cycling question

[john57]

I am very new to the hobby. I purchased a biocube 29 3 weeks ago and put my water and live sand in place. Ph stayed at about 7.8-8.0. Nitrites, nitrates and ammonia were zero.
I put in live rock three days ago. It was said to be cured, but did have an odor when it arrived and I knew it needed to cure again. A day after I added the rock, the ammonia spiked to 8+. I've been testing for nitrite and nitrate and both are 0.
I expected a 1 to 4 week cycle. I had read to change some of the water in about a week, but with the high ammonia level, should I be changing some water more frequently, or just let the cycle take it's course?
I've read all about the mods for this system, but I'm going to run it stock for awhile until I get more experience.
By the way, I've been lurking around here for about a month and have gotten a huge amount of helpful information. Thanks

 

[username.]

just let it take its course and keep testing until the cycle has finished

 

[saltygerman]

John the info is there if you know where to look..Don't get discouraged. Try the search function at the top of the page, this site is the best i've found with very knowledgeable people eager to help....And Welcome To Saltwater.

 

[username.]

i also have a biocube if your going to make mods to it later you might as well do it now before you get any livestock because you may disrupt the enviroment and may crash your tank depending on what you do(plus any mods that you could do to the biocube arnt to hard to do anyway) but good luck with your build and lets see some pics

 

[bang guy]

Welcome and congrats on your first post

If it were mine I would change 100% of the water and keep the ammonia lower than 0.5ppm for as long as I could. This will preserve any life that the ammonia hasn't already killed.
Some people have found this helpful ---> Bang Guy's Cycle Method

 

[john57]

I was leaning towards doing more frequent water changes, but I didn't know if that would slow up the cycling process.

 

[john57]

Thanks for the link bang guy. I've read conflicting information on lights during the cycle. The instructions that came with my live rock said to leave the lights off to discourage an algae bloom. I noticed you recommend lights on.

 

[bang guy]

Originally Posted by john57
http:///forum/post/2865790
Thanks for the link bang guy. I've read conflicting information on lights during the cycle. The instructions that came with my live rock said to leave the lights off to discourage an algae bloom. I noticed you recommend lights on.
I actually encourage algae blooms in the initial stages. Algae is very useful for removing toxins and excess nutrients. I also try to preserve as much life as possible and many animals in a reef depend on light to survive.
As far as slowing the cycle, it's clear to me that water changes do not slow down the cycle. An ammonia level of 8ppm will definately slow it down though and can cause complications later.
High quality live rock is loaded with life, inside and out. You may not see it but it's there, it's not just a home for bacteria. Very high ammonia levels can eventually kill the life inside your rock. This leads to what I call hairy rock syndrome. Dead organisms secrete metabolic acids and Phosphates. This can be a real treat for hair algae as it leaches through the rock and it can grow at an incredible rate even when test kits show Nitrate & Phosphates at 0.00ppm. It really frustrates many hobbiests that allowed ammonia to get too high during their cycle bacause there's no cure other than waiting until the algae consumes all of the stored nutrients in the rock. This can take up to a year.
As far as conflicting information in the hobby - there's plenty of it Sort though the information and make up your own mind. There are dozens of methods that work so don't stress too much. Another approach is to find someone with a tank you really like and emulate them. Be sure to ask lots of questions so you understand why as well as what you're doing.
And... my personal pet peeve of misinformation - no matter what your fish store or anyone else tells you, never use a "PH Buffer" to alter your tank PH. It's almost always the wrong thing to do.

 

[robertmathern]

+1 Bang guy. I thing I have hairy rock syndrome. My amonia wes really high through out my cycle. I did about 50 percent water changes almost every day. Took almost a month to go down. However somethings did survive. A few featherdusters and 2 clams and a oyster. Bunch of varios sponges and worms. So it can be done it just takes alot on your part to make it happen.