fish only. Then you can get away with 1.020
Add salt in 2 cup increments morning and then night before bed until its right. I would estimate it will take 10 cups to get it right considering your tank size. But be safe and do it two at a time. Giving a good 8-10hours between adding salt. Make sure your flow is on and your not collecting the salt in piles. Also add it in the sump...or take out a 5 gal pail from your tank and add it to the pail..then put it back in the tank after its dissolved.