cycling with crazy numbers on nitrates and nitrites

[orracle]

Okay I know I sound like a newb but I have done many fishonly tanks over the past ten years and have never seen this. My ammonia spiked at 2 and then went down to 0 on day 10. I have been testing everyday and have not seen any nitrites and on day 12 have only seen with my test on nitrates it was not 0 but not 50 either it was kinda between the two colors. Also on day 11 I came home from work to a brown diatom outbreak. Just wanted to know what you guys think about it and is it cycled. My tank is as follows
44 gallon pentagon penquin biowheel 200 three maxijet 400 2 current usa dual 18 inch T5HO and 64 punds of live rock no live sand in this setup. I currently am stocked with 5 blue green chromas 9 turbo snells 5 hermits 2 sallylight foots 1 kenya tree coral around 4-5 inches tall. Fish were added on day 1 and the CUC on day 4. Live rock not known if it was fully cured or not but I would say not due to the nature of rock I am reading about. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Also added prime the first day and stability for the first week also.

 

[eric b 125]

It doesn't really matter whether or not we think you are fully cycled since you already have fish, a cuc, and corals in the tank...

 

[orracle]

Thanks for the help

 

[geridoc]

The Prime you added probably has kept your livestock alive in the face of elevated ammonia levels. Don't worry about the diatom outbreak - they will go away soon - they are a common appearance while a tank is cycling. Since you added livestock early, don't expect a normal cycle - food and waste will skew your numbers. Just be sure to take the dead animals out of the tank as soon as possible while things settle down.

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by orracle http:///t/390715/cycling-with-crazy-numbers-on-nitrates-and-nitrites#post_3461561
Okay I know I sound like a newb but I have done many fishonly tanks over the past ten years and have never seen this. My ammonia spiked at 2 and then went down to 0 on day 10. I have been testing everyday and have not seen any nitrites and on day 12 have only seen with my test on nitrates it was not 0 but not 50 either it was kinda between the two colors. Also on day 11 I came home from work to a brown diatom outbreak. Just wanted to know what you guys think about it and is it cycled. My tank is as follows
44 gallon pentagon penquin biowheel 200 three maxijet 400 2 current usa dual 18 inch T5HO and 64 punds of live rock no live sand in this setup. I currently am stocked with 5 blue green chromas 9 turbo snells 5 hermits 2 sallylight foots 1 kenya tree coral around 4-5 inches tall. Fish were added on day 1 and the CUC on day 4. Live rock not known if it was fully cured or not but I would say not due to the nature of rock I am reading about. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Also added prime the first day and stability for the first week also.
Hi, Welcome to the site.
I think adding 5 fish at once was unwise. One fish at a time after quarantine. You added the fish on the first day you set up the tank????
I really don't believe you had fish only tanks for 10 years and do what you did. Even a freshwater tank takes time to cycle. With 10 years under your belt...what can I say? Then you tell us you wern't even sure if the rock was cured...
Anyway...I guess we shall see if the critters make it. Do be sure to remove the dead if that starts happening. Instead of dumping prime and doing water tests...maybe do some water changes to try and dilute the problem. It's called a soft cycle, it takes longer but it will keep your critters alive. Everytime you see ammonia spike, change 1/2 of the water. have the ready made up saltwater on hand, it should churn with a power head or utility pump for 24 hours before use. As long as the new saltwater is clear and the right SG it is useable in a pinch.

 

[orracle]

Quote:
I really don't believe you had fish only tanks for 10 years and do what you did. Even a freshwater tank takes time to cycle. With 10 years under your belt...what can I say? Then you tell us you wern't even sure if the rock was cured...
In response to this I have never had any live rock at all and have always cycled with fish from day 1. This my firsdt time with reef type tank and not knowing if the rock was cured or not I bought it from a LFS that stated it was cured, but after talking with other people locally this place does not have the best reputation around. They are located 1.5 hours away cause the local one here has nasty tanks and sick fish all the time so I did not want to deal with them. Im sorry you feel this way about my past but I guess I have always been steered wrong. I was always told to cycle with fish and have been told that damsels are the cycling fish, well this time i went with the chromas recommended by the store. If I have messed up and offended you guys im truly sorry but this is the way i have done it in the past and had good tanks. Like I said this is the first with live rock. I have read about the fishless cycle and thought how could that work and did not wanna even attempt that.

 

[xandrew245x]

Quote:
Originally Posted by orracle http:///t/390715/cycling-with-crazy-numbers-on-nitrates-and-nitrites#post_3462192
In response to this I have never had any live rock at all and have always cycled with fish from day 1. This my firsdt time with reef type tank and not knowing if the rock was cured or not I bought it from a LFS that stated it was cured, but after talking with other people locally this place does not have the best reputation around. They are located 1.5 hours away cause the local one here has nasty tanks and sick fish all the time so I did not want to deal with them. Im sorry you feel this way about my past but I guess I have always been steered wrong. I was always told to cycle with fish and have been told that damsels are the cycling fish, well this time i went with the chromas recommended by the store. If I have messed up and offended you guys im truly sorry but this is the way i have done it in the past and had good tanks. Like I said this is the first with live rock. I have read about the fishless cycle and thought how could that work and did not wanna even attempt that.
Cycling with a fish is inhumane, you put the fish through a lot of pain and suffering during that time. A fishless cycle is very simple, you add an ammonia source, such a raw cocktail shrimp, or ghost feed everyday, or they even sell bacteria in a bottle you can throw in. This works just as well as cycling with a fish, and no critter is harmed during the process. Try it next time.
Also, I don't understand why being the first time you use live rock makes it any different, all the live rock does is allow more area for your bacteria to colonize, if anything it speeds up your cycle , and helps keep your water quality stable and much better.

 

[orracle]

Quote:
Also, I don't understand why being the first time you use live rock makes it any different, all the live rock does is allow more area for your bacteria to colonize, if anything it speeds up your cycle , and helps keep your water quality stable and much better.
The reason i even asked the question here was that I have never cycled a tank without seeing the levels rise and fall but this tank has been different. I have never added any chemicals to teh water in the past and cycling with live rockfrom what i've read can give you numbers like i am seeing now. I have since tested my tank again tonight and have no ammonia nitrite or nitrate showing. Also reading other forums and such it seems that the amout of live rock I have you can be cycled within a short period of time using stability and live rock. We will see how this turns out for now. Thanks for the help and info and yes I will try fishless cycling the next time.

 

[xandrew245x]

Quote:
Originally Posted by orracle http:///t/390715/cycling-with-crazy-numbers-on-nitrates-and-nitrites#post_3462210
The reason i even asked the question here was that I have never cycled a tank without seeing the levels rise and fall but this tank has been different. I have never added any chemicals to teh water in the past and cycling with live rockfrom what i've read can give you numbers like i am seeing now. I have since tested my tank again tonight and have no ammonia nitrite or nitrate showing. Also reading other forums and such it seems that the amout of live rock I have you can be cycled within a short period of time using stability and live rock. We will see how this turns out for now. Thanks for the help and info and yes I will try fishless cycling the next time.
Yes you are correct, it took my tank a little over two weeks to cycle, that is after I found out that my test kit had my wrong for the past 3 weeks, and I actually didn't have any ammonia and nitrite and my tank had been ready the whole time...